Page 161 of Creep

“Something you don’t need to know about now.”

She looked at the back of the truck. I cupped her cheek and directed her attention back to me. “If you want to know the answer, just ask. I will always tell you. But only ask questions about things you can handle. Got me?”

She didn’t say anything for a moment, taking in my words before she nodded. I waited for her to ask me what was going to happen to the fucker who tried to run her off the road.

She didn’t.

Instead, she leaned forward and pressed a kiss on the corner of my lips, pulling away too fucking soon before settling back into her seat. She pulled her seatbelt on and faced forward. I looked at her for a long second, taking in her profile and running my hand over my chest when it felt like there was an…achethere that I didn’t know how to get rid of.

What the hell was she doing to me?

“I don’t think we should linger,” Lia said, pulling me out of my thoughts. She was right. I nodded and drove off, leaving the mess behind. I hoped Briggs would see this. He probably knew that Lia was with someone.

Probably even guessed it was the stalker she had run to him for protection from.

Even the texts he sent to the men he had put on her were silent.

He wasn’t stupid. It wouldn’t take him long to realize they were dead.

I drove to the crematorium before heading back to my apartment. Theo was standing out front, waiting for us.

I put the car into park and turned to Lia. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”

“But—”

I cut her off by cupping the back of her neck and pulling her to me, kissing her with everything I had.

She sighed in my mouth, making my skin shake with desperation for her to be closer to me, and closer still… until there was no way for anyone to tell us apart.

I pulled away first when it felt like it was becoming too much. She kept her eyes closed.

I pressed another kiss on her lips, this one quicker and much tamer than the first.

“Be a good girl and stay here.”

I got out of the car and met Theo at the back of my truck, unlatching the tailgate and pulling the sheets away. It looked like the fucker was just about waking up.

“Have fun,” I said to Theo, who was already dragging the man out of the truck bed. He let the fucker carelessly drop to the ground. “But not too much fun. I still want a turn when I come back tonight.”

Theo grinned at me. “Don’t worry. I’ll keep him alive for you.”

I had no doubt he would. I bent down until the man was looking up at me. His brown eyes were getting clearer and clearer with each passing second. I could see the panic was already starting to set in.

I grabbed a fistful of his hair until he was focused on me. “I’m going to make you fucking regret all of your decisions today.”

I let go of him and climbed back into the truck. I pulled Lia in close to me and pressed her face down on my chest.

“Mael? What are you doing?”

“It’s okay,” I said, cupping the back of her head and holding her there. I kept my eyes on Theo as he dragged the man away, slower than it would have been had the fucker not been struggling so much.

Just because Lia knew everything there was to know about me didn’t mean I wanted her to witness it. If I had it my way, the darkness of my world would never touch her.

I held her for a bit longer, even when Theo finally managed to pull the fucker back inside and out of sight.

When I let her go, her eyes immediately moved to the front door. I was sure she knew why I was holding her like that. She didn’t comment on it, and neither did I.

I pulled the truck away and made the quick drive back to the apartment.

---