“I’m sorry.” He wipes my tear with the pad of his thumb. “If it’s of any comfort, I killed myself, too. There hasn’t been a moment I haven’t thought about you.”
I can’t stop the tears even if I want to. The more he wipes them away, the harder they fall.
“Reina…” he murmurs my name like a prayer he’s been dying to say.
“I don’t want to fight. Not tonight.” I wrap my arms around his midsection and bury my face in his chest.
His strong hand covers the small of my back as he buries his nose in my hair, inhaling me in. “I don’t want to fight either. Not tonight, not ever.”
* * *
We wake up to the sound of harsh pounding on the door. I groan as I make out Asher’s shadow leaving the room and going to answer it.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” His grave voice pulls me from my sleep-induced haze.
I jump out of bed, wrapping the robe tight around me.
“Get out of here.” Asher’s voice turns lethal.
I peek out and pause. Detective Daniels stands in the middle of the living area wearing a smug grin and flashing a piece of paper at Asher.
“Not today, Carson. I have an arrest warrant for Miss Reina Ellis.”
I only come out after changing back into my clothes and doing my makeup. Now, I understand why Old Reina needed to do that whenever she went out. I didn’t like being put under the spotlight if I didn’t have some sort of shield. My perfect face and appearance were it.
It was a defense mechanism to hide my true feelings. I was a pro at that.
Detective Daniels waits for me with two buff officers wearing hats near the door. He’s had a smug grin on his face since he revealed the arrest warrant.
Perspiration coats my skin as one bleak thought after another barges into my mind. What if they actually found Reina’s body?
No. Alex said his guy sent him a text after that night saying she was safe.
My sister is a fighter; she wouldn’t just die.
Asher paces the length of the room, a phone to his ear. “Pick the fuck up, Alexander.”
“It’s okay.” I place a hand on his arm, forcing him to stop. “Go find him at the firm. He’s probably in a meeting.”
Still clutching the phone, he palms both my cheeks and tugs up so I’m staring straight at his pained eyes. “I’ll get you out of there. I promise.”
My limbs start to shake as if about to give up on me. If he keeps touching me, I’ll surrender to all those gloomy thoughts and break.
I can’t do that when I have to find my sister.
I try to wiggle away from his touch but he pins me in place, the forest green color of his eyes turning somber. “Are you running away from me, prom queen?”
“No.” Yes.
“You can’t leave me, not anymore.” His lips brush against mine in a brief, heartbreaking kiss. “You’re my world now.”
Tears well in my eyes, and I wrench myself from him before I start crying.
I can’t do that. Not now.
I stride toward the detective and the officers. My heart begs for one last glance at Asher, but I deny that request. I need to be strong for this, and I can’t do that if I keep thinking about Asher’s last words.
As soon as I’m in front of them, Detective Daniels tells me I’m under arrest for murder and reads me my rights, then he leans in to whisper, “I told you I’d get you.”