Page 57 of Cyber Revenge

I press closer, nuzzling into his neck, breathing him in.

His grip tightens.

And when I whisper, “Please don’t leave…”

He kisses the top of my head and whispers back, “I’m not going anywhere.”

TWENTY-FOUR

TRIP

She fell asleep in my lap.

Tangled in a blanket. Face tucked against my chest.

Fingers still curled into the fabric of my shirt like she was afraid I’d vanish if she let go.

I didn’t move.

Not for hours.

I hoped that bringing the mask back out would help, make her see that she’s safe with me. Maybe it did? But it didn’t feel like it in that moment. It felt like she shattered again. And I won’t be able to forgive myself for that.

Her breath is soft, warm against my neck. Her body, small, vulnerable, molded into mine like she belongs there.

Because shedoes.

My arms stay locked around her, keeping her pressed to me. But I don’t sleep.

Can’t.

Not yet.

Because the danger isn’t gone. Patrick is still out there.

And I know,knowhe isn’t done.

This isn’t a man who gives up.

Patrick doesn’t take rejection lightly. He doesn’t walk away when something he thinks belongs to him slips through his fingers.

No.

Patrick is the kind of man whotakes.Even if it means destroying everything in the process.

And Lydia was the prize he wanted back.

Over my fucking dead body.

I stare at the ceiling, heart pounding slow and steady, adrenaline still humming in my veins.

Every muscle in my body is tight, coiled, ready to spring the second something shifts.

My senses are razor-sharp.

I can hear the clock ticking in the kitchen. The distant hum of the fridge. The soft rustle of the blanket as Lydia shifts in her sleep, nuzzling deeper into me.

Mine.

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