Page 480 of Dark Love

And at that, all my nerves settle. Whatever happens today, I go home and fall asleep in this man’s arms, knowing he’ll protect me. “Thank you.”

“You’re not taking my offer, are you?”

Vex isn’t getting away with not taking me to the bookstore. “Oh yes, I am. Saturday, you and I have a date at the bookstore.”

His lips tip up.

What would it feel like to kiss him when he’s smiling?

“Dahl. Don’t.”

“Well then, don’t read my mind.”

The elevator door opens, and the time for indecision is over. “Let’s do this.”

We’re up to Payne’s apartment in just a few moments. As the elevator comes to a stop, I grab Vex’s hand.

He gives it a squeeze and pulls me in closer.

If I hadn’t spent all that time at Vex’s apartment, Payne’s would have floored me. They seem to have the same designer who loves smooth metallics and dark colors.

“Hey.” Payne stands by the door.

But my eyes move past him, to the woman sitting on the couch watching us with haunted eyes. Is she anorexic or did he starve her? Because people aren’t naturally that thin.

Do not flinch. Do not show the fear that’s swirling in the pit of your belly. “Hi.” I wave to her, walking away from the men. “My name is Prue.”

“Imogene.” She tries to smile but fails.

“Do you like cinnamon?”

“Love it.” She glances at the container.

Instead of walking over to the kitchen, I sit down next to her, careful not to crowd her space. “Whenever I wasn’t feeling well, my mother made me cinnamon toast. It was just a little cinnamon and sugar on white bread. Nothing fancy. Nothing that should fix anything, but it worked every single time.”

“Is that what you brought me?”

“Absolutely not. But I did bring over the best cinnamon sugar bread that I’ve ever tasted, because if this much sugar doesn’t make you smile, nothing will.” I lift off the cover and the space fills with the warm,sweet scent.

“It smells good enough to make me believe you, but I’ve tasted some really amazing bread.”

And the gauntlet has been thrown down. “Oh really. This will ruin you for all other bread.”

“Impossible.” She tugs off a corner and pops it into her mouth. “Mmmmm” Imogene sinks back into the massive couch cushions.

Not to be left out of the sweet bliss, I take a piece too. It’s the perfect balance of light airy bread with a slightly crispy butter crust and gooey melted cinnamon sugar.

“When I was down there, I never thought I’d eat food like this again…”

***

“You look tired. We stayed there too long.” Vex does overprotective thunderous vibes well.

That’s because Imogene’s experience is enough mental load to take the energy out of anyone. I turn to him. “You saved her because of me.”

“Yeah.”

“If it were me, would you question how many minutes someone stayed with me to offer comfort?”

---