Page 43 of Some Saviors Can Break You

He released his hold on her, and she fell to the floor, her legs unable to hold her up.

The man stood above her, but her vision was blurry now, her body uncooperative, and the tides of unconsciousness were lapping at the edges of her mind.

6:40 A.M.

Eli had gone back and forth with himself over coming here, but in the end, he decided that he couldn’t stay away.

He was making a real effort not to push too hard, not to pressure her too much, to take a step back and give Florence some space, but he couldn’t do it. Last night when she hadn't replied to his goodnight texts asking how she was feeling, he’d been ready to leave the ball in her court, let her take the next step.

This morning he’d woken up and known he couldn’t do that.

Something was urging him to fight for her and keep fighting for as long as it took for her to get the message.

Maybe Florence needed to know that she was worth it.

All her life she’d felt disposable, not good enough, her father hadn't stuck around, her mother had put boyfriends and alcohol ahead of her children, she hadn't had friends to support her, she’d been alone every step of the way, no wonder she had trouble believing him.

He’d find a way to prove it to her, he’d fight for her, make her believe that she was special and precious, and she was worth every ounce of effort he was putting into wooing her. He wasn't used to having to work for a woman’s affections, but for some reason that was a turn on, he’d heard the saying that anything worth having was worth working for, but he’d never really understood it until now. It was the very fact that Florence was both strong and confident, and insecure and vulnerable that made her so attractive.

So he would continue to pick her up in the mornings and drive her to work, then collect her at the end of the day, and he already had their next date all planned out for them, only this time he had gone in a completely different direction.

Climbing out of the car when it stopped in front of Florence’s building, he made sure that the flowers were all straight in their bouquet and hadn't gotten mussed on the ride here. Just as he was approaching the door, he saw a man go hurrying out, barging past him and nearly crashing into him in his haste.

As the man went past, he caught a whiff of subtle lavender that reminded him of Florence’s perfume.

Eli froze.

Had this man just left Florence’s apartment?

Did Florence have a boyfriend?

Was that why she had been shutting him out?

It wouldn’t be the first time that someone had used him for his money, maybe when he’d mentioned taking her to Florence she’d thought she’d play along, lead him on just enough to keep him interested, then cut him loose once she got what she wanted.

Anger burned inside him, and he turned to head back to the car.

He was halfway there when he stopped again. What was he thinking? This was Florence they were talking about, she was a cop, she didn't play games like that. If nothing else, he knew she wasn't lying when she’d told him about her childhood, the hurt in her eyes had been real, she couldn’t fake that.

Deciding that he was being foolish, Florence wasn't the only woman who wore lavender-scented perfumes, there was no reason to believe that the man had come from her apartment at all, Eli spun around and hurried inside out of the softly falling snow.

The lift seemed to take forever to arrive, and he waited impatiently. Maybe part of him did believe the man had just left Florence’s apartment and he wanted to catch her in the act to either confirm or deny his suspicions. It was wrong to doubt her, but she had been pushing him away, and he wanted to know the reason why. If it wasn't because she was involved with another man then what was it?

Finally, the lift arrived, and when he got in he hit the button for Florence’s floor a little harder than necessary, but he was angry with himself. He hated this sudden rush of insecurity where Florence was concerned. That wasn't him, like Florence was always pointing out he was cocky, he knew he was good looking, charming, smart, and wealthy, and he didn't believe in false modesty. He didn't tie himself up in knots obsessing over a woman.

But Florence wasn't just any woman.

She was special, and he felt like she had infected him, getting not just under his skin but embedded in every molecule of his being.

The doors to the lift opened, and he strode through them, trying to get himself under control before he saw Florence. If he was all alpha and controlling when he knocked on her door she was going to shut that down pretty quickly, she was a cop, she probably spent all day with alpha males and knew how to put them in their place.

When he got to her door he came up short.

It was sitting slightly open.

For some reason, he didn't think Florence would leave her door open like that. Sure, she’d had a headache when he’d dropped her off last night, but she was lucid and cognizant.

Wasn't she?

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