Page 61 of Merciless King

Over the next week, sensing my increasing restlessness and knowing me well, Hunter put me to work, one job after another. Today he sent me to hunt down and bring in a guy who’d skipped out on his court appearance. I found him fairly quickly. He was holed up at his girlfriend’s place. It was amazing how many skips did this. Then it was just a matter of sitting and waiting for him to poke his head out. In this case, I didn’t have long to wait.

The guy fruitlessly struggled against my hold, cursing me out as I dragged him into the station. I ignored him and handed him off to an officer. I was filling out the paperwork when Daniels appeared at my side.

“How is she?” he said, getting straight to the point. Seemed I wasn’t the only one who couldn’t stop thinking about London.

It wasn’t an unreasonable question, not in the least. But I didn’t want to discuss London with Connor. I also didn’t want him to know I hadn’t seen her in just over a week—175 long hours. I glanced up at the clock. Well, 188 now, to be precise. Yes, I’d worked that shit out lying in bed at two this morning because obviously I’d lost my fucking mind over this woman.

I gritted my teeth. “When I last saw her, she was doing fine.”

Daniels stilled. “And when did you last see her?”

Asshole. “A week ago. Not that it’s any of your damned business,” I said grudgingly, not looking up from what I was doing.

Daniels barked out a humorless laugh. “You’ve thrown her aside already? Even I wouldn’t’ve lost that bet.”

I lifted my head to find Connor trying to stare me down, looking pissed.

He wasn’t the only one.

“How could you treat her that way after all she’s been through?” he gritted out. “Don’t get me wrong, this is good news for me, ’cause I sure as fuck won’t be letting her go once she’s mine.” He pointed a finger at me, and if we hadn’t been in the station and surrounded by about ten cops we’d have had a serious problem. “If you can’t see what you’ve lost then you never deserved her in the first place,” he bit out, eyes flashing.

“I know exactly what I lost. And again, not that it’s any of your fucking business, but I’m telling you because we have history and also for London’s sake. I didn’t throw her aside; she ended it. I remind her of the shit she’s been through, and going by that logic, you, my friend, would be about as welcome in her life as me.”

I handed him the paperwork I’d finished and walked out before I fucking laid him out.

I couldn’t go to her, not without hurting her now that I knew how she felt, but I still found myself parked outside her store thirty minutes later. I was in Hunter’s SUV. The windows were tinted. I could see her, but she couldn’t see me. I watched her move around inside. She was safe. I had to keep reminding myself of that fact when all I wanted to do was go in there, throw her over my shoulder, and take her home with me.

This is for the best.

She’s better off without you.

I knew that was true. She’d had enough fucked up in her life without adding me and my shit to the mix. What London deserved now was the peace she so desperately wanted. She needed to be with someone gentle, kind.

The thought of her being with anyone else was too much to contemplate.

But then it wasn’t up to me.

Despite everything, I picked up my phone before I knew what I was doing and hit her number. I just wanted to hear her voice. Needed it. I watched through the store window as she rushed to the counter and picked up her own phone.

She bit her lip when she looked down at the screen.

Come on, baby. Answer it.

It rang several more times and a boulder formed in my gut, punching through my chest when she ended the call instead of answering it.

I gripped the steering wheel. Yeah, fuck, that stung. I got it, though. I understood it. Didn’t mean I hated this situation any less.

Starting the car, I forced myself to drive away. Still, I couldn’t face going home, and thirty minutes later I was parked outside Zeke and Sunny’s warehouse. Zeke and I had enlisted together, had become SEALs, had served together. Zeke had stayed in longer than me and it had affected the ex-sniper in ways even I hadn’t realized. For a while after he got home, I thought we’d lose him. That Zeke would choose to end the pain I knew he was fighting.

Then he met his woman, Sunny.

I shoved the door open and got out. The warehouse door opened as I approached. Zeke stood there, Hope, his baby girl, in one arm and a fresh beer in his other. He held it out for me, and I took it. Zeke knew why I was there, I didn’t need to spell it out. And he knew I had no intention of talking about it. That was one of my favorite things about him.

I glanced around as we walked in. There was music playing, some kind of kids’ song.

“Sunny not here?”

“She’s at dance class,” Zeke said and grinned.