Page 49 of Unveiled

“Fuck. I’m sorry, baby, I never should have brought you here.”

Though it’s all foggy and too slow for my liking, his words still process through my mind.

“You called me baby. Does that mean you’re not mad at me anymore?”

His eyes are full of torment, almost as bad as the day he rescued me and found me about to jump off a balcony. He keeps scanning me, expecting to find more injuries, but the only thing that hurts is my head. It feels like it’s split open by an ax, but he doesn’t need to hear that right now.

“I’m more mad at myself right now,” he admits. He grabs the seatbelt and pulls it across my body, strapping me in and making sure I’m secure.

“Cain?” I call as he stands up and starts to close the door. He stops the swinging of his arm and meets my eyes. “I didn’t step a foot outside of the car.”

Chapter 19

Ainsley

Three stitches and a headache that refuses to go away later, Cain finally drives me home. All I want right now is to lie in bed and go to sleep, but knowing him, he’s going to keep me awake as long as possible. The doctor said my concussion isn’t bad enough for that, but Cain is overly cautious when it comes to me.

“Well, this isn’t how I saw tonight going,” I announce as Cain walks with me into the bedroom.

No part of tonight was planned. I expected nothing but a nice dinner at Ethan’s, but got the exact opposite. From the drama that kicked off our evening, to giving into Cain against the side of the house and again on the side of the road, to ending up at the compound, and ending it all with having my face bashed into the dashboard.

Did I really find out the truth of Ethan’s feelings only a few hours ago? It seems so long ago, yet I still can’t fully process it.

As soon as we’re in the bedroom, I strip out of the dress I wore for dinner and leave it sitting on the floor. The bed in front of me looks so inviting, especially if Cain is going to climb into it with me.

“I’m going to start a bath,” Cain announces without turning to look at me. He’s been avoiding my eyes since we left for the hospital. “You should get cleaned up.”

Leaving me behind, he makes his escape into the bathroom. So much of this feels like the night he brought me home, from the torture in his eyes to the bath to make me feel better. Running a bath is always his solution when something is wrong, or he just wants me to feel better. My theory is that he does it just so he can hold me, skin to skin, without the expectation of it going any further.

This time, though, I don’t think he intends to join me. And that scares me more than anything ever has.

“I know what you’re thinking, and it’s not going to happen,” I announce as I storm my way into the bathroom. It must be a sight to see, me entering the bathroom in nothing more than my soaked underwear, ready to give him hell.

What I find breaks my heart. He’s sitting on the edge of the tub with his head hung between his shoulders while the water runs behind him.

“And what am I thinking?” he asks with no inflection in his voice. He sounds broken.

“That you’re going to send me away to keep me safe. And I’m telling you now, it’s not happening. Do you understand?”

He looks at me for the first time since we left the compound, only to reveal bloodshot eyes. Like he spent the minute I left him alone crying.

“What do you want me to do, Ainsley? Keep putting you in danger?”

I’m not going to let him sit and stew in his own thoughts. That will lead to an outcome that neither of us is happy with, because he’ll convince himself it’s what’s best.

As soon as I’m close enough, I unclasp his hands and force his arms to wrap around me. Once he’s holding me, however reluctantly, I wrap my own arms around his neck.

“You don’t get to force me to admit my love for you and push me away in the same night,” I tell him, my voice gentler than the words coming from my mouth.

“I’m not going to keep hurting you,” Cain states firmly, not leaving room for an argument. Unfortunately for him, I’ve always been good at fighting him.

“You’re not hurting me,” I assure him. “Well, sometimes you like to hurt me when you fuck me, but I’ve never complained.”

That finally earns a small smirk, though the amusement doesn’t quite reach his eyes. Peaking over his shoulder, I see the tub is nearly full as steam rises off the top.

“Get in with me,” I command him. Not a question, a command, and I won’t take no for an answer.

“Ainsley,” he starts, gearing up to give me some kind of excuse.

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