Page 45 of Wild Night
“With Justin Whitaker,” I whisper after releasing my lips.
Sinking my teeth into the flesh of my bottom lip, I worry it back and forth. “Clearly, you didn’t know about Lucian. You filed for divorce from a man you weren’t legally married to. You paid for the rent of the house that was leased in his fake name when you could have walked away. You drained all your resources, but you waited two years before you ran. Why?”
Admitting why I finally walked away is harder than I thought it would be. I haven’t told another soul. Sucking in a deep breath, I hold it for a moment before I release it, and then I finally speak.
“He came back a few weeks ago. Walked into the house drunk,” I begin.
The tears now flow. There is no holding them back. They are coming swiftly and silently. I have lost complete control over them, so I don’t even try. Instead, I continue hoping that he will be able to make out my words.
“He assaulted me,” I whisper.
“Sexually?” Monty asks.
Wincing, I shake my head. “I was able to get away before he did that. I ran to a motel for the night, then I watched the house and waited for him to leave before I packed a bag and drove away. The only place I could think to go was to my niece. It was her wedding, and I thought it would be a good excuse to show up out of the blue.”
He hums. “But you didn’t take into account her honeymoon.”
“No, I didn’t. I tried to brush the whole thing off like I just showed up for support. The longer I was there, the deeper I fell in with Ivy, well, Justin,” I murmur. “And he knows a little bit, but it wasn’t his responsibility to fix my mess. It wasn’t Dakota’s, either. It was mine. It is mine. I chose the wrong man again, and I was going to fix it.”
To his credit, Monty listens to my entire rambling before he says anything. His eyes are no longer dark or scary. What I see and feel is nothing short of compassion. He shoves his gun into the holster at his hip, something I hadn’t even noticed earlier and closes the distance between us.
I’m not sure what I expect, but it’s not for Monty to wrap his arms around me in a hug. The moment my cheeks hit his shoulder and my arms move around his back, the scent of Old Spice assaults my senses, and the tears flow harder.
Monty releases me and takes a step backward, and then I feel his fingers grip my biceps gently. His gaze roams over my face.“Lucian will not hurt you again,” he states. Then he asks me what I want.
“What do I want?” I ask.
“Do you want to stay here with us, or do you want to move to North Carolina?”
I think about that question. Do I want to stay in California, where I am completely alone, or chance going to North Carolina, where I will have my niece, her baby, and her husband? Plus, Ivy, who makes me feel nothing short of amazing, out of this world amazing. He makes me feel things I didn’t even know were possible.
I want more of him, from him, but at the same time, is he just another man who I’m making a fool out of myself for? Maybe I should stay here, keep my head down, and work without dating, without any men… just alone.
But then the thought of Ivy being with anyone else makes me instantly feel nauseous. Monty shakes his head, though I don’t feel like he’s disappointed in me, just contemplative more than anything.
“You need to heal, Posey,” Monty says.
I open my mouth to rebuke that, to say I don’t need to heal. But I can’t because he’s not wrong. I do need to heal in more ways than one, physically, emotionally, and mentally. Monty’s lips curve up into a smile, and for the first time since I was dragged down here, his eyes smile, too. Albeit it’s a sad smile, I’ll take the smile.
Then he reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone. I watch as he slams his finger against the screen a few times, wondering if he’s going to break the glass, but then he lifts the phone to his ear and turns his back to me.
“Yup,” he barks. “Yeah, come and get her. No blowback, but keep her safe. She needs to heal.”
God, I can’t imagine who he’s saying that to. Then he turns back around and shoves his phone into his pocket as his eyes find mine again. “I’m going to have one of my guys take you to your place so you can pack an overnight bag. I’ll have movers pack your shit and put it in storage, then talk to your landlord about your lease,” he announces.
I open my mouth to protest, but I don’t know what I’m going to protest because I have no money to pay said lease, so it’s not like I can keep it. Then again, I don’t have the money to pay to break the lease, which is why I’ve been bleeding my savings account dry in an effort to keep it.
Monty lifts his hand, his palm facing me. Snapping my lips shut, I wait for him to finish. Because what he continues with rocks my whole world.
“I’m going to transfer everything that fucker took from you back into your account.”
“I can’t let you do that,” I say on a gasp.
He leans forward, his lips curved up into a menacing smile. “Doll, don’t you worry about a damn thing. I’m going to enjoy making him pay me back.”
Quick reminder to self—don’t ever,and I mean ever, piss Monty off.
“Now, my guy will take you to the safe house after you collect your personal shit, but that’s where my involvement ends. The Vicious Reapers local branch is going to take care of you there until you’re ready for whatever comes next. You aren’t required to stay. You can do whatever you want, but I urge you to take some time for yourself.”
