Page 62 of Deepest Obsession

“Are you feeling better?” I plant a kiss on her forehead, inhaling her sweet floral scent.

“Yeah.” Squirming away, she steps back. “Uh, what are you doing here?”

I open my mouth but then slam it shut.

On my way here, there was only one thing on my mind: keep Sophia safe. The idea of stealing her away to the middle of nowhere still lingers in the back of my mind. But I can’t leave, not now.

There are two scumbags who we need to take down first.

I take in Sophia’s disheveled state. She’s emotionally vulnerable right now, which could be an advantage to me. But even if I ask her to come stay with me, I know she’ll say no.

The only option is force. She’ll resent me, but she’ll be alive.

“Look, I have stuff to do.” She’s wringing her hands and backing away.

I narrow my eyes. No matter what she tries to hide from me, I’ve always been able to read her like a fucking book. And she’s hiding something from me. “What’s going on?”

“N-nothing. I’m just tired, that’s all. Didn’t sleep well.”

I step forward, just for her to stumble back. “Don’t lie to me, little bird. You couldn’t get enough of me yesterday, and now it’s like you’re afraid of me.”

She runs a hand through her beautifully light hair and closes her eyes.

“Did Dominic say something to you?”

That fucker. He’s one of the only people who knows the truth about what I did six months ago. If he told Sophia to keep her away from me, I’ll fucking kill him.

“Dominic? No. It—I...” She shakes her head.

“Sophia,” I growl.

That’s when I notice them—the tears in her eyes, just beginning to well up.

What the fuck is going on?

She turns, sprinting up the stairs as she sobs. Big fucking mistake.

I chase after her, catching her arm just as she’s trying to get the door to her bedroom open. I slam her against it, pinning her arms above her head.

“Talk,” I snap.

She winces at my voice, and a small part of me regrets my harsh tone. But I know Sophia. The more I give her space, the more she’ll retreat into herself. Forcing this out of her is my only chance.

She sniffles but manages to glare up at me. When I don’t budge, she relents. “I had the dream again.”

Goddamn. I swear my kidnapping affected her more than it did me.

I wrap my arms around her, and she relaxes into me. “I’m not going anywhere, Soph. I promise. I won’t lose you again.”

The way she grips the back of my shirt makes my heart do things it hasn’t done in years. It’s odd but familiar—and something I’m determined to get used to again.

“Can I move in with you?”

The words shock my system.

What the hell is going on? First, Blaze started acting all weird, and then Dominic. And now the words that just dropped from Sophia’s mouth are making me wonder if I’m hallucinating. Or in an alternate reality.

She just ran away from me. Now she wants to move in with me?

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