Page 70 of Reckoning

“Taken care of.” He sounded grim. “I don’t want to talk about her. I trust you believe me now when I say she’s a problem.”

“I should have trusted you from the start.” I turned to the side so I could rest my cheek on his chest. He sank a little lower, taking me with him, so the water lapped at my chin. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize to me.” The resignation in his voice matched what I felt. “I never should have let it get this far.”

*

When the water began to cool, Meyer stood us up and dried us completely before pulling me into a bedroom.

“Where are we?” I asked. I was simultaneously groggy but also incredibly awake as though I had been stabbed with an EpiPen. Meyer gestured to a pile of blankets and pillows in front of a fireplace, where I laid down obediently. He pulled my towel away, leaving me naked again before slipping next to me and pulling more blankets over us. I didn’t bother to try to cover myself. We were far beyond modesty at this point.

“Still at Shawn’s house. I told him we had to get you warm immediately.” He turned me on my side and spooned me. He wrapped his legs around mine, then tucked one arm over my chest, reaching up through my breasts to wrap his hand around my throat. He rested his fingers on my pulse.

“Anita?”

“Joshua took her down. She’s not the criminal mastermind she’d like to be.”

“What’s happening to her?”

“I don’t know. I don’t care. We’ll find out tomorrow. Stop asking questions and rest.”

I was torn between letting my eyes fall closed and wanting to stay awake and be close to him. I felt electrified.

“You saved me.”

He scoffed, and I found myself hurt before he spoke. “Of course I saved you, Maddie. I didn’t have any other choice.”

I rolled to face him, crossing my arms between our chests to offer myself some space while still touching him. “Your life could go back to normal if I left.”

“There’s nothing normal about me existing without you. I mean that.”

He squeezed me, and I realized I was shaking. “Nothing’s normal anymore.”

“It hasn’t been normal since the moment you spit in my father’s face. I’ve never seen anyone do something so brave.”

“Taunting your abuser isn’t brave.” My hair was damp against my back. He squeezed me closer.

“You didn’t taunt. You fought back. I’ve never done that, not once.”

I squeezed my eyes shut briefly, regretting my jab at him from earlier in the night. “I was lucky I had you to protect me.”

He didn’t meet my eyes. “I didn’t protect you at all.”

“You did. You got me out of there. You put yourself between us whenever he’s around.”

“It’s not such a big deal. You’re my responsibility.”

“Don’t you see?” I grabbed his face, yanking his head toward me. His eyes trailed up my face, resting on my lips and nose before meeting my gaze. “It’s more than responsibility, Meyer. You feel something for me. Something you thought was burned out of you when my mom left.”

“No, no.” He shook his head and placed his forehead on my shoulder. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Will you stop arguing with me for two seconds?” My fingers dug into his cheeks as I pulled him up again and pressed our foreheads together.

“Then what would we have to talk about?”

I sighed in frustration, punching against his chest ineffectually. He grinned, brushing my nose with his own.

“Smile, Maddie. We’re alive, and we’re together. Conrad doesn’t know where we are, for now. What more could we ask for?”

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