Page 147 of Runaway Hearts: Seduced by Danger

The man I love is being torn to shreds by tender words, and I want this to stop. But I can’t. A mother’s sacrifice is nothing short of extraordinary in his world.

Even though I want to console him, I’m pissed he lied to me.

So, I read. And soul-shattering sobs escape from his chest.

“On your nineteenth birthday, you will have access to an account I opened under my maiden name for you if you ever want something else in your life other than hurt and manipulation.”

His fists are red under the pressure of hanging to the sheets, his body swaying in a wave motion as a torrent of tears flow down his face.

I didn’t know a man could cry so hard.

“I’m going to…” Kai starts but doesn’t finish. He takes a shuddering breath.

I continue. “Rowan is the holder. He is the key to your freedom if you ever want it. You can choose another path, my little dreamer. You have the fundamental right to a better life. To the freedom I wished for us. I love you. Mom.”

The air thickens with a solemn quiet as I finish the letter.

“I’m going to die…” Kai chokes.

From heartache.

The rain outside morphs from a gentle tap to a steady downpour.

Kai’s sobs reach my ears, the echo bouncing off the walls of our tiny safehouse, but each cry drives a nail into my heart. I want to mend him, piece him together from this shattered state, but his pain is too raw.

And it hurts me, too.

Words of reassurance exit my mouth on automat, my soul yearning to soothe his. “It’s okay. I’m a nurse. I’ll bring you back to life.”

I reach for his hand again, locking our fingers with an iron grip. Kai pulls me closer, his body trembling like a leaf in a raging tempest. My lips find his forehead, pressing silent vows of comfort and love.

“All this time,” he whispers in a tremolo. “I could’ve been someone else.” His words splinter with the weight of regret. “Could’ve been free.”

His eyes, red-rimmed and shimmering, reflect unseen universes of pain, something that resonates with me. A tear rolls down my cheek unnoticed. I brush his hair back, fingers tracing the lines of his face.

“You deserve…” But a pressure crushes my chest and steals my breath away. “Every.” I can’t breathe. “Word.” I gasp, vision blurring as my fingers shake.

“She wanted so much for me,” he says, and I break.

A sledgehammer of emotions shatters the walls of my soul, and a flood of feelings rushes through my body with such intensity that it shakes me to my foundation.

I gasp.

Opening my mouth wider, but it feels as if someone is sitting on my chest, pushing the air out instead of in.

Shit, I might faint from empathy.

Luminous points dance before my eyes.

That’s not empathy.

“Too tight...” I manage to grunt under the weight of Kai’s embrace.

He loosens his hold a little, and I gasp again, my head spinning from the onslaught of feelings.

The weight of his emotions presses on the small canoe of my mental stability, threatening to capsize us.

I gently disentangle myself from Kai’s embrace, guiding him to sit up straight while keeping a supportive hand on his shoulder.

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