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58

MADISON

A s we exit the cemetery, heading toward Jagger’s truck, I bite my lip as my thoughts roll inside my head.

My gaze searches the darkening night sky, finding the single star that shines. Thank you, Dad. For leading me back to him. I’ll never take him for granted.

I haven’t told Jagger, but I know my heart stopped beating. I saw my dad. He reached out his hand, pulling me in for a huge bear hug. He held me for a few beats before stepping back. “It’s not your time, Maddie. You need to go back. Jagger’s waiting for you.”

“You know Jagger?”

He nodded. “You found your dark hero. And he loves you.” Tears shone in his eyes as he pushed my hair back from my face. “I’m so sorry for everything that happened. But throughout the bad, you experienced the best thing I could ever hope for.” His smile was so bright it blinded me. “Unconditional love. Jagger gives you that.”

Tears flowed down my cheeks. “I love you, Dad. But I…” the lump in my throat prevented me from continuing. Swallowing hard, I managed to choke out the words inside my heart. “I need Jagger, Dad. Help me find my way back to him.” I wiped away my tears, taking in my dad’s face, missing him so much, but knowing I’m not ready to leave the man I love. We have a whole life to look forward to. “I love him. I-I don’t want to leave him.”

My dad grabbed my hand, raising it to his lips. He kissed it, his eyes soft. “You aren’t leaving him.” He lowered my hand, pressing it to my chest. “Goodbye, Maddie. Take care.”

Then I felt my heartbeat beneath my palm, the sound filling my ears. I gasped and opened my eyes. They locked with the bloodshot, onyx orbs of the exhausted man holding vigil at my bedside.

The love of my life.

My stalker.

My universe .

Jagger .

I’m so lost in my thoughts that I’m shocked when I hear the hum of the garage door opening. Jagger drives inside, parking his truck beside my Mustang. It makes me smile every time I see our vehicles in his garage together.

Our garage. I need to stop thinking of the house and everything inside of it and on the property as his. After I was discharged, Jagger’s intense gaze bored into mine as he said, “I can’t wait to take you back to our home again.”

As he lifts me out of his truck, I giggle, shaking my head at him. I don’t bother admonishing him. Jagger was already overprotective before I was kidnapped by a serial killer and shot by my mother, and now it’s worse.

Taking a deep inhale of the cold mountain air, I hold it for a minute before exhaling it. The dampness of it seeps into me, making me smile. “Is it supposed to snow?”

“They are calling for a big storm to start late tonight.” He presses a kiss to my nose. “I know how excited you get when it snows.”

“I love it. Nothing is more peaceful than the snow softly falling, blanketing the world, the flakes kissing your face and lips like an old friend.”

His brows raise as he carries me across the deck to the patio door. “Only you could describe it that way.” Jagger looks around, a smile on his face. “I’ll carry you out here. We can dance beneath the snowflakes.”

I beam at him. “I’d love that.” As he steps through the door, my hand goes to his chin, turning his face to mine. Even in the darkness of our cabin, his onyx orbs glow with love for me. “I love you.”

“I love you, baby girl.” Kissing me, he deposits me on the sofa, takes off my jacket, then fluffs the pillows around me. He grabs two blankets from the back of the couch, tucking them around me. “I’ll make a fire.” Shrugging off his leather jacket, he tosses it over the back of the chair. As he strolls to the fireplace, my gaze is on his jean-clad muscular ass. God, he has the best ass I’ve ever seen.

Without glancing in my direction, he says, “Stop staring at my ass, baby girl.” Then grabs some wood, turning to me with a smile and wink before stacking it in the fireplace.

“No way. I’d be lying if I said I would.”

He lights the wood before turning to me with a smile. “It’s about time you learned not to lie to me.”

“Yeah, it’s not worth it right now. You won’t give me what I want.”

“Maddie.” Blowing out a frustrated breath, he says, “You know why. You’re supposed to be taking it easy.”

Leaning my head back, I stare at the ceiling. “I know. I’m tired of it already, though. I want to go back to my life before…” my head tilts forward, meeting his concerned gaze.

He drops beside me, smoothing my hair back from my forehead. “You will, baby girl. Soon. Look at it this way, you’ve been able to focus on writing your book. That’s gotta count for something.”

I grin. “It does. Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful for that. But I need inspiration for a new sex scene. While I love you slow and gentle, it’s not the same as when you’re domineering and punishing me.”

Jagger groans. “I know, baby girl. It’s hard for me, too.” Leaning forward, he kisses my lips. “Soon. I promise.”

My smile beams as soon as he promises. Jagger doesn’t break his promises to me. Ben would never have gotten me if I hadn’t drugged Jagger with sleeping pills and snuck out. I’ve been reminding him of that fact since I woke up and saw the guilt lining his face because he didn’t keep me safe and broke his promise to me.

Jagger’s phone buzzes. He leans back, yanking it from his pocket with an annoyed scowl, muscles taut beneath his jeans and sweatshirt, primed for battle. When he sees who it is, his face relaxes and his muscles soften. “You have a visitor.”

I search his obsidian eyes and his knowing smile for a clue. “Who?”

“You’ll see.” He gets up, moving to the door. I sit up, looking over the back of the couch, watching expectantly as Jagger shuts off the alarm and unlocks the door. He opens it and steps out before the person is within my view. I hear his low voice and another male voice talking to him, though I can’t determine who it is.

The door opens and Jagger comes in, a smile on his face. When he steps out of the way, Ryan’s smiling face appears.

“Ryan.” A smile blooms across my face, lighting up whenever I see my dad’s best friend. I haven’t seen him since I was in the hospital. Jagger severely limited my visitors so I could rest and recover.

