Page 70 of Arranged Addiction

“Checking on you.”

“What time is it?”

“A little past midnight.”

She squints at her bedside table and taps at her phone. “You scared me.”

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to.” I’m torn between staying and leaving. I hate feeling this way. “I just wanted to make sure you were safe.”

“I’m fine.” There’s an edge to her voice. She leans back against the headboard, her face hardening. “I haven’t seen you in a while.”

I take a sharp breath. “I’ve been busy.”

“I’m aware. Funny how you only remember me when it’s convenient.”

“I haven’t forgotten about you for one second, Casey.” I move closer to her. I hate that she feels abandoned. If she understood how much space she takes up in my head, she’d never worry about being alone again. She’s everything to me. She’s every heartbeat. Every single fucking breath.

But she holds up a hand. “Don’t come closer.”

I stop a foot away from the end of her bed. “I know I’ve been busy. Taking over from my father’s been chaotic and difficult, but it won’t last forever.”

“I don’t care about that.”

I tilt my head to the side. “What’s wrong then?”

“It’s you, Declan. You’re what’s wrong.”

“I’m not sure how to take that.”

Her jaw tightens and her hands ball into fists. I’ve never seen her so tense before. Rage burns in her eyes as her lips pull back into a snarl. Her voice snaps like a whip and it’s like the carpet starts to drag me down into darkness as she slaps me across the face with a single question:

“How long have you been meddling with my life?”

Chapter 23

Casey

He goes all quiet. The second the words spill out it’s like he shuts down. Declan’s staring at me and clearly trying to come up with an answer, but I don’t want another polished lie.

I want the truth.

“Don’t make something up,” I say before he can spew more bullshit. “Don’t try to pretend. I know you’ve been watching me. I know about your deal with my aunt.” Cold fury boils in me, and that’s the only thing keeping me going. Otherwise, I think I might just start screaming. “You’ve been paying for everything, haven’t you? You helped me get into college. You pulled strings to get me internships. It’s been you.”

He nods very slowly, staring into my eyes. “I’ve been taking care of you for a long time.”

I shiver and tighten my grip on the sheets like it’s a shield keeping him away. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I never planned for this to happen. I felt like I owed you something at first, but slowly, everything changed.”

“How did it change?”

“Sheila sent me a picture of you on your first day at college. Eighteen years old and already even more beautiful than your mother ever was. Right then, I knew. The deal with your parents was gone. But you would always be mine.”

My heart rockets into my chest. His face is hard and hungry. Passion burns in his eyes. I didn’t know Declan had a fire in him like this. But it clearly blazes for me, and that’s terrifying.

Because a sick part of me likes it.

“You’re the reason I haven’t had a boyfriend since high school,” I whisper as the realization dawns on me. “You’re the reason they’ve been running away.”