could’ve killed me.
He could have made me rescind my disinvitation. Uninvitation?
Whatever.
The genuine pain in his voice still rips at me, even as I recall it.
He truly didn’t want me to leave.
Shouldn’t I at least give him a chance?
Long shadows follow me as the sun sinks toward the mountains to the west and casts the valley in deep shades of blues and purples and dark greens. I pull my phone from my pocket. As I walk, I stare at the text Ty sent me earlier.
Those aren’t the words of a soulless monster.
I think about our scene, what I can remember of it through the blur of passion.
I think about how he made love to me later.
He didn’t overwhelm me. He asked for my consent.
Except, I started my life lied to and controlled. I dang sure don’t want that from my boyfriend.
I don’t have any answer except I need to talk to him again.
Isn’t that also an answer? That I can’t bring myself to walk away from him?
Because I love him.
I stop in my tracks at the quiet revelation.
I do love him.
And I do want to be with him.
Peace fills me. Life is short, and I’m willing to give this a chance.
As I approach my building, I tuck my phone away to get my key and let myself in. It should be safe for Ty to leave his house in less than an hour.
I really should respond to his text before then, one way or another.
I’m about to walk through the door when someone grabs my arm. “Well, if it isn’t little John Cameron. Time for us to have a talk, boy.”
Startled, I look up into the face that usually stars in my nightmares.
Chapter 16
As I lie in bed and await sleep, I realize this helps me better understand why Lucius turned Selene despite her being a shifter and knowing the potentially deadly creature he would create if he succeeded. If faced with losing Baker to death, I know I would be desperate enough to try anything possible to save him.
Losing my boy is not an option.
I wish I could have convinced Baker to stay here with me and talk, but maybe this is better. To show him I mean it when I say that I’ll give him time and space.
Whether Baker likes it or not, I’m about to purchase myself a bakery. I have no interest in the daily operation, or have any need for the income, but I want to make sure my boy is taken care of and never at risk of losing his job.
Until I can finally convince him to spend the rest of his life with me and he’s ready to let me support him.
What good is all the power and wealth my immortality provides me with if I cannot finally put it to worthy use?
I sleep deeply and awaken too early to leave my home. I still have at least thirty minutes before safe dark, so I text Baker that I’m awake. He still hasn’t replied to my earlier text, but that’s all right.
Plus, I want to confirm our plans for tonight. Meaning I prowl my home and take care of meaningless chores while I await a response from my boy.
Hopefully, by the time I take him to work later, I can convince him to quit and be with me.
No, I don’t want to thrall him to make him quit. I want it to be his decision.
Doesn’t mean I’ll like it, or agree with him, if he delays making that decision, or if he tries to keep working. He’s mine. That means I take care of him.
Then a thought hits me—Dexter’s hotel. Maybe Baker could go to work there in the restaurant, or in the resort’s kitchen. I’d feel better about that. The restaurant is also run by a vampire friend of Dexter’s.
Baker would be safe there.
This is something else I used to inwardly sneer about—my brothers’ worries about their loved ones’ safety, to an obsessive level.
Yeah, I get it.
If Lucius were here, I’m certain he’d be laughing at me and offering some annoyingly accurate maxim about how I’m feeling.
And I’d deserve it.
By the time I’m dressed and ready to leave, Baker still hasn’t responded to my texts, and a veil of worry clouds my mind.
Instead of stopping by the store first, like I’d originally planned, I head straight to his building. When I pull up, a woman’s just walking out. I blur over to her and order her to let me in, then to forget