Page 65 of The Shadow

“Who is going to have you wet, throbbing, and begging for more all night long?”

We barely get through the door before we’re tearing at each other’s clothes, leaving a trail of discarded items leading to the bedroom. I’m lost in him, like I always am.

He’s attentive, taking his time like he’s memorizing every inch of my body.

“You are the most amazing, beautiful woman,” he pants as he lazily pumps in and out of me during round two or three—I’ve lost count. It’s only after he stumbles to the kitchen to grab us a glass of water that we remember the envelope.

“I forgot he gave this to you,” Harvey says, handing me the envelope as he walks back into our bedroom with the water.

“Oh.” I sit up, taking it from him. “I did too.” I flip it over to double-check for any sort of clue as to who it’s from but there’s nothing. “It’s sealed,” I say, tearing at the corner. Suddenly it’s hard to swallow, a nervous energy buzzing through my body.

He’s dead.

I tear open the envelope and pull out a folded piece of paper.

“What is it?”

“Oh my God.” I stare at the paper, reading it again.

“What?” Harvey sinks down next to me, reading over my shoulder. “Holy shit, is that—?” He takes the paper from me, holding it closer to his face. “Am I reading this correctly?” He glances over at me. “Does this say thirty million dollars?”

“Yes.”

He hands the paper back to me, both of us staring at it, then each other in complete disbelief.

Per Lyra Forsythe, who has since gone back to her maiden name, one thirty-million-dollar donation has been made to the following organizations to be divided up evenly. Below it are three nonprofits that help to provide shelter, food, and resources for battered women and single mothers.

Then there’s one other account listed. A trust fund in my name with another thirty million dollars in it. I swipe away a tear when I read the handwritten note she’s left at the bottom of the paper.

For our mothers.

May no other woman experience the things we have but if they do, they have a place to go where they can feel safe, loved, and protected in a way that so many never did.

I don’t even have the words to say anything. I fall against Harvey’s chest and sob. For so many years, I spent my life feeling like I didn’t matter, like my mom didn’t matter. I thought nobody would save us, but then Jaxson stepped in, reminding me that I have the power to save myself, and then Harvey stepped in, showing me that I’d never be alone again.

Chapter 24

Harvey

Five months earlier…

This is my favorite part.

The watching, hunting, tracking my prey.

I stand shrouded in darkness, completely invisible to the untrained eye.

Every breath is measured and controlled.

Every step is calculated.

Connor Blake has no idea what the shadows have in store for him but tonight, his reign of terror comes to an end.

It was easy to follow him, especially since the dumb fuck has no idea the kind of relentless predator he hired to protect him. I almost chuckle to myself when I think about it. My first impression of Connor was spot on, an idiot who thought money and power meant he was smart and untouchable. Which makes my job a helluva lot easier when it comes to getting rid of a threat.

When I was on my dad’s trail, that was a different story. That took years of dedication to find a man who had been trained just as well as I had to never be found. But based on what I’ve found out over the last several months, this wasn’t Connor’s original plan. In fact, I’d say it was plan D at best.

He never thought he’d have to run. In fact, he was so confident in his ability to scam people with zero consequences that the second it came to light what he was up to, he had to scramble to come up with an escape plan that inevitably was filled with holes that let me slip right in.

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