Page 169 of Be With Me
We moved down the hall, flanked by my men. The two guards we’d taken down when we came in were now unconscious on the floor, wrists bound, duct tape over their mouths.
One of my guys was locked in a stare-down with a woman—Mia’s stepmother. She leaned heavily on her cane.
“If you walk out that door,” she called out, voice shaking, “you will never be welcome back, Mia.”
These fucking people. My protectiveness surged. I wanted to wipe those words from Mia’s memory so that they couldn’t hurt her.
But when I looked at her, all I saw was quiet resignation. No tears. No anguish. Just an unshakable calm.
"You made it abundantly clear that I've never been welcome," Mia said, her voice even. "I thought about what you said to me earlier. Thought about it long and hard. You’ve always wanted kids. I could have been that daughter you wanted. I’m sorry that you didn’t have it in you to love me. That hurt you more than it will ever hurt me.”
The room went silent. The kind of silence where you could hear the faintest shift of breath.
Her stepmother’s grip tightened on the cane.
“Let’s go,” Mia said. “There’s nothing left for me here.”
We walked out. My men took the stairs while we got into the elevator. As soon as the doors slid shut, she sagged against me, her facade cracking.
I cupped the back of her neck, careful not to touch the bandage on her head. “I’m sorry it took me this long to get to you.”
Her body shook with silent sobs.
It fucking gutted me.
Why the hell did I wait? Twenty-four hours hadn’t felt like much at the time, but now I regretted every second I wasted hoping she’d call. I should’ve known better.
“Fuck, baby. I’m so, so sorry. I screwed up. But I’m going to make it up to you, I promise. I?—”
She lifted her face from my chest and looked at me with her puffy, red eyes. “They wouldn’t tell me who died in the explosion until just before you showed up. The whole day, I thought you might be—” Her voice broke as she clung to me tighter. “All I could think about was if it was you.”
My chest clenched. They'd purposefully kept her in the dark. Purposefully made her worry.
Monsters. They were fucking monsters to do this to the sweetest goddamn girl in the entire world.
I cupped her cheeks, tilting her mouth toward me. “Berry, I’m hard to kill.”
A tearful laugh slipped from her lips. “Please stay that way.”
“I plan on it.”
And then I bent down and kissed her.
* * *
As soon as I got Mia into my car, something inside me unknotted.Mission accomplished.My body buzzed with relief as I hit the gas.
Outside, the city smeared past us in black and neon streaks. For a few seconds, we were silent, just basking in each other’s company. Her intoxicating lily-of-the-valley scent filled my lungs and squeezed like a fist around my heart.
I had her. And I wasn’t ever letting her go.
“Mia.” My voice was rough. “The last time we talked, I said a lot of stupid shit.” Stupid didn’t even begin to cover it. “I pushed you away because I didn’t think I was good enough for you. I ran because you called me something I couldn’t stomach. Something that made me feel weak. I acted like a fucking coward. But I’ve realized some things since then.”
She listened to me silently, her profile lit by the light coming from the dash.
“Maybe I was a victim back then,” I said quietly. “But I don’t have to keep being a victim of my past. Fuck the past. It doesn’t get to define me.” My palms tightened on the wheel. “Before, I only knew how to destroy. But now? I’ll learn how to build. If you’ll let me, I’ll build a life with you. One where you will feel safe, loved, and so fucking cherished that you will never doubt that you belong by my side. Not for a single second.”
She let out a small, shaky breath. “Rom…”
