Colton holds me a little tighter. “I don't want you to, Jade. I want you right here. Please don't be afraid of me. I would never hurt you.”
“What happened ... after I left. Did you ...?”
“Kill him?” he questions, letting out a heavy breath. “No. I didn't kill him. As much as I wanted to and as much as he begged for it, I didn't. He'll live but he'll be living in a lot of pain for the next few days.”
“Why'd you do it?”
“Why'd I not kill him?”
“Why did you lock him down there? You could have handed him over to the police or to Nic.”
Colton shakes his head. “I've spent years with Jude by my side and I've watched him get away with atrocious things time and time again. He has no morals, no decent understanding of right and wrong. I watched as he stood back and tried to place blame on other people for things he's done. I've watched as he got out of rape charges and I've watched as his parents stood back and allowed him to destroy the poor girl who he hurt. His father is powerful and has many of the Bellevue Springs cops in his back pocket. Had Jude been taken to the police, he would have gotten away with it again and I wasn't about to let that happen to you. Nic would have shot him between the eyes and he wouldn't have suffered for what he did. I have stood by far too long. I know every awful thing he's ever done and I wasn't going to hand him over to Nic until I made sure that he paid for every little thing he did.”
“I’m assuming that what I did kinda tops this list?”
Colton presses his lips into a light line and nods before taking my face gently in both hands and tilting my head down to press a kiss to my forehead. “What can I say?” he says with a small shrug. “You’ve always been one for the dramatics.”
A tear rolls down my cheek and he instantly wipes it away. “You’re going to be okay, Ocean. Just stay away from the wine cellar and you won’t have to think about it. Just go about your day pretending he’s not down there. There’s no reason for you to beat yourself up over this.”
“He was defenseless, Colton. In heavy chains and already skin and bones, bruised, and beat up. I’m not going to be able to forget what I did any time soon.”
“In that case, revel in it. You kicked his ass while he was down. You took away his will just as he did to you. He drugged and raped you and took what he wanted. It’s called karma and when karma comes around with a face like yours, she’s a fucking bitch.”
I smile even though I shouldn’t. “I can get on board with that,” I murmur.
“Good.”
His hands slip around me again, pulling me into his chest, pulling me home, and I let out a soft sigh. “So, what now?”
Colton shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know,” he tells me. “I can’t say that I’ve ever held someone hostage before. I guess we wait and see if he lives through to morning and then take it day by day. I can’t let him go, Ocean. I can’t risk him doing it again and I can’t risk him talking to the police.”
“He won’t go to the police. He can’t risk that.”
“True. What do you think?”
“I think we have no choice but to do what I’ve always wanted to do. We hand him over to Nic.”
“Nic will end it. Are you okay with that?”
I bite down on my lip, really thinking about it. I wasn’t okay with being the one to end it, I wasn’t strong enough, but am I okay with still being responsible for his death? I don’t know. “Can I let you know?”
“Of course, Jade,” he whispers, leaning in and pressing a soft kiss to my lips. “Are you going to be alright?”
I shrug. “Can I let you know about that too?”
Colton nods. “Do you want to stay with me tonight?”
I look up and meet his deep, loving eyes. “Is that alright?”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
I fall back into his chest and smile against his warm skin. “Uh, Jade?” he questions. “I know you’re sort of going through something here, but did you want to put that fire out? You’re kinda burning the ceiling and my bedroom is above this.”
Oh, fuck.
I get up off the shower floor and Colton raises behind me, reaching for a massive white towel that he wraps around me. I turn off the shower as he peels off his wet clothes and as I dry myself off, he deals with the fire in his bathtub, knowing damn well that he’s going to have to have someone come in to replace the ceiling.