Page 28 of Darkness

“Yeah. It’s for your own good.”

“I get it. I do, and I want to be able to say you can trust me, but the second I see a phone or an open door, I’m gone. I won’t be able to help it. I miss Ivy so much. It’s my job to protect her, and I failed her.”

I am a Grade-A son of a bitch.

How will I forgive myself after this?

“At least you’re being honest with me. Though even if you weren’t and you tried to run, there’s no way out. You’re stuck on the grounds of this compound.”

She swallows a nervous lump down her throat. “Good to know. In that case, I think it’s time we had a heart-to-heart. You need to tell me some things about you.”

“You want to have a deep and meaningful… with me?”

She crosses her legs, pulls back from me, and sits taller on the bed. “C’mon. I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.”

Wish I could show you mine and you show me yours.

Rolling my shoulders, I exhale, but inside, I chuckle at my own joke. “How about you tell me yours first.”

She groans. “Man, you’re locked up tighter than a chastity belt.”

I smirk as I slide up the bed next to her, and we get comfortable. “In Cuba, it was just you and your sister?”

The cheekiness on her face falls. “Sí.” A somber expression crosses her face. “My parents were killed in a car wreck when I was eighteen. Ivy was sixteen. Legally, I became her guardian. We were in the rear of the car when it crashed. A truck came out of nowhere, and Papá didn’t have time to brake…” She sighs. “Our car slammed right into the rear of the truck.”

Eva sniffles, so I pull her closer to me.

“Mamá and Papá were killed on impact. Ivy and I were taken to the hospital with injuries. I’d broken my leg and dislocated my shoulder, but my leg was an open fracture, so I needed surgery. Ivy had internal injuries and needed her spleen removed. She also had a broken arm. We were in the hospital for ages. Then, when we were finally discharged, it was to a whole new life. We didn’t have parents… so I had to take care of everything.”

She softens, sinking further into me. “Ivy was so young, but she held herself together well. Sometimes, she had to pull me together. We kept each other strong and made it through. I don’t know how she’ll be coping without me.”

I had no idea they had been through so much and relied on each other so much.

For Eva to offer that information so freely means I’m earning her trust. God only knows how. Maybe Trixie convinced her the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t. Either way, understanding this part of the sisters’ story only makes me more inspired by them.

“You’re both strong women. You’re holding it together well here, Eva. I’m sure Ivy’s holding on just as strong… wherever she is. You guys will be together again. I’m positive she’s fighting as hard to be back with you as you are for her.”

She sniffles again, then scrubs at her face. “So, now you’re familiar with my backstory, there’s got to be one hell of a story coming my way from you?”

I tense. Only a few people have heard the story of why I am the way I am. I’m sure she’ll view me differently. I’m not ready for that. I need her to see me as a strong alpha male she thinks about while finger-fucking herself. The moment she hears the fucked-up mess I am, it will change her perception of me—the way she sees me and talks to me. I don’t want that. I like the way we are now.

I press my lips to her temple, and a tingle shoots all the way down my spine as I embrace her. She cuddles into me further, but I clench my eyes shut and slowly pull away toward the side of the bed.

Eva’s brow furrows. “You’re leaving?”

Standing, I turn to see her confused expression. “I think it’s best.”

Hurt crosses her features, and her eyes droop. “Did I say—”

“You did nothing wrong, chiquita. I’m not good at this stuff.”

Her puppy-dog eyes quickly morph into anger. “Talking?”

“Emotions. I’m sorry about your parents, I really am. I just—”

“Don’t want to open up to me.” She grunts.

I rub the back of my neck. Hole in one.

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