Page 80 of Tied in Knots
I wake up with a groan, pain is shooting through my arm. I crushed it under me in my drug-induced sleep and now I’m in agony.
“Ow, ow, ow.”
I bring it up and cradle it gently, trying to get my bearings.
Oh, yeah. Locked in a room in some Scooby Doo mansion, out in the sticks with four alphas who want to mate with me, give me babies and all my heart desires.
Why aren’t I jumping at the chance, again?
“Fuck knows.”
Actually, fuck does know. I am fuck, and I know.
It all boils down to exactly what I told Sebastian. Trust issues. I have them and them abducting me, no matter how lovely they have been to me since, has chipped a big crater into the issues I already had. It’s going to take me a lot of work to get over it. All of it. But itismy work. Not theirs. I hope they understand that.
It’s still dark out, but I feel less fuzzy headed, so it must be a lot later than when Sebastian came to talk to me. I glance at the clock and see it’s only five o’clock in the morning. I shiver and then freeze when I hear something outside the door.
Drawing in a deep breath, I murmur, “Ocean-breeze.” I climb off the bed and go to the door. “Xander?”
“Faith,” he croaks out. “I don’t have a key; I can’t let you out.”
“No, it’s okay, I don’t want you to. I want you all to feel secure that I’m not going anywhere. I wasn’t anyway. I was going to come back.”
“You wouldn’t have made it back if we hadn’t found you.”
“I know.” The guilt floods me and I feel awful. “I hate that I forced you to come and find me and rescue me.”
“Forced?” he spits out.
I jump back when I hear a bang on the door, then another. “Xander?”
“Forced.” Bang. “Forced.” Bang.
“Are you hitting your head on the door?”
“You think we were forced to come and get you. I don’t like that word, Faith.”
His tone sends an icy chill rippling over my skin. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…”
“We came because we care about you. All of us. Not just one, or two.Allof us. I can’t say it…not like that. Not like Harvey. I struggle with words.”
I drop to my knees and then curl up next to the bottom of the door. I slide my fingers over the thick carpet and wedge them under the door. “You don’t need words.”
I hear a thud, which I assume is him dropping to his knees as well and then his cool fingers touch mine.
“Faith.”
“Yes?”
“Nothing.”
“Stay with me?”
“You don’t even need to ask.”
“I’m sorry for what I put you through. I don’t know if Sebastian explained…”
“He didn’t.”
