Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 116760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
“Shh, baby. Shh. You’re all right. You’re okay. I have you. I won’t let anyone hurt you ever again.”
The heavens chose to open up then. Of fucking course. The rain pelted them as he walked them to the car. She tilted her head back, staring up at him.
“W-why?”
“Why won’t I let anyone hurt you?” he asked.
“Y-yes. Why w-would you care?”
“I’ve told you that I care about you. And you deserve someone to care about you, Bebe.”
He knew that part was something she struggled with. Believing that she deserved to be loved and cared for.
“Because y-you’re my bodyguard?”
“No. Because I’m your friend.” He winced as he said that. She’d been lied to and deceived enough in her life. But now didn’t seem like the right moment to share his feelings for her.
“Oh. Friend.” She pressed her face back into his chest before he could say anything more.
Corbin could feel her trembling and knew he needed to get her inside and dry before she got sick.
God, she felt so light in his arms. He had to do a better job of looking after her. When was the last time she’d even eaten?
As he grew closer to the car, he had a strange feeling of being watched. Glancing over into the trees on the side of the road, he swore he saw a large figure standing there.
What the fuck?
22
The person seemed to just disappear.
Had they been there at all?
Was he seeing things? Or had that been her stalker out there?
Moving much more swiftly, he got to the car and opened the passenger door. “Bebe, we must go quickly.”
“What? Why?”
“I saw someone in the woods.”
“W-what? W-who?” she asked, her teeth chattering as he did up her seatbelt.
“I don’t know. But I’m not waiting around to see if they make themselves known. Not when I’ve got precious cargo onboard.”
Shutting the door, he ran around to his side of the car, his head turning back and forth.
Fuck. He wished Hayes was here.
Getting in, he locked the doors and sped off.
“S-seatbelt?” she asked.
“You’ve got yours on, baby. I secured it.”
“No. Y-you.”
Corbin glanced over at her, trying to determine how she was doing, but there wasn’t enough light.
“I’m f-fine.”
“Corbin. S-seatbelt.”
Shit. fuck. Fine. But he wasn’t the precious cargo in the car. However, he reached over and grabbed his belt, buckling himself in.
“Th-thank you.”
There was silence as he drove, ensuring they weren’t being followed. Finally, he relaxed, confident they were fine. Hell. It’d probably been his imagination.
He looked over at her again. Shit. She was too quiet and still, except for the occasional shiver that seemed to run through her.
“Baby? You doing okay?” He had the heater on full blast, but he needed to get her out of those wet clothes.
Grabbing his phone, he sent a quick text to Hayes to let him know that he’d found her.
“Why are you calling me b-baby?” she asked.
Had she only just realized that? Or had she heard him, but her brain had too much going on to bother asking him why he was calling her that before.
“Do you not want me to? It’s not very professional.”
Although, to be honest, he couldn’t care less about being professional.
“It . . . we’re f-friends, aren’t we?” There was a note of vulnerability in her voice.
“Of course we are.” Reaching over, he put the back of his hand over her cheek. “You’re freezing. I think there’s a blanket in the back. I’m going to pull over and get it.”
“No, don’t!” Fear filled her voice.
“It’s all right, I made sure no one followed us. I think maybe I imagined seeing someone. A trick of the light. I’m sorry for scaring you.”
She didn’t reply as he pulled into a gas station up ahead. Parking, he turned on the interior lights and started to swear.
“What . . . what is it?” She was hugging herself tight, her clothes damp and clinging to her. Her hair was a wet, tangled mess, and her mascara was running down her cheeks. Her lips were tinged blue and he knew he had no time to waste.
“You’re frozen. Start taking off those clothes,” he commanded.
“H-here?” She looked around.
“Yes. We have to get you out of them.”
“All r-right, but there are b-better ways of g-getting me naked.”
He breathed a small sigh of relief. If she was joking, then things couldn’t be too bad. Although . . . she often used a joke or said something sassy to mask what was really going on in her head. So he reached over and grasped her chin before he got out.
“Everything will be all right.”
“My m-mother thinks she can m-manipulate me into d-doing whatever she wants.”
“Well, she can’t,” he said firmly. “Because you’re an adult and you can tell her no. Hear me?”
“Yes.”
“If you want, I’ll be there with you when you tell her you won’t be doing the show. I also think you should tell her what you think of her.”