Page 31 of Ours

“We need to go,” she said, her voice laced with urgency.

“Go? Go, where? Lexi...there’s no running when it comes to Bloodbayne. He will send Valentina to hunt us down before we even get a chance to leave the Tri-State Area,” he replied.

Lifting her head from his torso, she gave him a quizzical look. What was he talking about? They had ample time to disappear.

“Bloodbayne hasn’t contacted you in days! If we left now, we could get on a plane an—”

“Lexi,” he interrupted, “I’m leaving in less than eight hours.”

Looking at him with wide eyes, she pushed herself away from his grasp. Frantically searching his stoic face, she stammered as her brain raced to make sense of what he was saying.

“What?! What are you talking about? You’re leaving? To where?” she demanded.

Pressing his lips together, he gave a small shrug of his shoulders. He didn’t know why he was surprised that Nikki kept her in the dark about his little trip, but it pissed him off, nonetheless. “Thailand. I have some business that I need to attend to. I’ll only be gone a few days...a week at most—”

“You can’t possibly leave me here,alone!”she said, raising her voice. “If you leave me...leaveus...we will be dead before you come back. You can’t lea—”

“Lexi!” he exclaimed, gently grabbing her upper arms to make her focus. “Stop! Just...stop...and listen to me, ok? Just...listen.”

Snapping her mouth shut, she reluctantly followed his command. Nodding her head, she waited for him to speak. She prayed that he had at least a semblance of a plan.

Softly running his hands along her arms, he took in a large breath. Centering his gaze on hers, he softened his masculine features. He could tell that she was on the verge of a panic attack by her shallow breaths and dilated pupils. He needed to soothe her, for her sake and their daughter’s.

“Ok. Good...that’s my good girl,” he began, giving her a loving smile. “Now listen to me. Bloodbayne won’t find out. I promise you, ok? While you were in the bathroom changing, I had a littletalkwith the ultrasound tech and the doctor. I made sure that the sex of our child remained male onallyour medical records—”

“How can you be so sure?!” she interrupted.

“Sweetheart, just trust me. They changed the records right in front of my face and I know for afactthat they value the lives of their family members so they won’t say anything...now please, don’t interrupt me again, ok?” he asked, his expression turning stern.

Swallowing hard, she slowly nodded her head. She didn’t believe for a second that the hospital staff would care about his threat if Bloodbayne approached him, but she was curious to hear his plan.

Letting out a sigh, he moved his hands to cradle her face. Keeping her steady, he continued with his train of thought.

“There’s no running, Lexi...the only way to keep you and our daughter alive is to eliminate Bloodbayne. But there needs to be planning involved...this isn’t something that can be done right this second for a few reasons. For one, he isn’t even in the country. He left for Columbia yesterday and he won’t be back before I come home. His entire security detail is with him, so there’s not even theslightestchance of a threat. You, and our baby girl, will be completely safe here for the next few days. I will be in constant contact with you. I’ll text and call every two hours and as soon as I’m done with this ridiculous mission, I’ll be on a plane coming home to you.Thenwe can come up with a plan to take him down, ok?”

Blinking up at him, Lexi mulled over his words. If Bloodbayne wasn’t even in the country, then she really had nothing to worry about. She was more than capable of protecting herself for a few days. Once he came home, they could take his father outtogether.Their twisted little family would then be safe.This could work,she told herself. No. Thiswouldwork.

“Ok,” she said. “Just a few days?”

Leaning forward, he pressed his lips against her forehead. “I’ll be back before you even begin to miss me.”

Closing her eyes, she melted under his tender kiss. A week alone was nothing. She had been through far worse and had always found a way to keep her head above water. Even if Nikki remained silent, she knew she would be ok.

“Deal?” he asked, his lips curling into a lopsided grin.

“Deal,” she replied.

“That’s my girl,” he praised, pushing a strand of hair from her eyes. “Now why don’t you get ready for bed. I’ll grab some snacks and meet you there. How does that sound?”

“Sounds perfect,” she said, feeling her stomach rumble. “Don’t be long. I’m hungry.”

“I won’t be, I promise,” he replied.

Forcing a cheerful smile, he watched her as she turned on her heels and headed towards the master bedroom. Chewing on the inside of his cheek, he waited until she crossed the threshold before dropping the charade. He was stunned that she didn’t ask any more questions. Maybe she finally trusted him?

You’d better hope nothing happens, Kade. You know damn well Valentina stayed behind,Demetri warned.

Turning towards the standing mirror flanking the hallway, Kade set sights on his reflection. Shrugging his shoulders, he hissed a reply. “I don’t think she caught onto that...but it’s not important. Bloodbayne won’t find out.”

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