Page 253 of Cross the Line
Even though he’s still smiling, his eyes slope. Bringing an earnest gravity to his expression.
Fuck. My teeth snap together, grinding at the pacifying stroke of his thumb over the back of my hand.
“I’ve turned your life upside-down, JJ—” Eli rolls his lip between his teeth with a sigh. “—and you’re still here. Still holding on.”
Clutching his hand tighter, I tell him, “I’m never letting go. Of you or Fin. I love who we are together… Who I am with you and our girl. You’ve made me a better man.”
“Ditto.” His stare flits down to our joined hands, and when it lifts back to mine, there’s a heart-wrenching ferocity burning in his eyes. “Your strength and tenacity are not lost on me, Jayden. I love that about you.”
“I love you, too, Delroba.”
A low growl rumbles from deep in his chest at my use of Bibi’s endearment for him. It’s so accurate. I didn’t stand a fucking chance when he came into my life. Eli commandeered my heart with his first brooding glance, and I don’t ever want it back.
It’s his.
For eternity.
CHAPTER 74
ELI
Finley didn’t show up for the game. I looked for her. Jayden looked for her. During our shifts on the ice and while we were on the bench. Her seat next to Paige and Lily remained empty to the last buzzer.
“She’s not answering her phone,” I tell Jayden as we get in the car, and he urgently taps at his wrist.
My bracelet vibrates.
Bile burns up my throat at the empty seconds that follow.
In the back of my mind, there’s an insidious rumble. A reminder of the promise Presley made the night he assaulted me.
“Jayden…” My voice is a hoarse whisper, trembling so hard it breaks.
“It’s been a long day with a lot to process,” he starts at the same time as he begins cruising home through the last smattering of fans outside the arena.
They pause and wave, hollering at us with the excitement from our win. The usual buzz that vibrates in my chest from their show of passion is stymied by the growing lump in my throat. By the time we get close to home, it’s a fucking iceberg, threatening to tear me open and drown me in a bottomless ocean of anxiety.
Jayden and I are caught in fraught silence. Each of us too afraid to vocalize our worries. Finley hasn’t called or texted. She’s not responding to the vibrations of our bracelets.
Fuck.
Reporters are waiting when we turn onto our block. As we pause forthe garage gate to lift, flash after flash pops against the tinted glass, even though all they’ll get are our murky shadows.
“What’s wrong with these people?” Jayden mutters, backing into his spot in one swift move.
Finley’s space between our vehicles is empty.
I’m trying to keep calm. Maybe Fin left her car at work and took an Uber directly to the front of the building. With the press outside, it would make sense. Less bullshit to wade through.
It makes sense, I’m telling myself as we rush out of JJ’s SUV.
“Come on, Sunshine—” I breathe out an aching sigh. “—let’s go find our girl.”
We race to the elevator, side-by-side. The backs of our hands colliding with the propelling swing of our arms.
“Fin’s okay, right?” Jayden asks as the doors close ahead of us.
“Yeah.”There’s no other option.
