Cruel Lies - Ella Miles Page 0,9

want to thank her and kiss her for everything she’s done for my son. I still hate her, but I also owe her my life.

“Fine, Phoenix comes.”

Langston settles back, surprised by how easily he won that fight.

“When do you want to leave?” he asks with a soft, bewildered expression.

“Tomorrow. I want everything done as soon as possible.”

“Okay, tomorrow it is then.”

Silence stretches again, allowing the sultry tingling to reemerge between us. The spark that we stoked, instead of extinguished, is a full-blown fire between us. We have to find a way to put it out, though. If we don’t, it will spread until we’ve burned everyone we love in the process.

“You should meet Atlas before we leave,” Langston says.

I shake my head. “I can’t.”

“Why?”

Waylon—that’s why. Waylon still has a hold on me, even in death. He owns my soul, and I’m not sure if it’s safe to see Atlas.

“I just can’t.” I look down at my hands, picking at my nails nervously.

I hear Langston move against the scratchy fabric as he slides toward me. From the corner of my eye, I see his hands grab onto mine, gently stopping me from anxiously twisting them around.

“You should meet him. It can be brief, and you shouldn’t tell him who you are, but I think you should meet him. Just look at him so you can know he’s your son.”

“I believe you. There is no reason for you to lie to me.” I hesitate a second, then ask my next question. “Do you love Atlas as a son?”

“Yes,” he says without hesitation.

That’s the only confirmation I needed to hear.

“But you won’t meet with him?”

“No.”

“Why? If something happens to us, he deserves to have met you. Do it for him if not for yourself.”

I look up and pull my hands free, staring at Langton’s dark eyes, avoiding his lush lips and sharp jaw I want to run my tongue over.

“No,” I say definitively.

Langston shakes his head in frustration. His scowl tells me he thinks less of me for not seeing my son, not giving him the chance to meet his birth mother.

He doesn’t know that I’m doing it to protect him. Even though Waylon is gone, someone will continue his plans. I don’t know who it is, or if they will, in fact, continue Waylon’s plans, but until I know for sure, I can’t risk it.

For now, knowing his name, Atlas, and knowing that he’s safe in Langston’s protection is enough. It’s more than enough after Waylon led me to believe that he was with a cruel monster who was abusing him. Langston may be a monster, but I’ve seen how he loves his kids. Atlas is accepted as his child just as much as Rose. He’ll protect both of them with his life.

“I’ll show you to your room in the basement,” Langston says.

“No, I’d rather sleep here.”

“Huntress, get your ass inside, now.”

I look at the house. I can’t sleep under the same roof as Phoenix, and I can’t chance that Atlas might see me. I’ll sleep out here under the stars, where the sun will ensure I wake up before anyone in the house does.

“Fine,” Langston huffs off while I curl up on the couch.

I close my eyes and am just on the edge of sleep, when I see a shadow walking toward me. I’m too tired to open my eyes, but the shadow means me no harm.

A blanket is draped over me, and then his soft lips whisper near my ear. “I don’t know if you are the biggest sinner or saint, but either way, you’re mine, huntress. Mine.”

4

Langston

I bang the coffee cup down on the counter and slam the cabinet door shut. I should move more quietly so I don’t wake everyone up, but I can’t. I didn’t sleep at all last night. Instead, I spent the night in my office on my laptop, trying to figure out what Liesel is hiding from me.

I pour myself some coffee, and I stare out at the back deck where Liesel is still sound asleep on the couch.

What do I do with you, huntress? What are you hunting now? You’ve found your child, now what? Do you really want the treasure, or is that just an illusion?

“Morning, baby. What can I make you for breakfast?” Phoenix asks as she twirls into the kitchen.

I narrow my eyes, trying to figure out why she’s so happy.

“I’m fucking exhausted and don’t have time for games, so tell me what the hell is going on.”

Her smile doesn’t