Page 141 of Captive Audience

I moved closer and dropped my voice. “What did you do to them?”

“Relax. They’re still breathing. But I told them they wouldn’t be if they went on a date with you. Or contacted you in any way. Or didn’t disappear from your life completely.”

The cockblocking son of a bitch.

“I’ve been stood up without so much as a text, utterly humiliated again and again, and left wondering what the hell is wrong with me that makes me so undatable.” I couldn’t stop the quaver inmy voice or the moisture pooling in my eyes. “Was that your plan all along? Destroy my self-worth so that when you swept in, I’d be grateful?”

Rook glanced at Aidan. “Give us a minute.”

His cousin nodded and slid out of the booth.

“Sit.” Rook gestured to the empty seat.

“No.” I clenched my hands into fists.

“I wasn’t asking.”

“I don’t care. I’m done with you ordering me around, I’m done with your lies, and I’m done with you fucking up my life. On top of everything you’ve put me through, I find out you’re the reason no man has come near me for the last year. Twelve months, Rook. How dare you?”

My hands trembled as rage splintered into exhaustion.

I was tired of Rook’s power plays. Tired of being his puppet and feeling like I didn’t have a choice in anything.

I just wanted my simple life back. The podcast. My tiny apartment. Takeout on Sunday nights as a treat. That was all I needed.

I couldn’t take any more of this.

Two fat tears spilled down my cheeks. “Fuck.” I wiped them away. “You’ve broken me. Are you happy?”

Something shifted in his expression. Concern? Fear?

It didn’t matter. It was too late to show he cared.

Rook reached for my hand. “No. Wildfire. I never wanted to?—”

I snatched it back. “Stay away from me.”

I turned to leave, my vision blurring as I held back a sob. God, I was spiraling. Heart racing, breaths shallow.

When I was halfway back to the table, Rook caught my elbow, spun me, and hauled me against his chest. One palm splayed low on my spine; the other slid to the nape of my neck, his grip possessive and inescapable.

“Let me go.” I shoved at him, but it was like trying to move a wall.

“That’s the one thing I can’t do, love.” He held my stare, his blue eyes wild but clear. “Yes, I hacked your dating apps. Yes, I warned those dickheads I’d end them if they came near you. I don’t regret it, and I’d do it again, because they weren’t good enough for you.”

My chest heaved. “And I suppose you think you are.”

“No.” His admission was sharp. “You deserve better than me, but I’ll burn this city to the ground before I let anyone else have you. Not while I’m breathing. Not while I can still fight for you.”

“There’s nothing to fight for.” I shook my head. “It’s too late. You had me, Rook. You had me, and you blew it.”

He leaned low so his forehead hovered an inch from mine. “I’m sorry for not telling you about Sierra. I was terrified, Asha. Terrified that if you got involved, something would happen to you. One by one, my family’s been taken from me. Everything I love, I lose, and I can’t”—his voice cracked—“I can’t lose you, too.”

Hearing that rough edge in his tone, seeing the way his eyes went glassy like he was reliving every loss all over again, made something inside me twist.

I hated that part of me still cared. Hated that I could understand why he clung so tight, even when it suffocated me. This was a man who’d buried too many people, and he’d sooner chain me to him than risk digging another grave.

But I couldn’t live that way.