Chapter 26
BLADE
Thank fuck for that. The last thing I want is to watch Delilah walk away from me, but I couldn’t make the first move. She must want me beside her. I’m not a man to force any situation with a woman, and yet the thought of her lying in the next block to me was already messing with my mind.
So, I wrap my arm around her shoulders, and we take the short walk to my room, and I’m amazed how natural it feels.
I wasn’t kidding; I never take women back to my room, preferring to spend the night in theirs instead so I can make a swift exit when it’s polite to do so. I’ve never met a woman I wanted to spend time with outside of sex, and if that makes me a monster, then they’d be right. I am.
But Delilah is different. I like her company. I’m obsessed with her and nobody is more surprised than me about that.
It’s obvious she’s nervous, and as we reach my room, she hesitates in the doorway, an anxious expression on her pretty face.
“Come in, darlin’. I won’t bite.”
She nods, closing the door behind her and whispering nervously, “You don’t mind, do you? I mean, I’d hate to impose.”
“I will say this only once.”
I flick her a soft smile. “You are welcome here anytime. It’s a safe place for you, and if anyone tries to get to you, they will have to go through me first.”
She visibly relaxes.
“I appreciate that.”
I turn on the set, and the room bursts into life, cutting through the awkward atmosphere. “Take a seat, darlin’. I can make some coffee, or something stronger if you prefer.”
“Coffee is fine.”
She perches nervously on the edge of the couch, and I roll my eyes. “Make yourself at home. There is no need to be awkward around me.”
“I’m sor–” She checks herself. “Okay.”
As she shrugs out of her leather jacket, heat floods my core because, fuck, does that crop top look good on her. I can hardly tear my lecherous gaze away, but what would that make me? I must be a freaking monk around her because my protection is all she wants from me.
I turn my attention to making coffee, and when I return, she is curled up in the corner of the couch, resting her head on one of the cushions, gazing at, but not seeing, the movie flickering on the screen.
She is lost, and it tears me apart because I can’t help her. Picturing what she went through makes me feral, and I’m uncharacteristically gentle as I hand her the coffee mug.
“For the lady.”
Her smile is a grateful one, and as her fingers wrap around the mug, her eyes shine.
“How long have you been here?”
“Five years next month.”
“You told me you were in the military. What did you do before that?”
She is full of questions that I prefer not to answer usually, but with her, it’s okay. I want her to know.
“I was in a band once.”
“Wow, that’s amazing. You say once, what happened?”
“The usual shit. Manager got greedy. The rest of the band pissed away our fortune on drugs and whores, and we ended up in a blackmail plot to expose us to the press.”
“Yeah, usual shit.”
She shakes her head and giggles and then says with interest. “What was the band called?”
“Hell.”
“What happened after hell froze over?”
“Things were hot for a while, so I enlisted. It didn’t take long to reach the marines, and I told you why I was sent to Ryder.”
“I remember.”
“We got the last laugh, though. The soldier fucked up and after an anonymous tip-off, found himself court martialed and is currently serving ten in the penitentiary. Word is, it’s not going well.”
“You have led a very interesting life, for sure.”
“It’s not over yet, darlin’.”
I wink and stretch out my legs and wonder if she can remember any part of her history at all.
“We don’t have to talk about this, but you told me something at the cabin, something painful, and it may have triggered more memories.”
She shivers; despite the fact that it’s roasting in here.
“I know Gideon abused me. It’s why I don’t want to be alone.
The incident after the shower was obviously one of many because it felt so familiar.
The tone of his voice, his displeasure, and the subsequent kicking were not one-offs.
I suppose that’s why I don’t want to be alone because bad things happen when I sleep. ”
I struggle to maintain my cool, even though I want to smash every fucking piece of furniture in this room, picturing Gideon’s fucking head in its place.
She sounds so wretched as she whispers, “Then, there was Angela. She drugged me when I was sleeping. I’m aware I had nightmares, and I guess it was because of the drug she used.
When I woke, all I remembered was up to a few days ago.
People’s names, faces, and conversations were always a blur.
I recognized them but couldn’t place them. ”
“But you had the courage to approach Drake. That took a lot of guts, darlin’.”
“Only because I started writing things down. When I read it back, it made everything clearer, and I realized that if I didn’t ask for help, I would be dead soon.”
“So, you put your trust in him. That was a risk. I mean, he was a stranger.”
“He was kind.”
She smiles softly. “It was obvious he hated Angela. One time she was initiating him into her sick group and had something over him. I believe it was his relationship with Imogen. She told him to, well, you don’t need to hear the details, and he had no choice.
I wanted to earn his trust and knocked over one of the candles before he could go through with it, and it set my robe on fire. ”
“Fuck, darlin’!”
I can’t believe what I’m hearing, and she smiles. “It’s fine. Drake put out the fire, and I merely scaled myself. There was no permanent damage, and it saved him.”
My admiration for this woman only increases the more time I spend with her, and she yawns, her eyes drooping.
“I’m glad I saved Drake, Blade, because in saving him, I ultimately saved myself, and I wouldn’t be here now.”
I can’t even deal with the implications of that statement, and my heart is heavy as I picture a different outcome to her story.
“You’re tired.”
I state the fucking obvious and she nods. “I’m sorry. It’s been a long day.”
Reaching out, I pull her off the couch and jerk my head in the direction of the bedroom.
“You take the bed. I’ll fetch you one of my t-shirts. You can use any of my stuff. I have a spare toothbrush I just bought that’s still in the packaging; you can use that.”
“Thanks.”
Her smile is shy, and as she heads off into my room, I can’t stop my heart pounding. This is a bad idea. The last thing Delilah needs is me in her life, but the more time we spend together, the more she’s becoming the most important thing in my world.