Page 97 of Tell Me Why
For one wild, heart-stopping moment, I’m afraid Lucas will continue the fight. But some weird, unspoken thing passes between them—a lifetime of brotherhood crumbling like sand. Lucas straightens slowly, squaring his shoulders as he faces Christian.
“You’ve chosen her over everything,” Lucas says, his voice hollow with disbelief. “Over the Burning Crown. Overme.”
“You wouldn’t do the same for Wyn?” Christian asks.
Lucas doesn’t answer, but I can see the wreckage of Christian’s choice etched on his face as he shakes his head, turns, and walks away.
Christian drops his head and wipes the blood from his nose before turning his head to look at me. I’m drenched, shivering, and my throat is so thick with emotion, I can’t even cry.
He approaches me slowly, his eyes wandering over my body, like he’s trying to assure himself I’m okay.
“How did you find me?” I choke out, teeth chattering.
He tugs me against his chest, arms wrapping around me tightly, his lips resting on the top of my head. I should shove him away, but after everything that just happened, I’m exhausted, and I just don’t have it in me. So, instead, I melt against his chest and sink into his warmth.
“The necklace,” he says. “It has a tracker in it.”
Why am I not shocked?
I pull back slightly to look up at him. “That’s how you found me during the Fox Hunt.”
He raises a brow. “No way in hell I’d risk someone else finding you.”
“Oh,” I say, not sure how to feel about that, because I’m glad he found me, but, you know,damn. Stalker much?
His gaze falls to my lips, his head lowering slowly, and I swallow. Is he going to kiss me? Do I want that? Honestly, I do. I crave the feel of his soft lips against mine, the minty taste of his breath, but...
I step back, out of his arms.
Christian West isn’t good for me. And this whole nightmare with his brother just proves what I’ve always known—stories like ours don’t get a happily ever after…
CHAPTERFORTY-ONE
Christian
My chest achesas Eve follows me back to the car, her cold hand nestled in mine. When I saw her with Lucas, out in the water, I thought I was too late…and in that split-second, my entire world fell apart.
I keep replaying that moment in my head. What if I’d arrived a minute later? What if Eve hadn’t taken the necklace? There are so many different ways it could have gone wrong.
Eve’s duffel bag lies in a heap on the parking lot asphalt, abandoned where Lucas has tossed it from his car. I pick it up and put it into my trunk, then I open the passenger side door for her.
“Where am I taking you?” I ask, resisting the urge to insist I take her somewhere we can both lay low for a while. Not back to Rush House, obviously, but there are a million places we could go.
Her head drops against the backrest. She looks exhausted. “No idea. I’d asked Lucas to take me to a motel, but…” She turns her head to look at me. “Maybe that’s not such a good idea anymore.”
“Yeah.” I slide into the driver’s seat and turn the heater on, blasting it. “No worries. I’ve got you.”
We head to the only place I know she’ll be safe. It’s a short drive, but on the way, her eyelids drift closed, and I reach out to place my hand on hers. Her skin is cold against mine, and something in my chest fractures and breaks. Maybe it’s my calcified heart.
I can’t fucking lose her.
I can’t.
And for the first time in my entire fucking life, I have no idea what to do.
When we reach our destination, I park, but keep the engine idling, so I don’t have to turn off the heat. She’s cold, and after the adrenaline wore off, her body finally gave in to exhaustion. I need to get her inside, get her out of those wet clothes, but I’m reluctant to leave this little bubble where I can be near her, watch her, protect her…
But who’s going to protect her from you?My mind echoes.
