Page 81 of Wild and Unruly
Stetson doesn’t smile at my joke and lets his gaze roam over every spot on my face.
For a few moments, he hovers half over me, his left hand gently skimming the skin of my stomach. One of his shirts rests on my chest, the only thing I could physically handle changing into before I crawled into his bed last night.
“I’m so sorry.” His words come out rough, and I lift my hand, running a finger over his jaw.
“You have nothing to apologize for.”
I was serious. What did he do? He wasn’t the person who outed Tommy. He had nothing to do with any of it.
He swallows hard, and his glossy eyes rake over my face again. “I do. I should have been with you. I should have followed you immediately after you left. I just…I didn’t know where you lived.” He shakes his head and blows out a harsh breath. “I had no idea my brother could find someone so fast, or I would have found you sooner.”
“Stetson…” I turn his face, pulling his gaze back to me. “You couldn’t have done anything to prevent this. It’s all on me. I did that.”
“No.” He presses his lips together, his chin giving a slight tremble. “No, Tommy fucking Smith did this, and he’s going to pay.”
I sigh, letting my hand drop and looking at him sadly. “I don’t know. He’s gotten away with so much.”
“Bonnie.” Stetson looks at me suddenly, maybe having some sort of realization. “You don’t know what’s happened, do you?”
I frown and shake my head. “I was in Kentucky. I didn’t take my phone or check socials because?—”
“Because you thought I wasn’t blowing up your phone?”
Pursing my lips in embarrassment, I nod.
“Well, let me tell you something, Bonnie Helix, you are mine.” His grip on my hand tightens assuredly. “There hasn’t been a day since I met you that you weren’t, Bo. And even though I was upset, I was never mad at you. It was the situation.”
Another tear slips from my eye, and I absolutely hate that I’m crying again.
“We’re going to go through some shit, you know. But you and I…” His hand reaches up, cupping my jaw gently. “We’ll get through it together.”
He presses his lips to my mouth, and I let out a sound of surprise and happiness. Having him confirm that we were still together, that everything between us was going to be okay, was a balm to my soul that I had no idea I needed.
“Stetson, I love you.” I whisper the words I’ve never said against his lips, and he grins, kissing me deeper.
For several long moments we allow ourselves to get lost inthe feeling of each other, in finally settling into that comfort of feeling like we are home safe once again.
He pulls away, kissing my nose before looking down at me like he wants more than kisses, and I want to give that to him. But when I move, pain shoots through my side, and I have to lie back.
“We’ll get to that.” He winks and I blush, wishing I could move my body properly. “But you need to know some things.”
“Okay, what?”
The serious expression on Stetson’s face has me sitting up and watching him. “While you were gone, Eugene Waters died.”
“Eugene…” I gasp lightly. My trembling hand reaches for his, and my eyes—these freaking eyes—water again. “He died? How?”
Stetson shakes his head. “They say suicide, but we know better.”
It takes a moment for me to find the words, my mind spinning in absolute disbelief. “T-Tommy killed Eugene? But he’d been working there for years. There’s no way.”
He looks at me pointedly, his gaze roaming over my cuts and bruises.
“I’m not defending him, I’m just…”
“Shocked.”
I nod my head. “So…he’s still out there, having killed a man and beat me up.”
