Page 36 of One Way Out

He pulls a bottle of water between us and cracks the lid, offering me a sip. He tips the drink to my lips and manages to not spill a drop. “While we’re talking about issues, I think I have to bring up Samantha.”

An entirely different kind of chill racks through my body, and I sputter as I swallow. “What about my stepmom?”

“You know I’m not fond of her. She’s a fucking snake,” Shaw says, putting the drink back. He takes a bite and swallows before again offering me the sandwich.

I take the bite, but it tastes like ash against my tongue. Leo briefly mentioned something about her. He said he didn’t want to get into it right then, and it never came back up.

“When McCabe made the call…” Shaw curses, shaking his head. “She never passed on that information to your father. At least, not up to the point we came in here. Easton was planning to tell your father what went down with his wife, but you needed to know too.”

I force myself to swallow, wishing I had the water to rinse it down. “She didn’t tell my dad? Then, how did you know where to find me?”

Shaw grimaces, but his eyes meet mine. “They probably hacked the security feeds from the mansion, in addition to intercepting the call. Your father waited three days to call us in, but once Shadow Security was aware of your disappearance, they would have immediately started monitoring your family.”

“My dad waited three days to notify you I was missing?” I ask as my stomach drops.

“Hey.” Shaw drops the sandwich on the table and wraps his arms around my lower back. “It’s not unusual for people to panic when their loved ones are missing. They make shitty calls because they’re afraid of the consequences. He thought a ransom call would come. When he realized it wasn’t, he pulled us in.”

Yeah, or maybe he was hoping it never would so he could simply move on with his new family.

I’ve felt like an outsider looking in ever since he remarried, but I’ve made a lot of excuses for his behavior. I’ve made even more allowances for his excusing Samantha’s hatred of me. She’s never been kind. At least, not to me, and I would have tried to get along with her if she had given any indication that it would be possible, but I’ve always been able to sense how much she dislikes me.

Shaw pulls me closer, and my face rests against his T-shirt.

“He’s not going to divorce her,” I say. “There’s no way. He’ll make excuses for this too.”

“He might,” Shaw says, cradling me to his chest. His muscular arms tighten, and rather than feeling trapped, it helps me feel secure. “You don’t have to interact with them again. Not if you don’t want to. Leo and I, along with Valor and Omen, we’ll make sure you’re safe and cared for.”

“I appreciate it,” I tell him truthfully. “I don’t think I want to go back to school after this. Like, at all. I have zero desire to go back to college.” My teeth dig into my lower lip.

I don’t know what I want to do next, but sitting in a classroom isn’t it.

Shaw nuzzles his cheek to the side of my head, and a few seconds pass before a ragged purr starts in his chest. “That’s up to you. You’re an adult. You get to decide what you want to do with your life.”

“I missed you a lot,” I admit, cuddling closer.

“Me too. I missed you so fucking much. I’m a little afraid that things are so chaotic right now…” He sighs. “I just don’t want you to have any regrets. I’m willing to put in the work to earn back your trust. That’s why I told you about the Russians and your stepmother. I’m an open book from here on out.”

“I appreciate it, and I don’t want to have any regrets either.” I rub my face against his T-shirt as his chest rattles with that underused purr of his. He’s not purposely trying to upset me, but it still gets under my skin. I have enough worries; I don’t want to focus on the past right now. “I’ll get half of my inheritance once I turn twenty-one, but I don’t know how I’ll be able to pay to get Valor and Omen into the States. We’ll need flights and?—”

“We’ll touch base with Easton and work on getting fake papers for Valor and Omen,” Shaw says calmly. “Leo and I will cover their flights. Documents will be significantly pricier, but we’ll work it out with Easton directly.”

My head pops up, and I study his face. “Really?”

“Yeah, sweetheart,” he says, smiling softly. “I told you, I’m with you from here on out. Even if you chose not to be with me, I’d still do whatever I could to make your life easier.”

My fingers move to cradle his jaw, and his short beard pokes my skin. His blue eyes seem so sincere, but more than anything, I want him too. He and Leo are just being extra stubborn about not wanting to rush things. The thing is, this place requires drastic measures to retain even a modicum of control over your own future.

“Thank you so much for coming into this awful place to save me,” I whisper, licking my dry lips.

Shaw is way too hot to be looking at me the way he is right now.

It makes it too hard to think.

I have so much more I want to say, but I find myself leaning forward until my lips brush his. He growls, flattening his hand on my back to hold me in place as he guides the soul-consuming kiss.

I’m especially addicted to the way he grins a little ferally as he pulls back.

I really want to see that sexy smirk cross his face while he’s inside me.

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