Page 80 of Catch Me When I Fall

Leo Samuels.

His eyes were open, his mouth agape, a single line of blood flowing down his forehead, between his brows, over the ridge of his nose, down his cheek to the floor.

“Gray,” Hayes barked through the phone. “What the fuck happened?”

“Fucker bound her to the bed, Hayes,” I snapped back, my voice raised.

He was silent.

“I almost didn’t make it here in time,” I continued, looking over my shoulder to where Carrie was passed out. “He drugged her, Hayes. After she fell asleep on his fucking chest—” I cut myself off, knowing that if I kept talking, I would burn this entire town to the ground, erasing the memory of her nearly getting…

I bit off another curse as I turned around, crossing the room to latch her bedroom window shut. When that was done, I closed my eyes, grinding my teeth together. I was almost too late.

Hayes’ voice cut through my thoughts. “Take a breath. I’ll be there soon.”

“No, not you,” I said, opening my eyes again and releasing a breath. I looked back to Carrie, my chest aching. “It can’t be you.”

“Why not?”

I looked down to the fisherman. “He had blond hair and green eyes, Hayes,” I explained in a low voice.

The last thing Carrie needed was for one of my men to remind her of that low life piece of shit. She would meet Hayes later, after she processed things.

“Understood,” he replied instantly, all business.

“Appreciated,” I muttered, pinching the bridge of my nose.

“Where’s the body?”

“In her bedroom.”

“Where is she?”

“Passed out on her bed. Temp and pulse are normal; whatever he gave her was only meant to knock her out, not kill her.” I went on to explain that before I boarded the plane to Portland, I checked the security cameras in her house to find Leo on her front porch. Of course, I didn’t tell Hayes about the way my gut twisted or how my heart nearly stopped at the sight of another man kissing her, touching her—holding her. I just knew I would never feel that way again, because Carrie Hale was mine. I was never letting her go again.

I was never leaving her again.

I stood at the end of her bed, watching her breathe as I told Hayes that I watched the cameras the entire time. When I landed, Leo had stuck something in her neck while she was asleep on his chest. Leo was confident—cocky, which was probably why he sat there for another hour on the couch, finishing two more beers and another episode of the show they’d been watching. He intended on taking his time with her, which made him a different kind of monster entirely.

“You want the jet?” Hayes offered, knowing the public airport wouldn’t be able to get anyone here until tomorrow morning.

I put my hand in my pocket, walking back to Carrie and standing over her. “Yeah. You just need to stay away for a bit.”

Hayes wasn’t offended in the slightest; he’d fly Jake and Dominic and wait with the aircraft. The jet was used for emergencies only, and the last time we needed it was six months ago, when Ash was compromised. I turned to her dresser, opening the third drawer to grab a pair of sweatpants. I didn’t bother grabbing underwear; trying to put on those—after what she just went through—was too much for me. I could slip on a pair of sweats over her legs and under her ass without looking at her.

As Hayes confirmed the plan, I did just that. Once she was dressed, I covered her back up and brushed a curl from her face.

“We’ll take care of this, Gray,” Hayes promised.

“I know.”

After hanging up the phone, my eyes shot to her once more, watching her breathe for a few seconds before carrying the body downstairs, through the kitchen, and out the back door. I let the body land on the deck with a hard thump, snow calmly falling from the dark sky now.

A small whimper from the right caught my attention, and I twisted my neck to find a skinny orange cat balled up in a corner of the screened-in porch, shivering as it looked up at me with big green eyes.

Sighing, I scooped the animal into my arms, holding it to my chest.

“I take it you mean something to Carrie,” I whispered, noting the small box with a blanket and bowls along the wall. The cat responded with a purr, rubbing its head against my chest. Without a second thought, I took the cat inside, leaving the body of Leo fucking Samuels to rot in the cold.

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