Page 19 of King of Wrath

“There’s a library?” she asks, her eyes brightening like I’ve just told her it’s Christmas. Beautiful, sassy, and smart. I shouldn’t even notice.

I take my last bite of taco, and chew thoughtfully, wanting to insert a slight pause in this conversation. When I’ve swallowed, Iwatch as she eats her second taco, some of the color returning to her cheeks.

Opening another cabinet, I pull out the bourbon and pour two short glasses. “Drink?”

She hesitates. “I’m not much of a drinker.”

I take one glass and wave it under my nose, inhaling. I’d like to have about five of these, but I’ve got to keep my wits. “A sip will help you sleep.”

She looks skeptically at the glass, licking her lips like she’d like to try it.

I’m deeply invested in making certain this woman is happy and healthy while she’s here. Comfort is key to the plan. “Nia. I told you…think of this as a vacation. Eat, sleep, read, relax. Drink. You are safe here and no one is going to hurt you.” Silently, I add the words,no one is going to find you either. Not until I want them to.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Nia

After I finish the drink,I take a shower, singing as I wash the vomit from my hair, and then put on my pajamas, an old T-shirt and some running shorts, and climb into one of the twin beds.

I’m sure the room is set up with two because this is a two-bedroom for a family and the other bedroom is the master.

I hear Jake in the bathroom, and I let out a long breath.

So far, everything has been as promised. But my brain can’t quite wrap around the whole situation.

Who would be able to relax? Jake is way too handsome and then there is the wholethink of your kidnapping like a vacation. In what world does that make sense?

I come from a messed-up criminal family, and not even I think this is reasonable.

Except, I come from a family where the men hurt their women. Like all the time. It’s not just my dad. My aunt is a classic case of an abused-and-battered woman, she flinches at everything.

And don’t even get me started on some of my cousins. TheVendetti twins could make any woman’s skin crawl. They were torture-the-animals kind of kids.

I’ve got to be honest. Toni is terrible. Do I have some of those same markers as my aunt? Probably. I barely speak, I don’t connect with anyone. Not even my sister.

I am currently sporting bruises on my ribs and the outside of my thighs because Toni got really drunk when he found out Mason was foreclosing on the Diamond and took his frustration out on me.

The Kincaids have been hitting Toni hard. First, they got the oldest Vendetti arrested, and then Little Anthony, Toni’s second in command. Which means, Toni’s been hitting me extra hard.

I’m half convinced I’d already be married but I need unmarked skin for the wedding night.

Not that Toni’s broken me. Toni hasn’t made me weak. If anything, I’ve gotten stronger. Or maybe that’s the wrong word. I’m just…harder.

I think back on what Jess said. About how other families could protect us and how we’d need that. There is some sound logic there, even if I want nothing to do with this life.

And despite understanding her point, I know I don’t want to get tangled up with the Kincaids. They can claim to operate on the right side of the law but kidnapping definitely falls under the creepy-as-hell category, no matter how hot they are.

As if to underscore my point, the bedroom door opens, and Jake walks into the room.

I sit up with a gasp, clutching the covers to my chest, like those are going to protect me. “Wh-wh-what are you doing?”

“Going to bed,” he says as he walks between the two beds, close enough that I can smell his aftershave, and I shrink away. It’s a perfectly nice scent. Delicious, even, but this is just too much.

He only turns to the other bed and pulls back the covers, climbing in. Then he turns on his side away from me, pulling the covers back up his body.

I blink at him, still sitting up. “But…isn’t there another bedroom?”

“Turned it into the gym slash library. We need exercise andentertainment. This place is small and as you mentioned, the desert isn’t safe.” He settles on his back, pulling the blankets back up his body.

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