Page 35 of Wicked Riddles & Bitter Heartbeats

I know what room he’s in. All I have to do now is go to it.

Chapter Fifteen

Atticus

The internet makes finding information too easy. There’s hardly any fun in looking for things nowadays. All it took was one search to find the layout of the hotel. I identified the room James is staying in and drove to the other side of the parking lot, going as far back as possible to get a better angle into his room.

Lilah is still sleeping in the back. I keep checking on her, concerned she isn’t breathing. She’s slept through everything, even all the moving around I’ve done. I hope she isn’t getting sick.

The curtains are pushed open in James’ room, and so I keep my eyes on it. It’s been dark for a while, so I can’t be sure if he’s in there or not.

I busy myself by looking into the other windows, people-watching, as I tend to enjoy that. Watching people. It’s been a while since I sat around and did this, but I need to remember I’m doing it for a reason. Now and then I glance back at James’ room to check for movement, and it remains dark. So I continue to browse the other rooms and hallways, until a flash of purple hair has me stunned.

“No fucking way,” I mutter, following the girl as she walks down the hall. I can’t see her face, but that hair… it’s Violet’s. I swear it is. The first thing she did when she was free of the foster home was dye her hair purple to match her name. Our shit foster parents never let us do such things, even though we were given money by the state to do what we wanted with. It was Violet’s way to celebrate her freedom.

I watch the girl as I lean closer to the window, until she disappears. I search for more windows, but she’s just gone, so I lower the binoculars and stare at the building. I think I’m losing my mind.

How, after all this time, am I suddenly seeing her now? And here? I’d assumed she wasn’t in the area any longer, because why else would she not look for me? I’m a lot easier to find. She knew I’d get the money, and I even brought her by my house once, telling her all the fun stuff we could do once it was ours. She knows where I live and knows my name. If she’s been here… why didn’t she come find me?

I’ve thought of her over the years, a lot. But I’ve never seen her, not since the night before she left. Never even thought I did. Is my mind playing a trick on me because I told Lilah about her?

I glance back at my sleeping kitten.

Is this because of her? Is there guilt? I don’t feel guilt. Never have. And I don’t now, either, as I think of me and Lilah. Violet and I were not like that, there is nothing to feel guilty for—even if I were capable of feeling such a thing.

So the only other thing that makes sense is this mess with James. It’s making me crazy. The sooner I can talk to him, the sooner it’ll all go away. If I can put all these questions to rest by getting answers, I’ll be fine. I’ll go back to my regular life, go back to my schedule, and take care of my kitten full time. She’s my life now, my responsibility, and she’s with me until the end.

I’ve told her that, and she says she understands… but, does shereallyunderstand?

It’s not fair of me to keep certain parts of myself from Lilah when I’m laying claim over her, but fuck being fair. I don’t care about any of that. I’m selfish, and I’ve lived a life of bullshit to deserve to be that way. For whatever reason, I am not ready to give all of myself to Lilah yet, even if I am taking all of her.

Sex has never been a big deal for me before—emotionally or physically. The only time sex meant something was that one time with Violet. All the other times were just going through the motions. Experimenting. Boredom. It was something to pass the time, something to try to see if it would make me “normal.”

It didn’t work.

Lilah knows I’m far from normal, though. She’s seen the barest parts of me already. The more she knows about me, the deeper she sees into my darkened soul, the more reasons she has to leave. Not that she has a choice to leave, but it’s easier when shewantsto stay. And I’ll admit, knowing she wants me feels good.

It’s after three in the morning now, and I still see no movement in James’ room. I must have missed something. Or he goes to bed early as hell.

Lilah is stirring in the back, and my neck is getting stiff. There’s not much of anything I can get done at this point. Lilah needs a bed to sleep on, and I guess I could use some sleep, too. There’s a hotel across the road, so I drive us that way, then headinside to get a room. Once it’s settled, I go back out to the car and gently wake up Lilah.

“Hey, Kitten,” I say softly, brushing my fingers over her cheek.

She stirs awake, eyes fluttering open. She smiles the moment her eyes focus on me.

“I got us a room.”

“You didn’t have to do that.” She yawns, stretching out as much as she can in the small space. “I’m fine here.”

“You deserve a comfortable bed to sleep in.”

Her smile widens, and she throws her legs off the end and I help her to her feet. I grab our backpacks and head toward the building, my arm around her shoulders. It’s chilly and she should be wearing a jacket. When we get up to the room, she goes right for the bed, lying down in the center and hugging the pillow. I drop the bags and go to her, my dick getting hard at the sight.

Fucking her right now would be perfect. Sliding my dick between her thick thighs, between her ass cheeks, then inside her pussy, that I bet is tight as fuck.

Crawling on the bed, I settle behind her and tug her pants down. She shimmies her hips, lifting them to help me pull her pants off. I spread her cheeks to get a good look at her pretty little asshole and her pink pussy.

“You are perfect,” I say, sliding my thumb over her glistening hole.

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