to feel guilty for being who you are. I love taking care of you. I want to take care of you every single day. I want to give you a life that you deserve. I wouldn’t want you any other way. That’s just how I am—and I won’t apologize for it.”
I looked at him again, seeing the confidence in his gaze, seeing a man who overwhelmed me with sincere compliments. “You’re the only one who has nice things to say about me.”
His eyes softened until they turned sympathetic. “Because I’m the only one who really knows you, chérie.”
My eyes started to water as I looked at him, for a variety of reasons. “If you really feel that way about me…please do this for me. You were right when you said I can’t run to her. I can’t go to the police. My sister would never give up on me if the situations were reversed, and the only way I can save her is if you agree to do this for me. So, if you feel anything for me…please.”
He held my gaze for a long time, his eyes still, his breathing nearly unnoticeable.
“I will always feel this way. I will always suffer. I will always wake up with nightmares of her with that rope around her neck. She will always be in the back of my mind, consuming my thoughts anytime I’m alone…even when I’m not alone.” My hand reached out to his, and I squeezed it between both of mine. Two tears dripped from my eyes and down my cheeks simultaneously. “Please…I beg you.”
His eyes slowly shifted away, looking at another point in the living room.
“You’re the boss. You can do whatever you want—”
“I told you I don’t negotiate. I don’t make exceptions—”
“You took me.”
“That’s different. The guards know exactly why I did that. To take her is a different scenario, especially after all the grief she’s caused—”
“The exception is not for her. It’s for me.” I squeezed his hand tighter. “She’s always going to fight. She’s always going to cause grief. Your life will be easier when she’s gone—think about it that way.”
He fell silent and didn’t look at me again.
“You’re my only hope, Fender.”
At the sound of his name, he turned back to me, his gaze hard.
“Take care of me. I’m asking you to take care of me.” I knew I was so close to changing his mind, securing the one thing I wanted more than anything else in the world. My hands shook as they held on to him.
He stared for a long time before he spoke. “She will always stand between us. She will always haunt you. That is the only reason—”
“Thank you.” I jumped into him, my arms latching on for dear life. My body moved into his lap, and I clung to him like a lifeline.
He didn’t hug me back, remaining still as he felt me bury my face in his neck and cry. His arms eventually wrapped around me, his hand moving into my hair, pressing a kiss to my shoulder. His hand gently pulled me back so he could look at me. “Don’t misunderstand me. I’ll remove her from the camp, but I won’t let her go.”
I was disappointed but unsurprised. “Then where will she go?”
“On the estate in the guest quarters. You can go visit her, but she’ll never be permitted to enter our residence. Guards will watch her at all times. She’ll have everything she needs to be comfortable, but never freedom. That’s the extent of my generosity.”
She would just be a prisoner again, but in a luxurious setting. Raven would never accept that. “If the police will do nothing if she goes to them, and she’s no threat to you, then why not just release her?”
He stared me down long and hard, like the question angered him. “Because I don’t like her.” His tone darkened, his expression hardening and turning his countenance angry. “Appreciate my generosity. Because I’m being very generous, more generous than I’ve ever been in my life—for you.” He stared me down in expectation.
My arms remained wrapped around his neck, my face close to his, my ass in his lap on the couch. I knew Raven wouldn’t accept imprisonment in any format, but she would be taken care of, we would see each other every day, we would be safe for the rest of our lives. She would accept it eventually. She would appreciate what I’d done for her—that I saved her. “Thank you.”