Page 44 of Claimed

Achille followed me out. “Now what?”

“We’re done until mornin’. Unless he has a nightmare and screams.”

“How often does that happen?”

“A few times a week, ever since we lost her.” I yawned and covered my mouth. “Thanks for today. You made him really happy. The bedsheets were a nice touch.”

He looked at me until heat prickled under my skin. I turned away, unable to bear his intensity. The room felt smaller. I needed to breathe.

“Um, I should go. I mean, I’m gonna sleep.”

He nodded. “Pick a room.”

“What about you?”

“I’ve got a job.”

A hit? “Well, be careful out there. Jack needs you more than you know.”

Achille stepped forward, towering over me. One hand closed on my wrist, and the other took my shoulder. My back flattened against the wall. His body crowded me. Then his hands, hot and feral, cradled my head.

“You need me,” he whispered, his eyes blazing. “You’re fucked without me.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Stop pretending this is all for his sake.”

“Fine,” I ground out, bewildered. “You helped me.”

“No. You need me. Say it.”

I glared at him, my heart racing. “I don’t need anyone.”

“The fuck you don’t. I saved you. Playing house in a run-down apartment, barely getting by on tips and a waitress salary. How did you think that would last?”

My cheeks flamed. “I was about to move.”

He scoffed. “Let’s be real, Bumpkin. You were drowning. I threw you a lifeline.”

I ripped his hands off my neck. “You’re not my savior. You’re a man blinded by his ego.”

“No, I’m Jack’s father. Deal with it.”

“I’m tryin’ to, but you don’t make it easy!”

“What part of this is easy for me?” he snarled in my face. “The one where I found out I had a son living in poverty? Or that his mother was taken from him and I couldn’t protect her?”

“Why’re you gettin’ mad at me? I didn’t keep you from him!”

“You both did.”

“She told me nothing about you, only to stay away. I trust my sister, so that’s what I did. The locals willing to talk gave me the same warning. How was I supposed to know they were wrong?”

He paced the hall, fuming. “If she were alive, I’d throttle her for being so stupid.”

“She wasn’t stupid. She was scared of you.” I took a step back, my heart pounding.

He laughed bitterly. “I don’t go around terrorizing women and children.”