Page 60 of Silent as Sin
I held her tighter, my face pressed into her hair. “Shh. It’s me. You’re safe.”
She tried to shift again, but I didn’t let her go. Not this time. Not until she knew the truth.
“You think I lied to you,” I said softly, the words rough in my throat. “Think I kept quiet because there was something to hide. But you’ve got it wrong.”
She stilled, her breath jagged against my chest.
“I haven’t touched Roxy in months,” I went on. “Not before I found you. Not since. She kept throwing herself at me, thinking she could crawl her way into my bed. I shut her down every time. That’s why she’s bitter. That’s why she came for you. It was a trap, Wren. That’s all it’s ever been.”
Her fingers curled into the sheet, silent, but she didn’t try to move again.
I cupped the back of her head, forcing her closer. “I wasn’t keeping anything from you. I didn’t say her name because she doesn’t fucking matter. You do. You’re the only one I see. The only one I want.”
Her breath hitched, and for a second I thought she’d break, push me away again. Instead, she whispered, so faint I almost missed it, “Then why did it hurt so much?”
The words gutted me.
“Because you care,” I said, keeping my voice quiet but fierce. “And because you’re mine now. I love you, Wren. Too much to let her poison touch what we’ve got. I should’ve told you, yeah. Should’ve burned that lie out before it hit your ears. But don’t mistake my silence for betrayal. I’d rather cut my own throat than betray you.”
Her hand finally loosened, resting against my chest. Her body sagged into me, still trembling, but not fighting.
I kissed her temple, breathing her in. “You’ve got scars, Wren. So do I. But I’m not letting them own us. Not anymore. Not Roxy. Not Venom. Not Bones. Nobody.”
Slowly, her breath evened, the fight leaving her. She nestled closer, her face pressed against my skin. I held her tighter, my heart pounding steady against her cheek, and whispered again, “I love you. That’s the only truth that matters.”
And this time, she didn’t pull away.
Her breathing steadied against me, little by little, until the jagged edges smoothed out. She was still curled tight, still holding herself like she might shatter, but she wasn’t fighting me anymore.
I brushed my lips over her hair. “That’s it, Wren. Just rest.”
The storm outside had eased, the rain now a steady patter against the windows. Every drop sounded like a clock ticking, like the world out there was waiting for its chance to rip her from me.
Not a chance.
Her fingers twitched against my chest, as if she wanted to hold on but was too tired to try. I caught her hand, laced my fingers through hers, and anchored it there over my heart.
“I’ve got you,” I murmured. “Even when you’re mad at me. Even when you think I’ve failed. You’re mine, Wren, and I’ll bleed out before I let anyone prove different.”
Her breath hitched once more, then went soft, slipping into sleep.
I stayed awake, eyes fixed on the shadows shifting across the ceiling. My cut was draped over the chair, my gun within reach on the nightstand. The whole world could come clawing at that door, and I’d still keep her here in my arms.
Because this wasn’t about promises anymore. It was about protection. About love. About making sure the one person who’d trusted me with her scars never had to doubt me again.
Long after her breathing went even, I stayed there holding her, keeping watch, daring anyone — Bones, Ghosts, the whole goddamn desert — to try me.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
THE CLUBHOUSE FELThollow without the men.Engines had roared out at dawn, the sound fading into the desert until only silence and the faint smell of oil lingered. The absence was sharp enough to ache. Every tick of the wall clock cut through the quiet like a reminder that I was alone.
I stayed close to the common room, a book open in my lap, though my eyes barely skimmed the words. Ashen had held me through the night, his arms locked tight around me like he was afraid I’d slip away if he let go. I’d woken wrapped in him, his steady heartbeat under my hand, his voice still echoing in my head:I love you. That’s the only truth that matters.
I wanted to believe it. God, I did. But now the bed was empty, the clubhouse quieter, and the silence let doubts creep back in like weeds through cracked stone.
“Need anything?”
I flinched at the sound, snapping my gaze up. Dusty leaned against the doorway, arms crossed. The older man wore his years in the lines across his face and the grey threaded through his beard. He’d always been polite, constant in the background, a man who never raised his voice and never took sides.
