Page 86 of Relapse
My heart broke when he smiled down at me and whispered, “Hey, it’s okay.”
There he was. The green-eyed little boy. I missed him so much that I couldn’t stop myself from throwing my arms around him. Mason didn’t say a thing. He just held me and let me cry into his chest. I silently let go of everything. All the misery and anguish. The solitude, lies and heartbreak all came out in those tears.
Once those were gone, I stayed there clinging to the memory of the one person I needed most in the world. For half a second I allowed myself to think that everything was okay. No one knew anything, so Daddy wouldn’t hurt them. I could steal this moment for myself.
Then Mason spoke.
“Your father’s a dead man.”
“Son of a bitch!”I roared while punching the dashboard.
Fucking Harper.
Little liar was gone when I woke up. I spent an hour looking around the house for her and found nothing. Except the key to my room and a note laying on my dresser saying,I’m sorry.Are you fucking kidding me? I was so tired of her bullshit.
When was she going to get it? There were no options for her in this situation. No out, or secret escape. The only place she had to go was where I fucking told her to. There was only one place I could think of where I’d find my little escapee. Harper didn’t feel safe in many places – thanks in large part to me.
I yanked on the steering wheel, kicking up dirt as I rounded the corner to a familiar Antebellum house. Why she’d feel safe at home I had no fucking clue. Didn’t really care. If she wanted to be stupid that was her problem. Besides, I could have fun with a girl that liked a little pain. Because masochism is the only reason I could see forthisbeing her refuge.
Sunlight sparkled off a red BMW parked at the end of the driveway. At least my back-up was already here. Though I could’ve done without the way Preston was casually leaning against his car smoking a cigarette. Out in the open where everyone could see. A couple of the gardeners working at the side of the house were giving him the side eye.
Weren’t hitmen supposed to be inconspicuous?
Should’ve called Silas. But then I’d run the risk of Star tagging along and bitching in my ear about my improper treatment. Micha would ask too many questions, and dealing with Parker meant I’d have to deal with Lana – which would result in more bitching – and Logan was, well… Logan. So that left one person.
Preston showed up to the last job we did with a bucket of fried chicken. Who the fuck brought food to a body dump? There was something wrong with that prick.
Asshole didn’t even bat an eye when I revved my engine. He just stood there, sucking on his cigarette. I did get a brow arch though when I parked right behind him. So close that my hood was kissing his bumper.
“Who the fuck taught you to park?”
He had weird attachments to objects. Like the jean jacket around his shoulders. That thing looked like something left over from a nineties teen movie. The kind where some hot-ass girl wasn’t hot because she wore baggy clothes and a ponytail. There must’ve been some blind motherfuckers going to school back then. I’d never miss that shit.
I flashed Preston a smile, then stepped out onto the gravel driveway. “Aw, is Mr. Hitman worried about his flashy car?”
He leaned over and cocked a brow at my Corvette.
I rolled my eyes. Yeah, okay so it might be a tad decked out, with gold rims and a streak of fire down the side. But… “I don’t kill people for a living.”
“Neither do I.” He breathed out a cloud of smoke and flicked his butt on the ground. “I don’t need the money.”
I don’t know if I’d ever heard a more fucked up statement in my life. Did I want to know why Preston killed people? Fuck no. I still wasn’t sure why I called him. Seemed like a good idea at the time. I might need a distraction. Harper had staff in her house, some of whom wouldn’t be too keen on letting me drag her out by her hair.
“Gotta say, I was a little surprised you called me.”
There was the understatement of the year.
“Yeah, well,” I sighed. “Some people can’t keep their noses out of my shit.”
Lou, Micha and Logan were so far up my ass I wouldn’t be surprised if they could taste my farts. Even Silas was starting to give me a hard time.
“Can’t imagine why they’d do that.” Preston slid his cold grey eyes my way. “Someone fresh out of rehab is definitely reliable.”
Ha, ha motherfucker.
“I’m clean now.” Kind of.
“Addicts are never clean.” He cocked a brow at me. “They just find new things to get addicted to.”
