Page 36 of Make You Mine

“Not telling.” Her pitch is a bit high, and there’s a brightness in her eyes I haven’t seen before. A glimpse into the woman she is and not what he made her. “It’s a surprise.”

“Let me guess?—”

“It’s not going to be a sappy love fest.”

“Really?” Because I’m not buying that.

“Why does that surprise you?” Ava arches a brow while a wayward curl slips from her messy bun.

“Because most women live for those dramatic encounters...” I shrug, pushing my plate forward “...it’s programmed into your DNA.”

“I should flick you for that comment,” she deadpans, looking at me as if I were an idiot. “That, or I’ll choose to believe you’re super exhausted and delirious.”

“I’ll take that last one, por favor.”

“Very well.” Slipping from her seat, her hip lightly brushes my arm, and I bite back a groan. Ava’s close and grabs my hand, and I let her, enjoying the way she all but drags me to the living room. Once there, I’m pushed onto the sofa. “Behave and don’t move.”

“Where are you going?” I call after her, but she doesn’t answer. It takes a few minutes, and the longer I sit, the sleepier I get. Closing my eyes for just a second, I begin to rest a bit when Ava comes back. Opening one eye, I watch her walk over to my PlayStation and pop in the DVD, then pick up a remote and blanket from the loveseat on her way over.

She plops down beside me, leaving just enough space to be considered respectable, and then looks over. The heat coming from her body caresses my senses. Lulls me. “Yes?”

“What did you go get?”

“Season One of my favorite show on DVD. It’s one of the few things I brought with me.” Ava covers me with the blanket, only keeping a small bit to place over her thighs.Fuck, it smells just like her.

Sweet and decadent, and I inhale deep while letting it relax me.Has she been cuddling with this one while reading at night?“Which is?”

My voice sounds a bit far away. Between the warmth of the blanket, the plushness of the couch, and her sweet scent surrounding me, I find myself drifting.

“...Horror Stories.” That’s all I’m able to comprehend before sleep takes me under.

13

ELIJAH

“What are we missing?” I mutter, looking down at the papers spread out in front of me. Every single inch of this wooden conference table is covered by one file or another, my private notes from when I was the lead detective on the case.

Pictures sit beside each empty folder; they’re a diagram into the inner workings of Jason’s mind, and even the smallest detail can be vital in capturing this motherfucker.To save Ava.

“I’ve been asking myself that very question since our texts yesterday,” Perez says, studying the notes he was given this morning as an older couple walks by, and I look up to follow their movements into the elevator. We’re downstairs, and the blinds are open inside the private conference space the building’s concierge lets me use whenever I need it.

The window doesn’t allow anyone to see in. Completely soundproof and debugged for listening devices, but more importantly, if anyone tries to sneak upstairs, they must walk by this room to do so.

It puts me at ease. That, and I have cameras. Plenty. Every-fucking-where.

So, while Ava sleeps, I work. Try to solve the pieces of this puzzle that’s been plaguing me since I was given my assignment.

Jason has someone working with him. He has to have an accomplice.

Of that, I have no doubt, but who? And more importantly, from which department and state?

“And what have you come up with?”

“I hate to admit this, but your theory is correct, Ford.” He sits back and chugs his coffee, the grimace on his face telling me it’s gone cold and nasty. Or maybe it’s the bitter pill of betrayal. “No one thought to look deeper, or those who did were paid to remain silent, but somehow—one of our fucking own is feeding him information. We know Jasonisheading this way. The bastard got free, and instead of going south to Mexico and avoiding recapture, he’s leaving a trail of victims that point straight back here. It’s a fucked-up scene. He knows we have her, but it’s a lead we can approach. We can intercept him.”

I don’t like it. Fucking loathe that they’ll use Ava as bait, but it wouldn’t be the first time this tactic has been used. Especially as the desperation to recapture him grows.

I’ll protect her with my life. No one will harm her.

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