Page 6 of Bound by Adoration

We laid in bed staring at each other, her beautiful eyes pleading with me.

“Because I don’t have a choice, Liam. They’ll hurt you, and it would destroy me. It’s why you have to promise never to find me. Even if you see a lead, you can’t contact me. It’ll put you in the line of fire,” she pleaded.

“You know that’s impossible. You want me to stay away from you?”

“It’s for the best.”

Like hell. I’d been in hell since she left.

“It doesn’t matter how. Fact is you weren’t careful, and it’s gonna blow up in your face sooner rather than later.”

She knew how these fuckers were more than anyone as she lived through it. Cunning. Skilled. Ruthless and so much more. Those assholes were the epitome of evil.

It wasn’t a smart move to put cameras in their homes. That family had so many connections and eyes everywhere, always thinking that someone would catch on to their game. They always had everything around them checked. Then double checked. She should’ve known if there was any way possible they’d figure it out and lead them straight to her.

One small crumb would lead them down a path they wouldn’t stop digging in to until they found her.

“And you were able to find me from that? From the cameras?” she asked, quirking her head to the side in a way I’d missed. It was her contemplation expression.

Should I tell her the truth with Raid sitting right here? He obviously wasn’t going anywhere, fucker. He’d always been an ass, and now he was a bigger one. But it wasn’t the time to dump everything. No, getting Cami safe first, then the full story.

“It gave me a place to start,” which was the truth, “but family business brought me here to Sumner. The fact it brought me to you was a bonus. But if I found you…” I left off the end of the sentence, letting it hang in the air. But not for long as the grouchy asshole had to jump into the conversation.

“Would you stop talkin’ in fuckin’ riddles, and tell me who the hell Cami is and what danger Nyx is in?” Raid barked, never wanting to be out of the loop of things around him. It made me want to smirk at him, just to egg him on, but I refrained. Couldn’t help but feel a bit glad I knew something about Cami that he didn’t. Probably made me a dick, but Raid always knew everything going on around him. He was that kind of man. Inquisitive and informed. Ever since senior year of high school.

So this little bit of knowledge felt good.

“Maybe you should go,” Nyx told Raid quickly, and my brow quirked in surprise. So she wanted to keep him out of this, interesting. Their relationship might be in the early stages if she was keeping things from him. Knowing her, she wanted to protect him. She wanted to protect everyone she could. Not that she should.

I knew all too well there was no stopping him when he wanted something or someone. He was a dog with a bone. Cami was fucked if she thought she was in this alone now. And Raid had Ravage; they could and would dig up everything she had buried now if she didn’t open wide.

I didn’t want him digging into her past. That would set off more alarms back home and put her in more danger. She’d need to tell him. It was too precarious right now, even though it meant he was deeper in her business.

“Not happen’. Either you tell me, or I tie this fucker up”—he pointed to me—“and skin him with my knife until he talks.”

Scared? Fuck no. I knew he could do it; that wasn’t a question. He wouldn’t break me, and he wouldn’t get shit from me. He could take every scrap of skin from my bones, and he wouldn’t learn anything new from me. I wouldn’t give him the pleasure to see me sweat no matter what he did to me. I had nothing to lose, nothing in Atlanta, and I’d die to protect Cami. Not a single fucking word would ever come from my mouth unless Cami wanted it.

“You’d seriously do that?” Nyx asked Raid.

“For you? That’s the least I’d do.” Raid’s passion for Cami shined so fierce and bright. Fuck, I hated that shit. More like I hated it was him. Of all the men in the world, it had to be Raid Monroe. And here it was right in my face—he loved her. Whether she knew that shit yet or not, I didn’t know, but I could see it. He was in deep. Not that I could blame him one bit. It would be harder not to love the woman.

“Fuck, Raid." She sighed deeply, taking in his words. “You can’t hurt him.”

This made me smile. Her trying to protect me was cute, and I knew she would do what she wanted and believed in. She was damn independent and so fucking strong.

“I will if you don’t fuckin’ talk,” he warned low, his patience obviously hanging on by a thread.

“You piss me off,” she growled low at him. “I said you can’t hurt him; why can’t that be enough for you? He matters to me, dammit.”

Raid smiled at Cami, knowing he’d won this fight. “Good. Now talk.”

She paused before her features softened from the hardened pissed off one, and she released a huge, exhausted breath. “Cami is a girl dead and buried, Raid. She’s a scared, pathetic shell of a woman who doesn’t exist anymore.” Cami stared straight ahead blankly. Fucking hated that vacant look. I wanted to wipe it off her face. While I knew she’d have to change her name, she was my Cami, and fuck me, that was a hard pill to swallow.

“It’s a long story, Raid…” Her gaze came to me, and deep in her eyes I could see the pain swirling. See everything that she’d gone through. See her confusion and frustration. I knew her better than she thought because I never stopped learning. No, I didn’t try to find her because I promised her, but I never stopped searching for information. On her. On them. On anything I could get my fingers on.

I completely understood why she didn’t want to relive her trauma.

Had to admit, I didn’t want Raid to be part of this, wanted to keep it between us, but that was selfish. And Raid had far-reaching connections that could help Cami. Didn’t have to fucking like it, though. If I had to put up with Raid to protect Cami, so be it.

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