Her arms wrapped around my neck; her fingers tugged on the hair above my neck and she pressed her body closer, grinding her hips into mine. With one swift movement, my hands cupped her ass and I lifted her from her feet and moved our bodies to the hood of my car. I broke our kiss and through heated eyes I took in the sight before me. Her lips were swollen and her eyes hooded with desire while the white sweater stuck to every perfect curve of her body. She parted her legs and I took the invitation. My hands fell to her hips, pulling her forward until there was no end to our bodies. My cock thickened and ached for relief.

“Can you feel that? That’s all you.” I ground my cock into her jean covered pussy and her moan vibrated against my lips. Our chests formed as one, so close that I could feel the thundering of her heart against mine. “Can you feel your heart racing? That’s all me.”

She pulled her lips away mine and took a deep ragged breath. My lips fell to her jaw, kissing and nibbling my way to her neck. Eden dropped her face to my shoulder and we remained there, our breathing combining together, struggling together, and rejuvenating together. I leaned in and placed the softest of kisses on her lips and leaned my forehead against hers. The rain was easing, but we were completely soaked.

“I will never forget that for as long as I am breathing and I hope to God I take that memory to my next life,” I whispered into the darkness.

I had never spoken truer words.

 

It felt so strange being in Ky’s apartment when he wasn’t around. I had been here for four days, and going about my days as calmly as I could. Every waking hour seemed to be spent attached to my laptop as I searched for the perfect locations for the upcoming shoots. Beats and Bangs had hired me for six weeks so they were definitely getting their money out of me as they just booked me for another editorial.

Ky had left this morning for an overnight business meeting in Los Angeles confirming that he would be back some time tomorrow. Before he left he made me promise that I would make myself at home, that I would eat his food, watch his television, and enjoy the comforts of his home. He had hesitated at the door as if he wanted to say something else, but he didn’t.

Walking through the empty apartment, I headed to the kitchen to make my morning coffee. Once my coffee was ready, I moved into the vast living room and finally had the chance to really look around. Photos graced the walls, showing a family of four, and it was clear exactly who Ky got his striking looks from. The man who I assumed was his father stood so proud, surrounded by his family with the exact same smirk that I had witnessed on Ky. This place really was gorgeous. I loved the floor to ceiling windows that were in both Ky’s bedroom and the living area, and the stainless steel and black kitchen was a chef’s dream; the guest room was like staying in the fanciest hotel.

A loud knock on the door startled me. It was barely ten a.m. I left my mug on the glass coffee table and walked toward the door and who I saw through the peephole shook me to the core.

Douglas Smith.

I felt my body tense as recognition hit me. I hadn’t seen this man for over four years. I didn’t even want to know why he was here. With better judgment I slowly opened the door and the moment I came face to face with the man who had put Jeremy Davis behind bars I stiffened. On instinct, my chest tightened and tears spilled out like waterfalls over my cheeks. His arms wrapped around me tightly, and he pulled me against his chest as I sobbed, destroying his shirt in the process.

“Can I come in?” his gruff voice asked.

I reluctantly released my body from his and stepped back into the apartment, closely followed by Douglas. He stood in the middle of the living room taking in the space before turning back to look at me. I stood in silence, confused and concerned as to why he had suddenly appeared.

“Where is Mr. Crawford?” his calming voice asked as his eyes darted around all corners of the apartment in search of any sign of Ky.

“In Los Angeles for work.”

“I wish I was visiting on better terms Eden.” The moment those words let his lips, I fumbled behind me for something to grab hold of to stop me from crumbling to the ground. My brain went into overdrive, but I knew what his visit could only mean. Douglas was in my life because of Jeremy Davis so this visit wasn’t just a general ‘hi, how are you going’ type of visit. I braced myself for impact. I thought I was getting stronger while I had been here; I thought being with Ky, and having him treat me like I was the best fucking thing on the planet, had helped erase some of the all-consuming fear. But right now, I felt the weakest I had ever been.

“What is it?” I asked so softly that I wished he hadn’t have heard me.

With two long strides he was standing in front of me and his hands fell to my shoulders. This man had seen me at my very worst and my moment of complete and utter horror, he saw things I wished he had never seen but now he looked back at me in concern, like he was sitting on the worst news he could deliver.

“Jeremy Davis has been released.”

Those five words were like being handed a death sentence. My head shook violently as the ramifications hit me, I couldn’t believe this. This couldn’t be real.

“I just can’t.” My words jumbled as I tried to process everything.

Douglas moved me to the couch where I collapsed and pulled my knees to my chest. Suddenly I felt exposed, like my world was now on display to the entire world to judge and destroy. Paranoia was a frightening thing. The days of looking over my shoulder had returned with those fucked-up text messages but now knowing that he was back out there, set me on the course of no return. Douglas walked back into the room and handed me a cup of tea and sat down beside me.

“Now I am going to tell you everything so just listen, and I’ll answer anything afterwards.”

I nodded.

“Word was received last week that he was attempting parole. Every single one of us at the precinct thought he wouldn’t get it. There was no way in fucking hell that he would get it, not after what he had done. To say I was beyond shocked and pissed when I received the email about an hour ago was an understatement. The conditions of his parole are that he is not to contact you in any form so no emails, no text messages, no letters, no personal visits. He is not to intimidate you, your family, or your friends. He is to attend appointments with his parole officer twice a day, and he is on a curfew.”

“When does he get out?”

“Tomorrow.”

“I’ve been receiving text messages since I’ve been back in town,” I admitted, knowing that I couldn’t hide behind them any longer.

Douglas narrowed his eyes. “Show me.”

I rose from the couch and walked into the bedroom to find my phone. Suddenly the urge to have Ky here hit me. I needed his protection, his safety, his ability to provide calm. When I reached Douglas I handed him my phone and his brow scowled as he read through text after text, scrolling through the threats.

“I am going to need to run these through the system. This is classed as stalking Eden. Whoever this is clearly knows you and is keeping tabs on your whereabouts and who you are with.”

“I need to leave.” I shot up from the couch and rushed into guest room and threw my suitcase on the bed. I couldn’t stay here. It was the biggest mistake coming back here; I should have listened to my head all those weeks ago.

“Eden, fucking stop for a second.” My hand froze at the ferociousness of his words. “Sweetie just hear me out.”

I turned to face him as his large intimidating frame filled the door way. Defeat hit me and fresh tears threatened to overflow over my cheeks.