Page 49 of Now You're Mine

Roman

At some point,in the middle of the night, I roll over in bed and reach out for Lux. But she’s not there. Rising up onto one elbow, I glance over at the bathroom, expecting the light to be on, but it’s dark. In fact, the entire room is pitch black.

Where the fuck is she?

My pulse instantly kicks up a notch, even though I know logically, she’s probably just down in the kitchen, getting something to eat. I have several ex-Navy SEALs posted around the perimeter of the house 24/7, switching out every four hours. No one is getting through that.

So, yeah, I’m sure she’s fine. Still, there’s a heavy feeling in my chest. It’s nothing, I’m sure. Just paranoia. And yet, I find myself rolling out of bed, and heading down the back staircase to find Lux.

When I get to the kitchen, Christian is sitting in the breakfast nook, eating a large bowl of cereal, watching something on his phone with his headphones on. He tilts his chin up in a silentgreeting as I enter, then goes back to shoveling cereal into his face.

“Yo,” I say loudly.

He pulls his headphones off one ear. “What’s up?”

“Have you seen Lux?” I ask.

He glances around the kitchen. “Nah, man. Isn’t she upstairs?”

I push a hand through my hair. “We fell asleep earlier, but when I woke up, she was gone. I thought she might be down here grabbing something to eat.”

Christian shakes his head. “I haven’t seen her.”

The back door opens, and Lucas and Jackson step in from outside. When they see Christian and me, they both stop short.

“Oh, good, you got my text,” Lucas says.

“What text? I’ve been asleep and now I’m looking for Lux,” I say. “Where the hell have you two been?”

Jackson flashes me an annoyed look, then walks to the fridge and pulls out a bottle of water. “Wejustleft Exeter House,” he says, twisting the cap open and then taking a swig of water. “Nathan’s body was discovered about an hour after we got there. Thankfully, we’d already connected with Byron, so we were able to stage things before the police were called—”

“Hey-O,” Ash says, stepping through the back door.

Goddamn.

“What the fuck areyoudoing here?” I ask, annoyed. It’s the middle of the night, for God’s sake. Is nothing sacred?

Ash lifts his hands and glances around like he’s confused by my question. “Lucas texted me. He said we all needed to talk. I considered ignoring it, but I was awake anyway, so whatever.”

Lucas sighs. “Yeah, I thought we should all get our story straight in case the police—”

A faint crash echoes through the house, cutting him off. It sounded like something heavy was knocked down, or fell.

“Lux?” I instantly sprint into action and head toward the sound. And, fuck, but my thoughts race as I move down the hallway. Did Lux pass out? Did she fall?

Somewhat frantic now, I peer through each open door as I pass. She’s not in the ballroom, the bathroom, or the living room. The only room left to check is the study.

With the guys behind me, I push through the study’s double doors, and I’minstantlyconfronted with my worst fucking nightmare.

My brother has Lux by the throat, the barrel of a gun pressed against her cheek.

Time screeches to a halt, and my entire world feels like it’s caving in, crumbling right beneath my feet. Lux’s face is red, and tears stream down her face. He’s choking her and she looks ready to pass out.

“James, get the fuck off her,” I say, a rage rising up inside me that I’ve never confronted before.

Somewhere in the background, I can hear the guys whispering about whether or not they should alert the ex-Navy SEALs outside.

Hearing my voice, James’s hand eases off Lux’s throat. The second she’s free, her hand flies to her neck, and she sags, sucking in several gulps of air. Then James half-turns and trains the gun onme.

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