Series: Silver Spoon MC Series by Nichole Rose
Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 37450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 187(@200wpm)___ 150(@250wpm)___ 125(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 187(@200wpm)___ 150(@250wpm)___ 125(@300wpm)
"That's fine," I say quietly, rising from the bed. "I'd rather have you spend the rest of your life hating me for doing everything in my power to keep you safe than spend a single goddamn second existing in a world where I failed to keep you alive, Bella. So long as you're breathing, I can live with you hating me. But the minute I lose you because I wasn't careful enough is the moment I lose everything that matters to me."
I lean down and press a kiss to her crown. "You leave this house, there will be hell to pay."
"I'll leave if I want to leave." She turns her face away from me. But not before I see the tears slipping down her cheeks.
Yet again, I've made her cry.
Only I don't regret it this time. Her life matters. It matters a whole helluva lot.
Chapter Ten
Bella
"I'm not going to run away if I go to the kitchen," I growl, glaring daggers at Callum. "You can stop following me."
"Who says I'm following you?" He arches a dark brow, leaning back against the door jamb. "Maybe I'm just thirsty."
I huff out a breath, not buying that for a minute. He's been stalking me all over the house since he got here five minutes before Cormac left. It's driving me crazy. I can't think with him acting like my shadow.
A tiny part of me wants to make a break for it and see how far I can get. Not because I think I'll actually get anywhere. But just to make him sweat. It's his own fault, really. He's mildly infuriating.
"Does the Army train you to be a pain in the ass, or does that come naturally?" I ask, plopping down at the island.
Crash settles at my feet, shooting Callum a reproachful look. At least he's on my side.
"Oh, it's a natural talent, sweetheart."
I crack a smile, my first since Cormac left an hour ago. I'm freaking miserable without him. I'm worried out of my mind for Isla. I feel helpless because there's nothing I can do. And I'm sad because I acted like a brat and didn't say bye. I'm also mad as hell that he threatened to tie me to the bed.
It hurts that he doesn't trust me…and it hurts even more that I didn't give him any reason to trust me today. Callum is here because I made Cormac think the worst. I reacted instead of trying to see things from his point of view.
He needs me safe, not because I'm a job. Not because he promised my dad. But because he loves me. If something happens to me, it will destroy him. The same damn way thinking about losing him destroys me.
I don't hate him for that. How can I when my heart beats for him?
But that doesn't mean he can just order me around, either. He has to talk to me, not go all bossy caveman on me. I've never responded well to being bossed around. Just ask Isla. She's older than me by a couple of minutes and has spent twenty-one years being bossy. I've spent just as long being stubborn and recalcitrant. I think these traits were forged in my soul in the womb.
"If you're going to be a weirdo and follow me around, can you at least sit down?" I complain to Callum, nudging a barstool toward him. "You're making me nuts."
"Pretty sure I had nothing to do with that," he mutters without heat, making me laugh. He's growing on me. Sort of like a wart. Only he's more attractive and slightly less annoying.
"I'm perfectly sane."
He snorts, hooking his foot around the barstool to drag it across the floor. Once it's positioned so he can see both doors, he sits, his back ramrod straight.
"How long were you in the Army?"
"Long enough."
"Did you like it?"
"No one likes the Army, Bella."
"Oh."
"He's going to find your sister."
Tears sting my eyes. I fidget with my hands, twisting my fingers together.
"I know," I whisper. Cormac will find her. He's never let me down. I know he won't this time, either.
Isla has always been the twin who follows the rules and never makes waves. She tries to make everyone else happy, even if it means sacrificing her own joy. For her to sneak out now is serious.
I wish I knew what was going on with her. What is she hiding? Why didn't she talk to me about whatever it is? I don't like that she has a secret. We tell each other everything.
I heave a sigh, giving up on trying to sort it out. "Are you hungry?" I ask Callum.
He eyes me sideways.
"I'm making eggs. I promise not to poison them if you promise to at least let me pee in peace today."
"I'll cook."
I gape at him.
"And you can still pee in peace."