Page 42 of Hot for Hostage

Davian

Fifteen minutes after Vince called, I jogged down the front steps—freshly showered and in a change of clothes—to meet the dark SUV pulling to a stop.

The back door flew open, and Sadie stumbled out—pale as a ghost and shivering in a pair of tiny pink pajamas. An instinctual need to hunt down whoever had scared her overwhelmed me.

Bear hopped down after Sadie, sticking close to her hip. I ignored him and strode straight up to her.

“Come here,” I said, trying to sound comforting, but it came out as more of a growl.

Oh well.

I lifted her until her soft body was cradled against my chest. The pajamas barely covered half her ass, but I wasn’t sure she even noticed how much skin was on display.

Sadie’s arms automatically wrapped around my neck, and her cheeks reddened.

“You don’t need to carry me,” she whispered. It grated on my nerves that her voice sounded so small. I needed to know what had happened at her apartment. “I can walk.”

I tightened my grip and started up the stairs. “Just let me. It’s my fault this happened.”

Her brow furrowed. “It’s not your fault?—”

“It is, but I’ll make it right.”

Bear must’ve sensed how upset she was, because he followed close on my heels without a single growl. Vince caught up to us at the top of the stairs and opened the hulking front door.

I lowered my voice. “Find whoever is responsible for this.”

He nodded briskly. “I called Malcolm, and he’s on it.”

Not slowing down, I crossed the foyer, with Bear following so closely he rubbed against my leg with each step.

Sadie tucked her head against my neck. Her warm breath tickled my skin.

She didn’t speak while I carried her to the master bedroom at the end of the second floor and set her on my bed. Bear immediately paced across the floor with his nose low, sniffing every inch of the room.

The large bed could swallow Sadie whole, and her bright pink pajamas stood out against the dark covers.

“Vince said it was Fessy’s friends who came to my apartment,” she said, breaking her silence and shifting to sit back against the pillows. She frowned. “Why would they do that?”

My fists clenched. I’d thought it over in the shower. Those boys wouldn’t risk crossing me just to get Bear again, but they’d seen me with Sadie and probably assumed she could be used as leverage over me.

Just like my old man had warned would happen if I ever got close to someone.

Needing to do something, I pulled a blanket over her and gathered the sides closer in around her. I’d never tucked anyone in before, and it was a poor attempt, but Sadie was too distracted to notice.

“Vince and Malcolm are looking into it,” I said. “The Skulls must’ve had eyes on us going to Bruno’s, then followed us. Or they followed Daisy.”

Sadie’s gaze shot up, filled with determination. “I won’t let them take Bear again. They can’t have him.”

Her resolve made my jaw clench. They weren’t coming for Bear, but she didn’t need to know that. She didn’t need to think about the things they might’ve done to her if Vince hadn’t been there. I didn’t want to think about it myself, and I had an iron stomach.

“They won’t. You’re both safe here,” I told her, pulling back and fixing her with the look I usually gave my men when giving orders. She blinked back at me. “Get some sleep. I’ll be downstairs dealing with this.”

“Wait!” she cried, sitting up and undoing my tuck-in job before I’d made it more than three steps.

I raised a brow. “What’s wrong?”

Her gaze dropped to the bed, and she fiddled with the edge of the comforter.

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