Chapter Twenty-Five #2
A floorboard groans, and every thought in my head vanishes. The sound doesn’t come from downstairs, but from inside my bedroom. Too close.
My entire body seizes. I stop breathing, every muscle pulled so tight it hurts, my ears straining against the deafening thud of my own heartbeat.
Another footstep steps closer to the closet. Slow enough that whoever is out there isn’t searching. They already know where they’re going, and cold terror washes over me.
Jesus, they’re in my bedroom.
The tiny linen closet suddenly feels as if it’s shrinking around me, the walls pressing closer with every frantic breath I can’t seem to quiet. My chest burns from trying not to make a sound, but my breathing won’t listen. It’s too loud.
God, they have to be able to hear it.
The footsteps stop. Silence crashes over the room so completely it makes my ears ring, and I squeeze my eyes shut.
Please walk away.
Please…
The soft click of the bedroom door handle steals the prayer from my mouth.
No.
My fingers clamp tighter around the kitchen knife until the plastic digs painfully into my palm. Both hands come up in front of me, shaking so violently that the blade trembles with them, and a sick, helpless thought tears through me.
If that door opens, I don’t know if I can do this.
Suddenly, the door swings open. “Jesus Christ!”
Ghost.
For a second, neither of us moves. His eyes spot the raised knife in my hand, then me, and the color drains from his face so quickly it almost frightens me all over again. “Sage…”
The knife slips from my fingers, clattering uselessly onto the closet floor.
I don’t remember crossing the space between us.
One second, I’m sitting there, and the next, I’m throwing myself into him so hard he actually takes a step backward to catch my weight. His arms are around me before I even realize I’ve moved.
Holding me together where I can’t seem to do it myself.
A sob tears out of me so violently my knees almost give way.
“I’ve got you.” His voice is rough against my hair. “You scared the hell out of me.”
I bury my face against his chest, clutching handfuls of his cut like if I let go for even a second, this will all disappear. “I thought…” My voice breaks completely. “I thought…”
“You’re safe now.”
His hand slides over the back of my head, cradling it against him. “It’s over.”
“I’m s-sorry.” The words spill out between sobs before I can stop them. “I shouldn’t have… I should have let you come over.”
“Hey.” He pulls back just enough to make me look at him. “No.” His hands cup my face, thumbs brushing away tears almost as quickly as they fall. “This isn’t on you.”
I shake my head. “I told you not to come over.”
“And some asshole decided to break into your home.” His jaw flexes. “Those two things are not the same.”
I stare at him, tears still blurring everything. For the first time since I heard the back door handle move, I breathe.
Really breathe.
His forehead rests against mine. “You with me?”
I nod, barely.
His eyes search mine, checking every inch of my face the same way he checks every room before he walks into it.
Satisfied with whatever he finds, he leans forward and kisses me. His lips linger against mine for one long, grounding moment before he pulls away, resting his forehead against mine again.
“Nobody gets to scare you like that again,” he whispers.
I shake my head, tears still spilling down my face. “You can’t stop everything.”
His forehead stays pressed against mine. “No.” His voice is quiet and certain. “But I can make damn sure they will regret trying.”
Another wave of tears hits me.
This time they’re different.
This time it is relief.
He wraps an arm around my shoulders, keeping me tucked firmly against his side as he bends to retrieve the knife from the closet floor before guiding me out into the bedroom.
Only then do I really see him.
His shirt is hanging open, one boot untied, his chest rising harder than I’ve ever seen it. He must have run the last stretch from the bike.
He follows my gaze. “I was in a hurry.”
A watery laugh escapes me. “I noticed.”
His hand finds the small of my back and never leaves.
Together we make our way downstairs, Ghost moving first through every doorway, every hallway, his eyes sweeping each room before motioning me forward.
The apartment looks as though someone has thrown a tantrum.
Drawers are pulled open, glass glitters across the kitchen floor, and one dining chair lies on its side.
Ghost studies it all in silence. Only when he’s satisfied the apartment is empty does he pull out one of the surviving kitchen chairs and sits opposite me.
For a long moment, neither of us says a word. Then he looks me dead in the eye. “Pack a bag.”
“Ghost—”
“You are not staying here alone.” His voice leaves absolutely no room for negotiation. “You and Piper are coming back to the clubhouse. I’m gonna go check on Liam.”
I look at him for a long moment, taking in the set of his jaw, the way his hands rest flat and still on the table as if he is forcing them not to reach for me yet. Then I get up and pack a bag, because there isn’t an argument left in me that makes any sense.
Ghost finds Liam unconscious in the bushes behind my apartment block. He took a nasty knock to the head, so Ghost called Anchor to come get him and take him back to the club for Dr. Chen to check him over. I have a feeling he’s going to be dealing with one hell of a concussion.
Poor guy.
Piper doesn’t ask questions when I text her.
She replies that she’ll meet us there.
Nobody makes it weird.
Back at the clubhouse, sleep finds me far sooner than I expect.
Piper is safely two doors down, the familiar sounds of the clubhouse drifting through the walls, and Ghost sits at the desk across the room, the soft glow of his laptop painting pale light across his face while his fingers move steadily over the keyboard.
I watch him for a while, letting the quiet rhythm of his work settle the last of the panic still rattling around inside me.
He’ll come to bed when he’s ready.
Right now, I don’t need him beside me to know I’m safe.
I only need to know he’s here.
Somewhere beyond the edge of sleep, the muted tapping of the keyboard becomes the last thing I hear before darkness finally claims me.