Page 64 of Pride

I wanted to run as far away as I could and never look back.

But when he said, “I mean it, Emma. You’re not alone in this. You have me. And I’ll always be in your corner. Let me take the stress. I want to be the kind of man you can rely on for anything. Please.” I knew I owed it to myself to stay. For now.

I put my hand over his as he traced a gentle circle on my cheek.

“Thank you. I don’t know what I’d do without your help right now.”

His face softened, warmth glowing in his eyes, telling me he liked that. He liked that I was relying on him. That I needed him.

I hated that I had no other choice.

Or at least, that’s how it felt.

But it wasn’t his fault.

“I won’t be long,” he assured me. “I’ll call my lawyer and put him in contact with the newspaper’s legal team. And as for the other problem, he’ll be sorted too.”

Hearing him say that made me want to cry. My emotions were all over the place.

Was he the dark angel I never knew I needed?

A tattooed gentleman sent by some divine power to watch over me?

“You’re a good man, Alex,” I said, and I could see the pride rippling through him in response.

He stood up, walking slowly away from me this time, like he didn’t want to leave.

“If you need me for anything, you have my number. I’ll always answer. No matter what.”

Who was this guy?

A man that was there when you needed him, helped whenever he could, looming larger than life in my tiny world.

“Where did you come from?” I whispered into the room, thinking no one was here to hear me, now that he’d left.

But he hadn’t left.

He was still outside.

And when he took a step back into the doorway to reply, “I was here all along, waiting for you to show up.” I felt a tiny crack appear in the walls I’d always kept around me.

Was Alex Kingston about to change my whole world and turn it upside?

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

S.K.A.M.

“It’s tough isn’t it, not having a family to fall back on,” I said, pouring empathy into the expression on my face and willing humility to shine in my eyes.

My date sighed, then smiled back at me.

She was falling for it, hook, line and sinker.

“It’s so hard to make your own way in this world,” I went on, lifting my wine glass and pretending to take another huge sip. And just as I expected, she lifted hers too, gulping the contents down as her eyes stayed glued to mine.

From the moment we’d walked into this restaurant on our fake date, I’d noticed so many things about her. Tells that would help me later tonight when I needed to take care of business. It helped that the restaurant was almost empty. There’d be fewer witnesses to say we were here. Less people to testify when she went missing. I was also lucky she’d worn a muted colour. It meant we didn’t really stand out. We were nobodies, and nobodies could get away with murder.

I proceeded to tell her what a brave and strong woman I thought she was, and I could tell she trusted me by her unwavering eye contact and how she smiled so sweetly back at me. She was nervous and didn’t want to show it, but the wayshe talked fast, her conversation muddled at times, was a dead giveaway. She was easily pleased, and at the same time, eager to please. She would be my easiest target yet. A target I had chosen to make a statement. If I wanted to, I could get to anyone.