Page 94 of Fate Forever and Always

I looked at Sara and back to Callie. I stepped toward Callie and gripped her arms with both my hands so she couldn’t pull away or slap me. “I looked at your phone without you knowing. I knew what was going on. Please don’t hate me. I really did this to help. I texted Elijah and told him I needed his bandmate’s help. After we figured out what to do, I told him to wait. I know that you guys were trying to get Sara somewhere safe and I—”

Callie’s lips were on mine. I pushed my hands into her hair, holding her face to mine. Emotion overtook me, and I felt myself getting choked up. I have missed those lips so much. I didn’tknow what possessed her to kiss me, but I didn’t give two fucks in that moment. I was just glad she was doing it.

“I love you,” I whispered.

I heard Sara clear her throat. “I can get out of here if you need me to.”

I pulled away from the kiss and looked over at her. “No. You can have my room as long as you need. This was my fault.”

She smiled. “No, it wasn’t. It sounds like all you did was protect your girl. I wouldn't expect anything less from a good guy like you but thank you. I can go to my mom’s until my apartment is ready once she’s back in town. I just need a few days. I'll give you guys some time to talk.”

Before Sara could get far, Callie pulled her into a hug. “This isn’t over. I will help you through this. He fucked us both over. It’s our turn to hurt him.”

Sara smiled and nodded. Then she whispered, “I brought my headphones. Take your time and come get me when you are done.”

Callie smirked and came back up to me, wrapping her arms around my waist. “What did you do?” she asked, shaking her head.

After stealing a few more kisses, I sat her down and explained everything.

“From your texts with Sara, I knew you were just waiting to see if he had a hard copy. I have been following him for a few days. Yesterday, I was looking through the window when I saw him stand on a chair and open the air duct in the ceiling. I saw the camera and watched him put a new memory card in it. Then saw where he put the one he took out.”

Callie smiled. I rubbed my thumb over her full lips, taking in the beauty of it.

“Did you know he didn’t change the locks after you left? You gave me a key for emergencies, so I used it. When he left a fewminutes after I saw him, I went to the box he had them in, and I found about ten memory cards. I…I am sorry to say, but I watched them all. Luckily, it looked like everything he had been blackmailing you with, and everything he seemed to have over Sara, was in there. Even a few other women I don't know.”

I shrugged, knowing I didn’t really need to continue, but I did anyway. “I got them all, Callie. I messaged Beck to let him know I found everything, and I would need his help as soon as I could tell you everything and get Sara somewhere safe. I guess he misunderstood and just did it. The good news is there are now no hard copies and nothing on his phone or computer. You are both safe now.”

She straddled me and leaned in for a kiss. I just about lost my breath when her tongue touched mine. Her mouth moving down my neck and biting lightly on my collar bone sent all the blood in my body rushing to my cock. She pulled away for a moment and placed her hands on either side of my face.

“I love you, Nicholas James Clark.” She gave me another peck on the lips. “Thank you. Thank you so fucking much. I was so scared that I would never—” She cut herself off, and tears began to fall. “I thought I would never be able to kiss you again. I thought you would move on after being mad long enough. You just waited all this time, and then I went and fucked it all up. I thought for sure you would just finally give up on me. Instead, you helped me without me even knowing.”

She sat back a little and gripped my chin harshly. She got really close and looked me in the eyes. “If you ever invade my privacy again, I will hurt you in unspeakable ways.” She laughed against my lips, but I knew she wasn’t joking.

“I will agree to that on one condition.”

“Name it.”

I removed the smile from my face so she wouldn’t think I was joking in any way. I ran my fingers through her hair on one side, and she leaned into my touch.

“If anyone ever, and I mean ever, tries to hurt you again, you will tell me, immediately. You are not allowed to run away like that again.” Her smile dropped a little, “Callie, I told you, this is forever. I meant it when I said you were mine. You are not going anywhere. You sure as hell aren’t moving anywhere in January. I don’t know what we will have to do to get—”

She placed her finger over my lips to shut me up. She leaned down to whisper in my ear. “Sara is taking my apartment. I wasn’t going anywhere.” She leaned back. “Once I realized there would eventually be a fix for the Jake issue, I knew I wasn’t going to leave. It is the perfect little two bedroom for Sara and her baby. She can afford it, so we transferred the lease into her name. Mom knows the landlord, that’s how I got it so cheap in the first place.”

I stood up excitedly, and she gripped onto me for dear life. “Thank fucking God.” I took her lips in mine and walked Callie to her room, stopping a few times to kiss her against the wall and then the door.

I pulled my face away. "I have one more secret," I admitted. She looked worried. "I dyed my hair for you. I overheard you say you didn't like blonds to Aubs, and I wasn't able to get it out of my head, so I just dyed it, and I've been secretly doing it every few weeks since the day we went out for your birthday. I wanted to do everything I could to make you mine."

She ran her fingers through my hair and smirked. "I know, baby. You can't hide that smell." She let out a chuckle. "I love you, blond or not."

Callie leaned in and whispered against my lips with a smile. “Are you going to punish me now?”

I growled and squeezed her ass before pushing her bedroom door open and throwing her onto the bed. “You have no fucking idea what I am going to do to you, baby. My hand hasn’t been nearly good enough.”

“I might have some idea,” she joked.

I kissed her so deeply I felt like we were becoming one. I couldn’t hold her tight enough. I didn’t know why, but my eyes were stinging with tears. Callie noticed and held me at arm’s length.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

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