Page 57 of Break the Ice
He’s silent for the longest while. Staring at a photo of us at the mall. I’m walking alongside Jayden and Elijah. Jayden’s hand hangs next to mine while he’s looking at Elijah as he stares at me.
When he turns it over, a low growl vibrates in the back of his throat.
Thou shalt not steal from the Lord.
“What is happening right now?” Christina flips the photos in her hand over. “A thief must make restitution?”
“Let’s go home,” Elijah says, scrunching the photo in his hand before he snatches the others out of Christina’s hold and leads me to his G-Wagon on the other side of the road.
“This is insane. Are they stalking you?Us?” Christina sounds as shaky as I feel.
My mouth is dry, and my chest is strangling my lungs.
“Hey,” Elijah pinches my chin between his thumb and forefinger, lifting my face to his as he assures me, “Nobody’s gonna hurt you. Nobody’s gonna take you away. You trust me?”
“Yes.” I nod and he envelopes me in a firm embrace.
It doesn’t last long. Before I’m ready for him to let me go, he bundles me into the passenger seat of his SUV and buckles me in. Then he’s speeding away, like he’s racing away from hell itself.
CHAPTER 18
JAYDEN
I almost miss the doorbell when the track changes and the buzz comes through my earbuds. I’m half-tempted to ignore it and carry on reading. But there’s only three people it can be. Auguste always calls ahead and knocks, like he doesn’t know what a doorbell is for. Which means, that it can only be Eli or Finley.
After the other day, I know I should stay away. Until I can get my thoughts in order and control this ridiculous longing scratching at my ribs from the inside out. I’m trying so hard and failing so miserably. I can’t be around Eli and Finley without wanting to get closer. Without watching the way they yearn for each other and feeling it pang in my chest like a new heartbeat throwing me totally out of whack with myself.
That’s where I’m at when I open the door and Finley greets me with a part-tentative and part-apologetic smile.
“Hey,” she says with a wave that has my eyes trailing down to her hand by her chest.
She’s wearing another short, floral dress, and her hair is a wild disarray of mousy brown waves that are too fucking tempting to comb through with my fingers.
How’s it possible that she looks better every time I see her?
“I brought you pie,” Finley tells me, her smile widening. “Blueberry crumble.”
“Oh.” Sure enough, she’s holding a small dish in her other hand.
“I made it. So, it’s fresh, and I can tell you what’s in it ingredient for ingredient.”
“You want to come in or list them out for me here?”
“Are you busy?” She asks, glancing down at the book in my hand. Her eyes widen when she reads the title—Pride and Prejudice—and self-awareness stalls my pulse a beat or two. “I don’t want to intrude or anything, I just?—”
“Finley.” I cut off her nervous babble before she passes out. “Come in.”
Taking the dish from her, I head straight to the kitchen. Placing my book and the pie down on the kitchen island, I grab a couple of plates and a carton of frozen custard from the freezer.
“Take a seat,” I tell her when she ambles up to the open plan kitchen. “You want a drink?”
“I won’t stay long or take up any of your time. You’re probably trying to rest, so…”
“You’re not taking up my time, Lucky.”
“Okay.” The trepidation on her face evaporates completely while she takes a seat opposite where I’m standing.
“What brings you across the hall with a yummy pie just for me?” I put on my best Southern accent, which is still terrible, but it makes Finley chuckle, so it’s perfect.
