Locke

“Right.  Well, maybe I’ll surprise you?”

He just chuckles and pulls me closer.

“I want to go to Texas.”  There.  I said it.  It’s out there.  Now, he can just accept it.

Yeah, right.  Ugh, I shouldn’t have blurted that out.

“You what?” he thunders.

“Okay—I’ll admit that I should have led up to that.”

“You fucking think?”

“Hey!  I don’t know what you’re getting pissed about, Maddox.  I haven’t even explained myself.”  I go to bring my arms down from around his neck, but he quickly moves to hold them in place.

His face moves close and his nose touches mine.  “Why in the hell do you want to go to Texas, Em?”

“Because it’s time,” I state calmly.  I hold his gaze, and after what feels like the longest time, he drops his forehead to mine.

“I don’t want you near them, Em.  I don’t want you close enough for them to get their claws into you.”

There.  Now he’s said it—the one thing I know was still holding him back.

He’s afraid that, if I get near his family—that ‘temptation of power,’ he calls it—and their evil, it might suck me in.

My heart breaks for him.

“Talk to me.  Please.  Tell me what’s going through your head.”

He doesn’t speak, his forehead still against mine.

“Maddox, baby?” I press.

“I’m terrified, Emmy.  I am downright terrified that they could hurt you.”

“I’m a lot tougher than you’re giving me credit for here, Maddox.”

“I know you are, but they’re… Jesus.  I don’t even know how to explain it.”  He pulls back and looks into my eyes.  “This is important to you?”

“Very.”  I don’t say anything else.  I let his eyes study my own and wait.

“You want that box in hell, yeah?”

I nod my head.

“All right.  Let’s get you fixed up and then we’ll head to Texas.  I don’t think I need to go this far to let that go, but I’m willing to give it a try.  But, Em?  The second—and I mean the very second—that I think that you’re in danger, we are fucking gone.”

I smile huge.  My-face-hurts huge.  He just shakes his head and gives me a deep kiss.

Chapter 33—Maddox—Four Months Later

I walk hand in hand with Emmy through the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.  Her smile keeps me from falling apart.  I’m a mix of dread, trepidation, and anger.  Just being back in this state has my skin crawling.  It’s like every year that I’ve been gone, pushed myself to forget, is just gone in a giant wash.

I’ve come so far, and I think that, deep down, I’m worried more that this trip will be one giant setback.

“Stop.”

I look down at her, my angel—and the reason I’m even able to be here right now—and scowl.

“Stop what, woman?”

“Stop worrying.  I got your back.”  She lifts one tiny fist up and waits for me to give her a bump.

I roll my eyes, but give her what she wants.

“Plus, if things get tough, you can always transform and go all Autobot on their asses.”  She lets out a loud laugh and I just shake my head.

Ever since the night she demanded I wear shorts, I haven’t hidden myself from anyone.  I expected to feel their pity or maybe for them to stare, but no one acted any differently.  I get questions from Cohen, but that’s it.  The guys don’t bring it up, but they know how big that moment was.

This is the last speed bump that stands in my way—in our way—of the future we deserve.  Especially now that her parents and that motherfucker, Shawn, are taken care of.

Shawn, may he rot in fucking hell, didn’t last a month in jail.  He made enemies quickly, and one beautiful morning, his body was found in his cell.

I took Emmy out to dinner that night to celebrate.  Well, she didn’t know that was why, but I did.  It felt fucking good to know that, while I was taking my girl to dinner, her laughter and smiles warming my heart, the bastard who’d tried to take her from me was rotting six feet deep.

Her parents took a little more time.  She doesn’t talk about them and I know it’s all part of her one-step-forward-without-looking-back approach, but not me.  Hell fucking no.  I wasn’t going to sit back and let them continue to live some twisted life.  They needed to pay for what they had done to her.  So she might not have talked—but I did.

It took four months after we left for all of my planning to come to fruition.  That club had to go first.  It really was a shame that a homeless man happened to throw his cigarette next to the building when a pile of gasoline-soaked rags had been carelessly thrown there.

With Syn gone, it was only a matter of time.

I didn’t think they would last that long without their moneymaker, but it was two weeks before I was able to get them for prostitution of minors.  I can rest easy knowing that there isn’t a chance in hell they’ll touch my girl now.

When I asked her the other night if she wanted to talk about them, she simply said no.  She only wanted to know one thing—if they could get to her again.  I gave her one hell of a kiss and reassured her that they would never be able to touch any part of her life again.  She doesn’t want details, but I know she feels the relief of knowing that.

With her family taken care of, all that is left is mine.  I just hope that I can feel the same satisfaction as I do now when we fly out of here tomorrow night.

The drive to the hotel doesn’t take long.  My family’s estate is about thirty minutes away.  I’m close enough that it won’t take long to get there but far enough away that I can’t feel their vile vortex sucking me in.  Fuck, my skin is still crawling.

I drop our shared suitcase on the floor and turn to where she’s putting her purse down and checking her phone.  She’s been texting Melissa since we landed to keep her updated.  She asked me if she could tell her what wouldn’t break my trust but enough that she could have someone to be there to confide in.  I don’t want her to feel like she has to keep this all in and on herself.  The guys all know, so even though I didn’t want Melissa to know just how fucked up my life was, I agreed that she needed someone to talk to about it all.  Especially knowing that this weekend is most likely going to be one big fuck-up.