“Hi, Maddie Rose.” He hurries over to me, leaning over and wrapping me in a hug. Tears fill my eyes. He reminds me so much of my dad. The two of them were inseparable when I was young and even after Ryan married and started a family, he and my dad spent time together whenever possible. “How are you feeling?” He takes a step back, examining me with furrowed brows.

“I’m good.” My gaze shifts to Jagger who stands near Ryan. “My guy has been taking the best care of me.”

Ryan looks at Jagger, giving him a smile and wink. “I’m sure he has. Loving hands is always the cure to what ails you.”

Jagger’s smile widens and he gestures to a spot on the couch nearby. “Have a seat. Can I get you anything to drink?”

“A beer would be great.” Ryan settles near me on the huge, L-shaped couch. I adjust my position so I can see him better. He makes idle conversation with me until Jagger returns and hands him a beer.

Sitting beside me, his arm goes over my shoulders, tucking my blankets around me as he pulls me against him. A content purr comes out of me, causing his smile to widen as he settles in.

Ryan takes a long pull from his beer, then sets it on the coffee table. “I have something for you. I didn’t want to give it to you after the funeral because I knew you needed time to grieve. I stopped by your apartment and talked to your roommate, Chloe when you were here with Jagger. Of course, neither of us had any idea where you were, although I received a mysterious text from your phone shortly after you disappeared that simply said, “I’m safe. Someone special is taking good care of me. Please, don’t worry. I’ll be in contact with you as soon as I’m safely able to do so.”

I see the smirk on Jagger’s face. There’s no way I can be remotely mad about what he did. I’m grateful he was thoughtful enough to reach out to Ryan. “Did you do that the first night you brought me here?”

“Yes. And I texted your boss, Daya, as well.” Then I had to turn it off. I gave it to Bryce to transfer everything to your new phone.” Setting his beer on the coffee table, he leans forward, grabbing his jacket. Reaching inside his pocket, he pulls out a brand-new iPhone and hands it to me. “For you, baby girl. Everyone is programmed in there.”

My fingers wrap around it, a huge smile on my face. Then I throw my arms around him, hugging him so tight he laughs, then admonishes me.

“Don’t hurt yourself, baby girl.”

“I’m fine.” Pulling back, I smile at him, then turn to Ryan, holding up my phone. “Now you can text and call me. Make sure you tell Aimee so she can contact me as well.”

Ryan grins. “I will.” Reaching into his pocket, he exchanges a look with Jagger. “I have something your dad left with me two days before his death.” Clearing his throat, his gaze slides to the flames in the fireplace, his eyes taking on a faraway look.

Silence hangs heavy in the room, like a thick curtain separating us from Ryan. The only sound is the cracking of flames as I wait expectantly for him to continue.

Finally, he turns to me, his eyes full of sadness. “Maddie… Your dad knew there was corruption in the Falls Creek Police Department, extending to the judicial system and prominent political figures. He and I had been investigating for months, but when we were told we needed to stop and focus our attention elsewhere… Well, you know your dad.” His smile is weak as he leans forward, elbows on his thighs, twisting his fingers together. “He loved you and wanted you to grow up in a safe world. He was deeply troubled by what was going on and even though we weren’t supposed to be investigating, well, your dad refused to stop. Even when he started receiving threats.”

I gasp, my brows raising. My dad never mentioned receiving threats.

“He didn’t tell you and he made me promise not to, either.” Ryan blows out a sigh.

Swallowing hard, I choke out, “Ben said my mom killed my dad. He said my mom was the leader of the corruption in town. His exact words were, ‘The only thing that stood in her way from being at the top of the chain and completely untouchable was your father.’ Then he callously said my mom, ‘took care of him in that motorcycle ‘accident’ that ended his life.”

Jagger swears beside me, his arm tightening around me while his hand runs over my thigh in a soothing gesture. I hear him mutter, “Fucking Ice Queen” under his breath and I can’t help but smile from the tone of his voice. He sounds even angrier now than when he talked about how she screwed him over as a child.

“My mom didn’t deny it. I didn’t ask her but when I looked into her eyes, I saw the guilt there. She had something to do with it.”

Ryan nods. “I suspected that and have been trying to find evidence to link her to it since his accident.” His eyes fill with tears as he reaches over, grabbing my hand. “I’m so fucking sorry, Maddie. If I suspected she planned to hurt him in any way, I would have found some way to warn him. To try and prevent it.”

Squeezing his hand, I shake my head. “I never would have suspected. I know things had become pretty tense between them. I assumed it was because they were both working a ton of hours.”

“They both threw themselves into their jobs as their problems worsened. But days before your dad’s accident, he came to me, pale and shaky, and told me he knew who the leader of the corruption was, but he refused to say who it was. He just muttered, ‘I hope to God I’m wrong, but if not, I need you to do something for me.’ That’s when he handed me this envelope with your name on it and told me that if anything happened to him, I was supposed to give this to you.” He extends his hand, thrusting an envelope with my name on it into my hands.

My hand shakes as I pull it closer, staring at my name written in my dad’s penmanship. My fingers trace over the letters, Maddie Rose.

Waves of grief wash over me, threatening to drown me. My heart is so heavy as I stare at the envelope.

I don’t know if I can read this.

Jagger’s breath feathers across the side of my face, his deep voice beside my ear. “You’ve got this, baby girl. I’m right here.”

I look up into the eyes I plan to look into for the rest of my life. The other half of my soul. The one who gives me his strength when I lose mine.

Yes, I can do this.