Page 80 of Captivated

“I love you more.”

“Not possible.”

“Fuck, you feel incredible. I’m going to lose it,” he growls, kissing me hard as he picks up his pace.

“I’m almost there,” I say, reaching down between us to circle my clit with my fingers, and that does the trick. “Yes…” I moan as my release washes over me, more intense than the last time. My entire body convulses as Cash pumps his hips and follows right behind me.

“God… Fuck!” He shouts, stilling inside of me, filling me with his release, and then falling on top of me, crushing me with his solid mass. But the weight of him on me is more comforting than painful. Eventually he rolls to the side, resting his head in his arm propped on his elbow, staring down at me while we recover.

“You’re here,” he finally speaks, brushing unruly hairs from my face.

“I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere.” We lay there in silence, absorbing each other before I decide to start talking, knowing I have entirely too much to say. “I am so sorry I left in the first place. My dad was insistent that I come home, and rushed to get me out of the hospital. It all happened so fast, but I was too weak to fight him.”

“I lost my mind when I came back and you weren’t in your room, Piper. I fucking lost it. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so lost as I have in the last six weeks. I hated waiting, wondering if you would ever come back,” he admits, reigning in his emotions. “It killed me. I thought I’d lost you.”

“I can’t apologize enough, Cash. I didn’t want to leave like that, but when I got home, I was so overwhelmed by everything that I knew I just needed time. But I want you to know everything now.”

“I’m listening, sweetheart.”

I move to prop my head in my hand, mirroring his position. Cash reaches down to pull the blanket over us for warmth as I take a deep breath.

“My real name is Pfeiffer Winters. Piper Davis is the name my parents gave me when I left home after I found out that my fiancé was leading a double life. Apparently, Mason had a gambling problem and got wrapped up in an underground gambling ring with a very powerful family in New York, the Montevallo’s.”

Cash nods his head in understanding. “Ah, now I see the connection.”

“I felt stupid that I never knew—I mean, I was engaged to the man and he was living this entirely different life behind my back. I was so focused on finishing nursing school that I guess I was too distracted to notice. Or maybe I just didn’t care enough to ask questions. We were engaged, but I never felt for him the way I feel for you. Anyway, I overheard him on the phone one day, telling the other person on the line that he needed more time to come up with some money, and that’s how everything spiraled out of control. When he became frantic, he dropped my family’s name, saying he could get money from my father, that he just needed some time. Winters is a powerful name in our community as well. As you know, my parents are very wealthy and apparently Mason thought that asking my father for money under the lie that it was for an investment would be a quick way for him to repay his debt.”

“Fuck.”

“Yeah. So as soon as he dropped my last name and said he was engaged to me, it put a target on my back. My father was livid and then frightened, knowing what the Montevallo’s are capable of. After talking with our head of security, they decided it wasn’t safe for me to stay there, so they created a new life for me with a new name, kind of like a witness protection situation.”

“Why not just stay there where they could keep an eye on you?” He asks, stroking his fingers up and down my arm.

“They were too afraid that I would be watched and then kidnapped or worse at some point, particularly because my father refused to give them money for Mason’s debt. They sent a letter quickly after Mason dropped our name, threatening my life if they didn’t get their money, and my father refused, so he did what he thought was best. And most of all, my parents didn’t want me to have to sacrifice all the work I had put into becoming a nurse, so leaving became the only option.”

“Where did you go?”

“Denver at first. A childhood friend of my mother’s took me in. Heather was so sweet and knew my circumstances, so she kept me hidden while I studied to pass the NCLEX exam, the test that gives me a nursing license.”

“Okay…”

“My father has money obviously, so he had my degree changed to my new name and I took my test with my new name, so my license was also in my new name. Once I got the results that I passed, I started looking for jobs, and one posting I saw was in a place called Emerson Falls,” I smile fondly, remembering how I felt when I saw the name of this place. It called to me, like so many other things I can look back on now and realize made me feel the same way.

“So you packed up and headed out here…”

“Yes, about five months after I had left home. The only way I kept in contact with my parents was from the phone you found.”

“What was the other one for?”

“That one was for my best friend, Rachel. She knew I was gone, but never knew where I ended up. My parents were adamant about that.”

“Jeez. Okay, so then what happened when you got here?”

I can’t help the grin that overtakes my lips. “Well, I found an apartment and set up my life here, and then on my way to my interview at the hospital, I was stopped by a sexy deputy that made me question whether men that looked like you actually existed.”

A chuckle leaves Cash’s lips before he leans down to kiss me.

“And the rest is history,” he says.

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