Page 86 of Complete Me
A deep, much-needed laugh bellows out of me. “Oh, heknows his way around. That man made the men I’ve read about in my books look like fumbling amateurs.”
“It’s more than that, though, isn’t it? You found your person.”
“You’re my person,” I argue, not wanting her to feel replaced, even though I know she’s happy for me.
“You know what I mean. He’s the one.”
“Yeah,” I tell her honestly. “He is.”
After my phone call with Piper, I busy myself by cleaning up his room, wanting to leave it the way we found it. I strip the bed of the sheets, dropping them into the hamper before shaking out the top comforter to fold it. The fabric snaps at the end, knocking over my glass of water sitting on the end table.
“Shit.”
I quickly snatch a towel from the hamper, soaking up the spilled water. I open the drawer, dabbing at the beads of water, when the contents at the bottom give me pause.
A framed photo of Reid, two older people, and a very pretty brunette looks back at me. Reid’s hair is much shorter, shaved at the sides and slicked up at the top. His face is missing the long beard he has now, but there’s no mistaking it’s him. His arm is slung over the young girl, her face lit up in a huge smile that reaches her eyes. Her hair is a mess of waves around her face, the wind blowing it off to the side. She’s beautiful and looks so much like Reid. Which leads me to believe the couple standing with them is their parents. My heart aches painfully in my chest at what they’ve all had to go through, for Lena and the pain and fear she must have experienced before her life was stripped from her.
My next emotion hits me like an atomic bomb. Anger. It isn’t until this moment that I understand Reid’s desperation forvengeance on these vile humans who have no appreciation for life. I suddenly want Reid to end them. Not for me, not even for Lena. But for every single woman out there that they’ll hurt after us.
The bedroom door opens, and Reid steps through the threshold, looking down at me sitting cross-legged on the floor with the frame in my hand and tears in my eyes.
“I wasn’t snooping, I promise. The cup fell over while I was cleaning, and I wanted to make sure nothing got wet inside the table.”
“You think I mind if you snoop? I have nothing to hide from you, Kins. Snoop all you want.”
“Is this Lena?” I ask hesitantly, a lump forming in my throat.
Reid swallows hard, his face soft and solemn, and I so badly want to smooth out his features, heal his heart completely. He sits down on the floor in front of me, his big legs stretching out on either side. His hands reach for my legs, dragging me across the wood floor, closer to him. I watch as he takes the photo, running the pad of a finger across Lena’s face.
“Yeah, this is my sister.”
“She’s beautiful. Looks so much like you.”
“She was the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen. Everyone was in awe of her. She was pure light, but hell if she didn’t have an adventurous side and an innate ability to find trouble.”
“I wish I could have known her.”
“She would have challenged you, and I’d love to see the two of you fight over me,” he says with a laugh. “But I know in the end you two would have been good friends. Sisters even.”
“I think so, too. So these are your parents, then?”
“Yeah. Jack and Cindy.”
“They look like good people, Reid.”
“They are. I miss them.”
“If you wanted to see them, I’d go with you if you wanted me to.”
“It’s so hard, Kins,” he says, his voice breaking. “It just got to be too much to look into their eyes knowing what I know.”
“I can’t imagine what that must be like for you to harbor that weight and protect them from that kind of pain. I won’t ever push you to do something that you don’t want to do, but I can tell how much you miss them, and I can only imagine how much they miss seeing their son. Just think on it? I’ll be whatever you need me to be. I can be strong for you, baby, lean on me.”
“I love you, Kinsey.”
“I love you, too.”
The ride to Aspen Ridge starts off somber, as if both of us are lost in our heads over the anticipation and unknown of seeing my family again. My hands press against the warmth of Reid’s skin, my fingers lightly scratching over the light dusting of hair he has above where his jeans are slung low. Every so often, I run the very tips of my fingers under the waistband, his growl vibrating through my chest and face where I’m resting against his back.
