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When I sensed she was about to pull away, I fell to my knees in front of her. "Give me another one. Let me prove to you that I can be the man you need me to be. But we've got to work with each other on this. I'm not blaming you." I looked up into her eyes. "But I'm like a recovering addict. You can't offer me alcohol when I'm trying to stop drinking. So, how about we make a promise?" I took her hands, even as she scowled at me for daring to bring that up again. "I promise to stay away from violence. And you promise that if any of your friends are in trouble again, you won't call on my 'special skills' to help them, okay?"

"I can't believe this." She exhaled.

"Please. I'm taking full accountability for what I did. But I need you to work with me on this. I also promise that I'll break that promise if you're ever in danger, and that's non-negotiable," I said.

"Tyler." She reprimanded.

"Okay. Fine. Expect me to break that promise if you're in danger...after I've exhausted all other options," I said.

She pinched the bridge of her nose. "I guess it's a start. Being married to a former mob boss comes with its risks. I knew that getting into this. You promise you'll exhaust all other options first before resorting to violence?"

"Sure." I lied. Of course not. She was my wife. And I'd do anything to protect her. But I wasn't lying about the rest. She needed me to be better and I needed her.

Ann sighed. "I can't believe I'm agreeing to this."

My smile spread wide and I moved to stand up so I could wrap her in my arms and kiss the life out of her, but she pressed into my shoulder. "Wait, I think I like having you there."

I grinned and my brows kicked up. We played around with a little dominance and submission every now and then. And we switched roles as the mood called for it. It wasn't that serious, it was just for fun.

I licked my lips and bit back a sigh. "But here I was, thinking about putting you over my knee and spanking you for trying to leave me."

Her chest rose and fell. "Maybe later." She gulped. "But right now, I'm liking the whole rope tying idea."

My eyes lit up.

"I mean you, tied up." She caught thrill scattering goosebumps on my skin.

"I know." I smiled and flashed my brows at her.

Chapter 41

Eric

Today must have tired Lily out because she snored soft and deep into the soft white blanket pulled up to her cheeks. I knew she hadn't jumped awake in fright because I hadn't taken my eyes off her. I was kind of grateful for that, if I'm being honest. I was seated right by the door, just in case my stomach started again, and if she were to jump awake and see me sitting here, staring at her, she might have a heart attack.

In theory, I should have been able to take my eyes off her and go to sleep, knowing she'd be safe, right? That was the reason we stupidly agreed to go with Tyler today, why we allowed ourselves to be tricked into doing something he could have easily done himself. But it still didn't feel real. It was like what we did was one big nightmare that I'd put behind me, even though I was riddled with the thought of their flesh in my mouth and inside my body after eating that fish. It's a weird thing, being aware of what you've done and still expecting, even half hoping that Terry's ugly ass would walk out of my nightmare and tell me it was all a dream. At least I'd know what to do if he showed up. If I could reverse the clock and have him show up, I would've just called the stupid police department. Why didn't I just do that? My parents and their military contacts would have seen to it that he and that pig with him were charged and unable to get out anytime soon.

Well, it's because you thought they were on the run. And the only reason you found out why they were missing was because Tyler told you that he had them.

I sank my head in the heel of my hand. Yeah, I know. But that doesn't mean we couldn't have done things differently, I answered myself.

Oh hell, how was I going to look my parents in the eyes?

Only when the guys came stumbling down the long hallway toward me did I turn my blank, tired eyes away from Lily.

"Shhh." I threw my finger to my lip, but rushed to stand when I saw the state they were in. "What the fuck happened?" I whispered, looking at Ryan slumped in their arms, his feet dragging on the tile.

"Shhh." Ethan fired back. "He fell asleep on the way in."

"He couldn't handle it." Matt choked up.

No shit. He's not supposed to be able to.

"What do you mean?" I asked, helping them lower him to the cold hard ground and shielding his head.

"I mean, he was ready to end it." Ethan choked up. "I don't even blame him." He mumbled under his breath.

"Stop. He might hear you." Matt glared at Ethan.

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