Page 76 of Built for Mercy

Wow.

Callie 8:01 PM

Am I wrong? I once saw you tear into Marcus about not getting you a perp’s address, and when he offered you a homemade cookie, you practically orgasmed eating it and immediately apologized to him.

My fingers hovered over the screen as I read her message again. It set something off inside me, a deep-seated pain that burned a hole in my stomach. Clearly triggered, I set my phone down and pressed a hand to my stomach, feeling the hard muscle, but all my brain could think about was soft skin and—

“Yo, Puff, how much money do you think your daddy spends on fast food every year?” Paulie taunted, a snide grin on his face as he stared at me as though I was just some stranger, not the girl who grew up next door to him.

“Get fucked, Paulie,” I snapped, turning away and staring down at my bag of fries, the burger already gone. Yes, I was eating more these days, but my parents were arguing a lot and well into the night when they thought I’d gone to bed. The oldest of three, I seemed to be the only one who understood the severity of this. And the only thing that brought me comfortwas a full stomach, which was getting harder and harder to achieve.

“Aw, are you gonna cry?” Paulie’s sidekick, Hernando, sneered. “Might take a while for any tears to make it over those cheeks of yours.”

Paulie elbowed Hernando. “She’ll probably be hungry again by the time she’s done crying. It’s the most exercise she’s ever gotten.”

Hernando busted out laughing, while I stood there and stewed, swearing that I would get Paulie back for who he’d turned into. I’d have to be sneaky, since his father was my father’s best friend.

Fuck him. I’d make him regret it.

I turned and walked away, hearing him call after me.

“Slow down, Puff, or I might have to break into a jog to catch up to you!”

Ripped from the memory, I stared at the platter of cheese before me, eyes burning with stupid tears. The only thing that satisfied me more than a full stomach now was sex.

Specifically with Maverick.

It was the only thing that satiated me.

And yet he wasn’t here.

He’d tried to help me once and I’d blown him off, but now I wished he’d see there was a serious problem and force me to get help.

I didn’t want to be this way—I hated being this way. I missed food, missed feeling energetic and comfortable in my own skin.

I was barely clearing five hundred calories a day, unless I was with him. And I had no idea what was triggering it, or why I couldn’t stop.

I knew I needed help. I just couldn’t bring myself to reach for it.

33

Sophie

Iwaited for close to an hour before a black car stopped on the tarmac. Maverick, Duane, and Paulie stepped out of the vehicle, and the sight of Paulie had me bristling. The two cheese cubes I’d eaten threatened to come back up, but I forced them down.

Brave. Bebrave,Sophie.

Daddy would want you to be.

I was supposed to be close to avenging my father. I should have been. But my motivation to do it had died, and now I was tangled up with Maverick in ways I hadn’t anticipated. Was I getting anywhere, or was I just letting myself drown in him? And if I was? Would I even care anymore?

The three men, tall and formidable as they rose to their full heights inside the cabin, strode down the aisle. Duane and Paulie fell into the seats around the table near the front whileMaverick made a beeline straight to me, a relieved smile so easily crossing his features. I forced a smile in return.

He leaned down to cup my face and capture my lips with his in a swoon-worthy kiss. “Hey, baby.” Releasing me, he knelt before me so we were eye level.

“Hey.”

Without having to say anything else, his eyes scanned my face, then flickered to the mostly untouched plate of cheese. Understanding dawned on him then, and I wasn’t sure if I was glad or irritated. Shouldn’t I be glad? Wasn’t I just hoping he’d notice and help me make a change?