Chapter 8 #2
“Okay?” I asked, running my fingertips along her arms. Her body was still pretty stiff.
“Yeah,” she murmured, her hands pressing into my legs while her nails dug into my skin.
“Relax,” I coaxed, attempting to soothe her stiff demeanor.
“Take a deep breath.” Her chest rose as she sucked in oxygen.
“Now lie back as you exhale.” She did as she was told, finally loosening her limbs and allowing herself to lie back, resting her head against my shoulder.
“How’s the pain?” I asked, drawing her hair back from her face so I could see her more clearly.
“It’s dull. I’m okay,” she replied, her voice breathy and constrained.
“Good,” I said, running my nose along her temple, taking in the scent of her hair.
An ache built in my chest from how much I missed holding her small body like this against my own. I had to fight the urge to crush her against me so we could never part. And the more she relaxed, the more I craved.
All I wanted to do was lift her hips and sink her onto my throbbing cock, to bask in that liquid heat of hers that was meant for me and me alone. But I knew it would be another month before I could even dream of just tasting her there.
Jaden was practically putty in my hands as she let me wash her body without protest, not a single curve left untouched. But when my fingertips grazed the circular scar at her pelvis, white-hot anger struck me.
Both entrance and exit wounds had healed nicely, but they would always remain a permanent physical reminder of my failure.
I didn’t want to reflect on that now. I wanted to perform my responsibility of taking care of what was mine and satisfying all her needs. Now that she had no choice but to let me.
Moments like this sometimes brought me back to our time in the basement—times when I would bathe with her just like this.
When she was wholly dependent upon me for literally every single thing, when I was the only thing she knew.
I was her entire universe, the literal oxygen she needed to breathe and thrive.
We were miles away from that now. Ever since I watched Jaden emerge from the burning debris of the building she had destroyed, I knew I was no longer looking at the same girl.
She was the rising phoenix that left nothing but ash in her wake, and she didn’t need shit from me anymore. I’d never felt so useless in my fucking life.
But now that fire bird had broken wings and needed to be nursed back to health. And just like that, Jaden went back to being the vulnerable little girl she’d been forced into when I held her down there in that cold, dark room.
The way her eyes would light up when I finally came to see her was truly intoxicating. Because I knew then how much she actually needed me.
She needed me to release her. Warm her. Bathe her. Feed her. Fuck her. Command her. Love her. And I craved giving her all of it, watching her body long for the things only I could give her. And when she’d been fully cared for, she turned into a kitten in my hands, purring so proudly just for me.
I missed that need in her. Missed the dependability she had in me. And suddenly that opportunity to relive it had returned to me. Now that it was here, I decided to capitalize on it for just a little bit longer.
It wasn’t like Jaden needed to go anywhere anyway. Her duty to satisfy my needs didn’t stop just because she was injured, and this was how she’d do it. By letting me take care of her the way I wanted to.
But before I could get any more lost in my little paradise than I already was, I had an agenda to complete before the water turned cold.
“I have a surprise for you,” I drawled, reaching back to grab the ring I’d hidden in the corner ledge of the tub.
“Oh?” Jaden asked, her voice low and sleepy.
Taking Jaden’s left hand from under the water, her entire body stiffened almost instantly as I slipped the ring on her finger to join her matching wedding band.
“Look what my men found,” I said with enthusiasm, trapping her hand in mine so she could see what had finally been returned.
I watched all the color drain from Jaden’s face, and a blaze of anger washed over me. Her chest was motionless as she held her breath, her eyes mimicking the sparkle of the exceptionally large diamond dwarfing her finger.
Finally, she spoke. “Where did they find it?” she asked, her voice small and quiet.
“It was traded at a pawn shop in Arizona, then sold to another couple before it was retrieved,” I answered, my eyes calculating every fraction of her face. “The shop owner said it was traded by a pretty blond girl.”
