Page 53 of Icebound Hearts

“Goodnight, then. I’ll be down the hall if you need anything, okay?”

“Okay,” she whispers.

But as I turn to leave, her hand flies out and grabs mine. I freeze, her touch like a zap of electricity against my skin. She squeezes my fingers and smiles, and the warm, soft look on her face makes something deep inside me shift like a tectonic plate.

“Thank you for taking care of me tonight,” she murmurs.

My hand instinctively starts to move hers toward my mouth to kiss the back of it, but I catch myself and give her hand another gentle squeeze instead, my heart thudding in my ears and my throat dry.

“You’re welcome, heartbreaker.”

Chapter 16

Violet

I’m back in Chicago, walking down the halls of the marketing firm I used to work at.

The layout of the building is familiar, and I smile as I make my way down the corridor on the tenth floor, waving to one of my old co-workers, Melody.

But she doesn’t wave back. She looks right at me and then looks away, as if I’m not even there.

My stomach twists, unease rippling through me, but I brush it away. She’s probably just busy. We’ve had a huge project that’s taken up long hours and a lot of energy lately, but no matter how much this job demands of me, I still love it.

Except… as I keep walking through the office, the pit in my stomach starts to grow, twisting my insides into a knot.

No one will look at me.

No one will talk to me.

In this building, this company that I’ve dedicated hundreds of hours of my life to… it’s like I don’t exist.

“I told you this would happen.”

A familiar male voice speaks from behind me, and my heart stutters. Elijah. Suddenly, all the warmth drains from my body,and the familiar walls and corridors of the large office don’t feel comforting anymore.

Because I’m not welcome here. I’m notsafehere.

My heart thuds heavily, and instead of responding to Elijah, I turn and start to walk away, desperate to escape his stifling, smug presence. But he follows me, his voice murmuring taunting words in my ear, reminding me what a failure I am, what a fool. Reminding me that no matter what happens, he’ll always win, and I’ll always lose.

A chill floods my veins, goosebumps breaking out on my skin as I pick up my pace. I’m practically running from him now, and part of me is ashamed of that. Part of me feels like I should turn around and fight him, scream at him—do anything. But I know it won’t do any good, and I can barely breathe. I need to get out. Need to get away.

I’m not paying attention to where I’m going anymore, just turning this way and that at random—until I round a corner, and the floor suddenly drops away. My footsteps stutter, and I realize with horror that I’m standing on the edge of an inky abyss, leaning over its yawning chasm.

But it’s too late. My momentum is carrying me forward, and I can’t stop in time.

I tumble forward, and then I’m falling, screaming, down into a black hole while the man above me laughs.

His face is the last thing I see before the darkness swallows me, blacking out everything else.

“Elijah!” I whisper-shout, sitting bolt upright in pitch blackness.

I’m covered in a light sheen of sweat, and everything seems to be spinning around me, making my stomach roil.

My body moves of its own volition, jolting out of bed as I leap to my feet and rush down the hall toward the bathroom. I dropto my knees in front of the toilet, lit only by a sliver of the moon coming in from outside, and heave.

It feels like it goes on forever, a fresh wave of nausea washing over me every few seconds as my body rebels. Finally, it stops, and I jolt when I feel a warm hand on my shoulder.

“It’s okay, Violet,” a deep voice murmurs. “It’s me. Sawyer.”

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