TEMPORARY MATES PERMANENT CRAVINGS novel Chapter 172

One hundred and seventy two

Cameron POV

Evangeline remained on the floorboards beside the window, her arms locked around her knees. I stood in the center of the rug and tried to find the energy to move toward her. Franklin reached down to grab her elbow, and she screamed. He snapped his hands up and backed into the doorframe.

“You let her speak to me like that,” she said. She stared at me, blinking through the water in her eyes.

“She’s under pressure,” I said.

“And I’m not?” She pushed off the floor and marched at me. “You know me. I wouldn’t hurt you or Nadia. I love you both.”

I dropped into the chair. “Nadia doesn’t hate you.

“But you spoke to Desmond.”

“I told you I was upset,” she said. “I didn’t mean to give him the information he’s using. Everyone makes mistakes. Why is the whole house now full of people pointing at me for things they are doing themselves?”

I didn’t answer. I didn’t have the breath for an argument. “Can we talk in the morning, when the sun is up?” I said.

She wiped her face with the back of her hand and sniffed. “Fine. Tomorrow.” She turned and walked out.

Franklin watched her shadow disappear down the hallway. “You need to see Lisa tonight,” he said.

I looked at him. “Why?”

“Because you’re a mess. You’re clearer when she’s near.”

“That’s your theory,” I said.

“I’ve watched you. My theory is right.”

My hand went to the back of my neck. “I don’t want her to see me like this.”

“Didn’t you say there was nothing wrong with you? We need you on your feet while we figure this rush out.”

I rubbed the skin at the base of my skull, trying to shove back the pressure building there. “If this backfires, it’s on you,” I said.

“I’ll take it.” He opened the drawer and pulled out the car keys.

“I’m driving,” I said, reaching for the ring.

He hesitated, then dropped the keys into my palm and climbed into the passenger side. “You don’t have to prove anything to me,” he said.

“I’m not proving anything. I’m not dying. I can drive a car.”

The roads were empty. I kept the speedometer low because the world was shifting in and out of focus. Franklin stared out the side window. I gripped the wheel and kept my eyes on the white lines.

“So, about earlier,” Franklin began.

“Eva isn’t innocent. Nobody is,” I said. “She talked, and now he’s using what he’s got against the business.”

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One hundred and seventy two

+15 Bonus

I watched the road for a mile. “If it comes down to it, I’ll call Desmond.”

Franklin jerked his head toward me. “And do what?”

“End it. Give him the trade routes and whatever else he wants.”

“You shouldn’t.”

“I know. It’s the last option in the box.”

I thought about Desmond at the trial. The man had sat there and laughed.

“It’s my fault,” I said. “Evangeline panicked at that hotel and said things she shouldn’t have said because she wasn’t thinking.”

He shook his head. “She still shouldn’t have opened her mouth.”

Her calls started on the second road. Franklin picked up the first one. He told her we were out and hung up. She called back for the location, and he told her I would call later. He hit the power button, and the screen went black.

“I didn’t tell you to do that,” I said. Franklin just looked away.

The safe house was lit from the porch. The guards pulled the gate open. The tires rolled over the gravel and stopped. Susan met us at the door. I walked up and pulled her into a hug.

“You look…”

“I’m fine.”

She shook her head. “You’re gray. Are you getting sick?”

“I’m fine,” I said again. I forced a smile.

She looked at me, then stepped aside. “Lisa is upstairs.”

“Asleep?”

“Go check,” she said.

Franklin nodded at me. I went inside and climbed the steps. My heart hit my ribs with every move. The room was dark. The curtain moved in the draft from the window. She was lying on her side.

I stood in the doorway. The noise in my head went quiet. I sat on the edge of the mattress, then lay down and pulled her back against my chest. She moved when my arm went around her waist. The pressure in my skull stopped pushing.

Lisa turned and looked at me. “You’re here,” she said. Her voice was thick with sleep.

“I am.”

She sat up and rubbed her eyes. “I needed to see you,” I said.

She pulled me closer and put her arms around me. “Then stay.”

The knot in my chest loosened. Her hand moved to my neck, and she stopped. “What is this?”

“Probably nothing.”

“That’s not an answer.”

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The hundred and soventy two

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“I don’t have one.”

She leaned in and kissed me. I pulled her against me. Her belly was round and firm between us. I ran my fingers over the skin and felt the baby move.

She smiled and kept her eyes half-closed.

“I missed you,” I whispered.

Her hand found my zipper. She gripped me, and I held my breath. She stroked me slowly, her fingers moving in a steady rhythm.

“You’re so hard already,” she whispered. She gave me a squeeze.

I kissed her and tasted the sleep on her lips. My hand slid down to her hip and the top of her thigh. Everything felt heavy. It was just skin on skin.

I pushed her legs apart and settled between them. I entered her slowly, careful of her stomach. The heat was everywhere. I sank in inch by inch.

Lisa sighed and looped her arms over my shoulders.

“Yes… just like that. Fill me,” she breathed.

We moved together. Every thrust made her gasp. I kept my weight on my elbows. I cupped her belly with one hand and put the other in her hair. Her breasts pressed against my chest.

“You feel perfect,” I whispered. I bit her ear. We were both sweating. Our skin slid together in the dark.

Her hand came down between us and stroked the base of me while I moved. My jaw clamped shut.

Time stopped. We moved faster. “I’m close… don’t stop,” she moaned. She lifted her hips to meet me. She tightened around me, and we both hit the limit at the same time.

My knot stayed buried inside her while our breathing slowed down. The room was quiet.

“I love you,” she murmured, staring deeply into my eyes.

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