Page 31 of Blood
Everleigh’s face lights up with a teasing grin. “Phillip? Like Prince Phillip from Sleeping Beauty?”
I smile back. “That’s right, baby. Your very own Prince Charming.”
24
Everleigh
Wolf’splaceisatownhome in Brooklyn with two bedrooms. So much has happened in the past week that I wonder how things still look reasonably in order at his house. It’s been here, untouched, while my life has been crashing down around me.
I also don’t understand how I can have feelings for someone in such a short time. It doesn’t make any sense, especially for someone like me. I’ve always played my cards close to the chest. I don’t let people in. I don’t fall quickly, or easily, for anyone. I’m not sure I’ve ever really fallen at all.
But here I am, staying at a man’s house less than a week after I met him for the first time. And I’m not sure at all that I haven’t fallen already.
Wolf’s place is exactly what I’d expect. Everything in order, minimalist but functional. There’s a small kitchen, a living room with a two-person dining table pushed up against one wall. A bathroom off the living room. There’s a bedroom across from the bathroom, with a full-size bed and a few boxes in the corner. It seems like a guest room that’s been used mostly for storage.
Wolf’s tour of the house ends at the master bedroom. The large room is at the far end of the hall and has its own ensuite bathroom. There’s a huge bed that looks larger than a king-size, as well as actual furniture: a dresser, two nightstands, and a bookshelf. This must be where Wolf sleeps.
I have the irrational thought that I want to go through his dresser. And maybe his medicine cabinet. You can learn a lot about a person by how they fold their clothes and how many outfits they have, more than you’ll learn just by talking with them. What do they keep in their medicine cabinet—is it just Tylenol, or is there a supply of condoms as well? I’m not sure I want to think about Wolf having sex with anyone else. The sudden stab of jealously catches me off guard.
Wolf orders us takeout for dinner. We eat the coconut curry at the small table, then move to the couch to watch a movie, and the strangest thing is how normal it all feels. Could this be my life? Eating Thai food and watching old movies with Wolf?
My cheek is still throbbing. Wolf hands me a pain pill and a glass of water, then waits while I swallow it down. I’m a lightweight when it comes to medicine, and I probably should have shared that with Wolf before I took the whole thing. The pill knocks out the pain, and once the ache ebbs, the exhaustion of the day catches up with me. I only realize I’ve fallen asleep on Wolf’s shoulder when he lifts me off the couch. He carries me to the guest room and tucks me into bed.
“Go to sleep, Everleigh. I’ll be here when you wake up.” He closes the door behind him.
I wonder why he trusts me all alone in this room, and why I find myself wanting to be next to him. My normal has gone from being unable to sleep with anyone in my bed to needing him with me.
Alone, this bed feels too big, too cold. Empty. I’m too tired to consider his reasoning, though. I drift off to sleep as Wolf closes the door.
“You’re the one in danger, Everleigh. You should be dead right now. Why do you always fuck things up for me?”
He twists my arms behind me, pulling them so hard I worry that my shoulders are going to dislocate. He secures me to the bed with rope that burns against my skin, pulling it so tightly that my joints ache.
The taste of my own musk makes bile rise in my throat as he gags me with my own underwear. I have so many things I want to scream at him, but I can wait. I don’t know why he’s doing this. He’s unhinged. For the first time in my life, I’m scared of Asher.
“Just as well, you’re going to die here today, sis. Dante knows exactly what I told him. That you’re a security risk. He’s the guy at the top, and he signed off on your death. The fact that I’m the one who gets to kill you now is just the icing on the fucking cake.”
I scream into the gag, and he slaps me again.
I gasp for breath, sitting up in bed. The room is dark. My cheek is throbbing. It’s not my room, nor even the cabin that I’d gotten used to. Where am I? My heart races for a minute before I remember. I’m at Wolf’s house…in his guest bed. I’m safe. My face hurts because I have a broken cheekbone. Asher’s not here.
Something from my dream comes back to me. A memory of something Asher said.
Danteknows.
He said Dante is the guy at the top. That he sanctioned the hit on me. That means that the Kings won’t stop. They’re going to come after me.
The bedroom door opens. Wolf hurries into the room, clad only in his boxer shorts.
“What’s wrong? I heard you scream.” He sits on the edge of the bed and cups his hand around my face.
I take a few breaths, needing to gather my thoughts. “I was dreaming.”
“Oh, baby, it’s okay. It’s just a dream. No one is going to hurt you.” He runs his thumb along my jaw.
I shake my head. “No. It wasn’t a dream. More like…a flashback. I remember—what Asher said in his apartment. I remember now.”
Wolf’s eyes narrow, but his gaze remains fixed on my face. “What did he say?”