Jaden’s jaw clenched as she focused on not curling her left hand into a fist, the other one reaching under the water to rest against her hip.
Stress could cause inflammation, and as of right now, Jaden should not be feeling stressed. She should be relieved to have her ring returned to her, but that was clearly not the case.
“The couple—they’re still alive, right?” she asked.
I narrowed my eyes at her attempt to deflect. “Does it matter?”
“Yes, it does,” she exclaimed quickly, her slim fingers curling around my hand. “They shouldn’t have to suffer because they unknowingly bought a stolen ring.”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care,” I snapped, glaring down at her. “You said Tony’s men took your ring, but some girl sold it to one hell of a shady shop.”
Jaden’s brow furrowed as her mouth turned into a scowl. “What are you implying? Are you calling me a liar?”
I growled at her instigation. “I’m telling you that your story still has yet to be substantiated.”
I allowed Jaden to yank her hand from mine as she scoffed at my implications. “I don’t know what to tell you, Darren. Maybe she was a girlfriend, or maybe she stole it from them. I have no other explanation, and I don’t know why you’d even expect one from me.”
I took in a breath to ease my anger. The point of this was not to start an argument with her—just to observe her reaction. And I had my answer.
“Regardless, I will find the ones responsible for its loss. I imagine it’ll be difficult to continue stealing with two severed hands.”
“I imagine it will,” she agreed, her voice taking on a note of agitation.
“I imagine it will also be in your best interest to ensure it never leaves your finger again. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes.”
“Good.”
Attempting to quell her obvious distress, I gently dragged my knuckle up and down her arm in a soothing manner. She sagged against me with a drawn exhale, her attempts to disburse the panic from her body a noticeable struggle.
The sound of the bedroom door opening announced our dinner had been delivered. I decided to have it brought up here so Jaden could eat comfortably in bed.
“That’s dinner,” I said, nipping her earlobe lightly with my teeth. Her body shivered against mine, making me smirk.
After carefully removing myself from behind her, I dried off and wrapped a towel around my waist. I then laid two towels down on the end of the bed and turned back to retrieve Jaden.
Releasing the plug, I gently lifted her from the tub, water spilling all over the floor as I carried her from the bathroom.
“You’re getting water everywhere,” she commented as I laid her on the towels.
“So what.” At least water didn’t need to be scrubbed out of the carpet.
I patted her legs dry while she dried her arms, the sight of her naked body laid out before me making me a crazed animal.
Reining it in, I left her to put on some sweatpants, and when I returned, Jaden had managed to drag herself off the towels and back to her side of the bed, having tucked her legs under the covers.
I eyed her disapprovingly but said nothing as I pulled the bed tray from under the bed frame and set it over her lap.
“Uh, can I at least have a shirt?”
I shook my head. “No.”
She scoffed, a scowl forming on her lips. “Why the hell not?”
“Because I said so. You don’t need clothes to eat dinner. And I’ve been deprived long enough.”
She rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her bare chest, glaring at me with the cutest kind of disdain.
Ignoring her irritation, I blazed through her mental barrier and took her face in my hands, kissing her with enough warning to remind her exactly who was still in charge.
But once her fingers wrapped around my wrist, stroking along my arm, I was reminded that while she was finally strong enough for me, she was still currently very fragile.
Releasing her face, I said nothing as I took the plate from the cart brought in and placed it on Jaden’s tray. We ate in silence as I put on the last documentary Jaden had been watching earlier in the day. Something about penguins.
She spent more time staring at the TV than on her own plate, but I knew she wasn’t actually watching. Her gaze was unfocused as she did what she always did when I laid my cards out on the table. She was calculating.
The alleged thieves of her ring should be inconsequential to her, yet here she was, broadcasting her silent turmoil like a fucking beacon.
Over the years, Jaden had crafted a pretty decent poker face, but I was an expert in her body language. And it told me exactly what I had hoped would never be possible.
Kayla was still very much alive.