Page 12 of His Cruel Exception

I regret it the moment the words leave my mouth. Why did I tell him that? I look down at my hands, suddenly fascinated by the crease I have made in the duvet with my thumb.

“What does he do?” he asks.

“Uhm. He holds me until it fades.”

“That’s why you were calling for him while clinging to me.” It isn’t phrased like a question.

Heat starts creeping into my face. “I’m sorry.”

His expression darkens. “For what?”

I blink at him. “For clinging to you.”

For the first time since I woke up, something that resembles genuine amusement passes over his face. “You don’t need to apologize.” He turns away and walks back to the chair. “Sleep.”

I can’t possibly sleep now that I know he’s over there watching me. Every sensible part of my brain is screaming that closing my eyes would be idiotic, but I lower myself cautiously against the pillows, telling myself that I’m not going to sleep. I am only lying down because the room has started tilting again. I keep my eyes on him for as long as I can and the last thing I remember is the dark outline of his body against the faint light from the windows before my eyes close completely.

Chapter

Six

ALEX

When I wake again, sunlight is pouring through the windows. For a moment, I stay in bed blinking into it until my eyes drift to the chair.

It’s empty.

I push the duvet away and sit up and look around the room. I find my clothes neatly folded at the foot of the bed. I crawl there, pick up my shirt, and turn it over in my hands. I then leave the room and find the bathroom, taking the quickest shower of my life, and dress almost as soon as the water stops running.

I fold the pajamas and leave them on the bed, glancing back at them once before I walk out of the bedroom.

The rest of the apartment only confirms what I already suspected, which is that whoever the masked stranger is, he has money. The corridor is unnecessarily wide, with artwork spaced carefully along the walls. When I reach a wall of enormous windows overlooking the city, I slow and stare down at the buildings that look tiny from this height.

I’m not familiar with this side of Manhattan, but after staring out at the towers for a few seconds, I am reasonably certain I am somewhere around Hudson Yards. I leave the corridor, and keep walking until I find the stairs and then eventually reach the foyer where I see a man standing. I try to place his face because something about him seems familiar, although I know immediately that he’s not the man who chased me yesterday.

“Good morning,” he says.

I glance past him toward the elevator and then back at his face. “Am I …” I hesitate, hating how uncertain my own voice sounds. “Can I go home?”

He gives a small nod and relief loosens something inside my chest. “Thank you.”

The elevator ride passes without either of us speaking, and the walk through the lobby is also in silence. There’s a black SUV waiting outside, and when the man open the rear door for me, I climb inside without asking any questions.

He gets behind the wheel and pulls into traffic. I watch the city through the window for a while, recognising more and more of it as we approach Brownsville.

“Sir?” I say and cringe.

His eyes meet mine briefly through the rearview mirror. “Name’s Davide.”

I nod, rubbing my thumb across the center of my palm. “What’s the name of the man who brought me there?”

Davide says nothing, the silence making me sink a little into the seat.

“Is he your boss?”

Still nothing from him. I give up trying and close my eyes. Without my phone, I have no way of knowing whether Logan and Stacy made it home after the hunt, whether mom has been trying to contact me, or whether The Bloodrot has sent their decision. If I didn’t get the job, then there’s still the issue of my rent, mom’s medication, and a list of financial obligations.

Another thought keeps slipping between all the others no matter how many times I push it away.