Page 79 of Wicked Devotions: Part 2

I smile as I watch her go.

“Are you guys leaving to go back to Trinity?” Dad asks.

“Yeah, Emerson needs to get back for a class in the morning. He told me about Harper, thank you for that.”

“Of course. She needs time to rest and heal.”

“I was hoping I could convince her to stay here until after the holidays,” Annabelle says as she joins us and wraps her arm around Dad’s waist. “But she wants to go back to the home that feels the most comfortable for her.”

Warmth explodes in my chest hearing that. She thinks of the house I bought as her home. There’s something so beautifully poetic about that.

Dad and Annabelle walk us out to the car and spend a long time giving us hugs and saying goodbye. Annabelle and Harper hold onto each other the longest, each of them finally letting go of the other and wiping tears from their eyes. By the time we actually get on the road, the sun is sinking low on the western horizon. I find myself wishing, yearning, to be up in the air.

With everything that’s transpired over the past couple days, I feel the drive to be close to my mom. I’ll have to go to mass Wednesday night. Feeling her presence will help ground me, especially when I need to be at my best for Harper’s recovery.

Part of me is sad that Harper doesn’t feel safe in church anymore. It’s obviously understandable, but it’s such a big part of how I connect with my mom, I wish I could share it with her. Even if it was just a holiday service. It’s not about God or religionfor me, it’s just the closest I can get to feeling Mom while having my feet on the ground.

Harper and Cy have snuggled up against each other in the back seat while Emerson drives. I put on some music and soon I hear soft snores coming from behind me. Emerson looks over at me and laughs quietly because Harper and Cy always argue that neither of them snore, yet there they are. It’s the most beautiful sound in the world.

Chapter

Thirty-Two

HARPER

The house is quiet around me as I sit in front of the fireplace and work on one of my final papers. It’s not that cold outside, but this house is old and drafty, so even the smallest chill in the air makes it feel like an ice box. Not that I mind, though. The longer I live here, the more the house has grown on me with its dark, moody aesthetic. I can’t think of a better place for the four, soon to be five, of us.

Christmas is in a little over two weeks, and you wouldn’t know it by looking around the house and seeing absolutely no Christmas decorations. When Declan and Emerson get home or Cyrus comes down from painting in his studio, I’m going to ask if they have any holiday decor. I’m guessing the answer will be no.

I finish the paper and email it to my professor, checking one major thing off my to-do list for the end of the semester. I do have to go on campus for two of my finals, but I’m not worried about that. All the bruises are fading, and the cuts are healing.

My mental health, on the other hand, is not bouncing back as quickly as my body. Nightmares plague my sleep, even with all the guys sleeping in the same bed as me. And that’s all we do, sleep beside each other. Aside from hugs, kisses, and the occasional caress, they haven’t been touching me in any sort of sexual or intimate way.

In my darkest moments, I worry it’s because I was nearly raped. I’ll wake up feeling his hot breath on my skin and his hand between my legs. Sometimes I wish they’d just erase his touch from my body, but I’m afraid to ask. Scared to know whether or not they don’t want me now.

“What are you up to?” Cy asks from behind me.

“I was actually wondering if you guys have any Christmas decorations hidden around here.”

His deer in the headlights look is all the answer I need. “We don’t, but we can go get some.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” He tosses me a smile. “This place could use a little holiday magic.”

An hour later we have a cart full of ornaments, Christmas lights, wreaths, garland, and two artificial trees. I couldn’t decide which tree I like more, so Cy just grabbed the tags for both. It’s not like the house doesn’t have room for two trees, so who am I to argue?

We stop to pick up hot chocolate on the way home. It’s the first time I’ve been in a small, crowded space since being abducted. With finals being so close, the coffee shop is completely packed with students studying. All these bodies crammed near me ratchets up my anxiety tenfold.

A guy accidentally brushes against me while making room for a girl to walk past him, and I jump at the touch. It’s a complete overreaction on my part, but being touched by anyone but theguys or my mom is still too much. The guy looks at me like I’ve grown two heads while I mumble an apology.

“Don’t apologize,” Cy positions himself in front of me, an immovable blockade between my body and any other. “Should we forget the hot chocolate?”

“No, you already paid.”

“Money comes and goes, you are irreplaceable.” His hand snakes under my coat, landing on the sliver of skin between the band of my jeans and bottom hem of my sweater.

“I love you.” I look up into his eyes, watching as he melts at my words.

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