Page 40 of Vicious Addictions

“Yes, they are. You either can’t see it or refuse to.”

“Fine.” She lifts her hands in the air only to drop them with a loud thud on her bare knees. “Maybe they are that bad. But the twins have my back. I don’t know if you’ve paid attention over the last year you’ve been with us, but the twins are all I have.”

“That’s not true,” I retort, slightly offended.

“No?” She hikes up a brow.

“You have your father. And you have… me.”

“Do I? If that were true, you would tell me why you’re so upset right now.”

I frown when my chest tightens under her devoted stare.

“I have all day. I can wait.” She smirks but doesn’t push for more. Instead, she follows through on her word and waits. And somehow, that’s worse.

I exhale sharply. “I killed someone.”

Mina stills. “Oh.”

“A woman.”

Understanding instantly flickers across her face.

“And you’ve never done that before, I take it? Killed a person, I mean.”

“No.”

She leans forward slightly, studying me.

“And are you upset because you killed someone? Or because she was a woman?”

I don’t answer.

She doesn’t need me to.

She nods as if she already knew. Then, without hesitation, she shifts closer. “Scoot over.”

I frown. “What?”

“I said, scoot over. If you’re going to spend the entire day in bed wallowing, then you’ll need some company. I refuse to leave you alone today.”

And before I have time to stop her, Mina takes off her shoes and slides under the sheets with me.

“I don’t think this is appropriate. What if your father—”

“Like you, Daddy only comes home on the weekends. The twins won’t be around either since they like staying at the loft in the city during the week, too. No one will know.”

I’ll know.

I know that I should tell her to leave, to get out of my bed, but the warmth of her body soothes the coldness running through my bones.

She lays my head on her stomach and runs her fingers through my hair. It’s so comforting that my eyes start to get heavy.

“Mina—”

“Shh. Don’t talk,” she whispers softly. “Just close your eyes.”

I do as she commands, relishing in her light touch, her flowery scent invading my senses.

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