Page 113 of Laila Manning
The only noise was our breathing and the erratic beating of my heart in my chest as he pulled out and lay on his side facing me.
I could just make out the features of his face in the darkness, and I ran my fingertips over the chiseled muscles of his jaw. “Is it done?” I asked after a while, unable to imagine the outcome any longer.
“Yes.” He whispered. “It’s done.”
“How do you feel?” I asked.
“Calm.” He licked his lips, “Finally.”
“Good.” I nuzzled my nose against his and took a deep breath. “Sleep now, baby. Everything else is okay for now. Just rest.”
“Mmh.” He hummed, closing his eyes and settling with me in his embrace.
“Where’s Kade?” Zeke’s voice rumbled, breaking through my thoughts as he pulled a short-sleeve shirt over his head, fresh from the shower. My pulse skipped, my body reacting without permission as Itried to ignore the way his tattoos caught the light, the way his muscles flexed with every movement.
I licked my lips, struggling to untangle my thoughts. "The gym," I stammered, the words heavy in my mouth, fighting to control the way my body betrayed me. "He went with Jed."
Zeke’s eyes shifted to me, an almost predatory gleam in them as he started to move toward me, his confident stride purposeful. The weight of his presence, the raw energy he exuded, made my knees weaken. He didn’t need to touch me for me to feel his power, the kind that commanded attention and respect, and somehow… safety.
“Good,” he murmured, his voice low and steady, but the smile that tugged at his lips promised something else entirely. “We have somewhere to be.”
My body tensed. “No,” I whined, sagging against him. “I thought you were asking because you wanted to—”
“Oh, I do,” he interrupted, stopping in front of me, his fingers lightly grazing my skin as he held my gaze. “But there’s something I need to show you first.”
I groaned in frustration, but there was no denying the excitement stirring inside me. Zeke was always full of surprises, and as much as I hated unpredictability, I craved it with him. He was the chaos to my calm, and I couldn’t help but love him more for it.
“Ugh.” I sighed, defeated by the way he always had a way of pulling me along with him, even when I wasn’t sure I was ready. But I followed him without another word, helpless to resist.
Last night he killed two people because of me—yet this morning he chuckled and flirted with me like he didn’t darken his soul for me. And I loved him so deeply because of it.
When we left the barracks, he opened the door to his sleek car, and I hesitated before slipping into the passenger seat. The hum of theengine was a strange comfort, the vibration beneath me like a steady pulse I could depend on. We pulled out of the driveway, and I half expected him to turn right toward the exit of the gated community, but he veered left, then left again, entering a private driveway down the street. My confusion deepened as I glanced at him, his jaw tight as he focused on the road ahead.
“Explain.” I demanded, unable to hide my curiosity.
“Just wait,” he said, a grin tugging at his lips.
We passed through a manicured front yard, the house coming into view, its elegant colonial structure standing tall behind grand pillars. A basketball hoop hung over a garage door, a peaceful scene that seemed so out of place, yet oddly perfect in its own way.
It was smaller than the mansions that lined the streets in the community, but it had so much charm and warmth, it felt like ahome.
I couldn’t help the way my thoughts wandered—thoughts of Kade, the kid who deserved to grow up in a place like this, a place where he could be safe, loved, and free. It was the kind of life I would have wanted for him, and yet, none of us had grown up the way we deserved.
“Come on,” Zeke urged, pulling me from my spiraling thoughts, taking my hand in his and leading me toward the front door.
“What are we doing?” I asked, my voice unsteady as I followed him through the grand entrance. “Zeke, what is going on?”
“I want to show you something.” His words were firm, but his touch was gentle, guiding me forward as he opened the door and walked right in, as though he owned the place. I stopped in my tracks, my heart pounding as I glanced around. “Zeke!” I hissed, dragging my feet. “We can’t just walk into someone’s house.”
“An hour ago,” he said, his voice casual, “it became my house.”
I stared at him, wide-eyed. “What? You—what?”
“I bought it,” he said, his grin widening as he pulled me inside. “Ryker didn’t want the house next door to his estate being sold to someone else, so instead of letting some stranger take it, I bought it.”
The weight of his words slammed into me. My mind struggled to process it. “You—bought this? For us?”
Zeke nodded, the intensity in his eyes softening. “I don’t want the two of you in the barracks anymore. You deserve more than that. More than I ever had growing up. I want us to have a place of our own, a real home, together. I don’t care where it is—this house, another one—I just want you and Kade to have something we can make ours. A place where we can heal.”
