Page 57 of Tainted Rose

Xander

When Scarlett pulls into the driveway, I’m out the door in a flash. She’s barely shifted the truck into park when I yank the door open, unbuckle her, and pull her into my arms. A violent tremble works its way through her body.

“Xander.”

“I’ve got you.” I hold her for a few moments, her feet not even on the ground. I squeeze her tighter, then set her down, reaching into the truck for her backpack and overnight bag.

With her things in one of my hands and her hand in my other, we hurry up the walk to the house and through the side entrance. I take her directly upstairs to my room.

She sits heavily on the bed, her whole body sagging with relief. She squeezes her eyes shut. “You’re sure it’s okay I’m here?”

“It’s fine. He’s pissed, but I don’t give a damn.” I sit next to her, wrapping my arm around her back.

Her blue eyes can’t quite mask the concern swimming in them as she looks up at me. “But—”

I reach out and brush my thumb over her cheekbone before I tuck my knuckle under her chin, tilting her face up to me. Her gaze meets mine, and I swear, I’d drown in that ocean of blue if I could. “I love you, Scarlett. I want you here with me, and I need to know you’re safe.”

She turns more fully toward me and closes the distance between us, kissing me hard on the mouth. Her fingers grip my T-shirt and hang on, pulling me firmly to her. The kiss deepens, and my arms wrap around her possessively. She’s so sweet and so damn sexy. I have no doubt she has the power to ravage my heart and steal my soul.

After several minutes of making out go by, Scarlett eases back with a smile. “I love you, too.” She catches her lip with her teeth as she smiles. “This seems like poor timing, but I need to tell you about the freaky note.”

I’d almost completely forgotten why she’d come to me in the first place, I’d been so far in the love-lust daze she’d put me under. “Tell me.”

“It was at the front door, like someone stuck it through the gap. I didn’t know if I should touch it and didn’t really want to. Maybe it’s some sort of a sick prank? Here, I took a photo.” She pulls her phone from her back pocket and shows me what she’d found.

“Who would have sent this? You can run but you can’t hide. You’re mine. One day soon, I’ll come for you.” I’m very aware that I’m so disturbed my voice has raised to almost a shout.

“I-I don’t—” Her expression is panicked, like I’ve scared her.

“Fuck.” I pull her roughly to me, and she clings to my chest. “I’m not yelling at you. I’m just so frustrated at being in the dark. I don’t like that someone is leaving you scary notes and basically fucking stalking you…” My brain works overtime. There’s something I’m missing, and it’s driving me out of my mind. I hold her tightly to me for several minutes, rubbing my hands up and down her back until she finally begins to relax.

I set her apart from me on the edge of the bed and adjust my body so I’m facing her. “I don’t know what to do about this bullshit”—I hand her phone back to her—“but I’m going to show you what’s had me out of my fucking head with worry this whole time.” I stop to take her hand. “I’m nervous because we’re already dealing with other stuff and this could be really upsetting to you on top of everything else. I’m not sure if this is the right thing to do.” I drop my gaze to our joined hands. “And I’m fucking scared of ruining things between us because I kept this from you.”

“I need to know, Xander. I understand you’re trying to protect me.” She sucks her lips into her mouth, fear now glowing in her eyes. “Can we get this over with so I can deal with it?”

“We. We’ll deal with it, Scarlett. You aren’t alone. I promise you that.” I clear my throat and get up to retrieve the photo from my dresser drawer. “Take a look at the date. I’m pretty sure, without even asking, that you were born November 7.” I walk back toward her and sit down on the edge of the bed with it in my hand.

She blinks once. Twice. Again. “Yes.” She holds out her hand for the photo, and it visibly shakes before clenching into a fist for a few seconds. Our eyes connect as she takes the photo from me. “I’m scared to look,” she breathes out.

“The photo is of you and your mom.” I hesitate before I gesture to it. “You can see you already had some red hair when you were born.”

Scarlett glances down and mumbles, “Yeah, Mom told me I had it from day one. It stuck straight up off the top of my head.” Her lips curve into a soft smile as her eyes go glassy. The rise and fall of her chest is steady, and I can see she’s working to compose herself. “My mom was so beautiful.” A tear slips slowly down her cheek but she ignores it as she gazes at the photo.

I scoot closer and tuck her into my side, kissing her temple. “I think your mother sent this to Sebastian as proof that you were his—the red hair and all, the date you arrived lining up with when he was with her, something like that. He’s known all these years … and he’s never told my mother he had another child.” I draw in a deep, painful breath. “But it’s the back that makes me most nervous. She seemed distraught.” My lips graze Scarlett’s temple again. “Do you want to look at it and tell me what you think?”

She nods and burrows closer to me as she turns the photo over. Her breath hitches as she reads.

Sebastian,

She’s yours.

Fuck you for not believing me.

I hope this serves as a reminder of what you did to me.

Amelia

Scarlett shudders against me. “She sounds so incredibly upset with him. So angry.”

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