Echo (Bleeding Hearts #1)(42)

Something cool glided over my back, and I realized he was putting aloe on my skin.

“I told you I would take care of you,” he whispered.

I rolled to face him and curled up in his arms. He held me and fanned my hair across his chest the way he liked. I squeezed him tighter, hoping he wouldn’t go. I could feel his pulse against my skin, lulling me to sleep like a sweet melody.

This was becoming a problem. But I craved him in these ways. The unexpected ones. Like his forehead kisses, or the way he pulled me closer in his sleep. He wanted me to accept these things. He took everything I gave and still demanded more. Always more.

But how much more could I give him? Nothing had changed. Why did I keep forgetting that? How could I do this to Brayden?

“Stop thinking,” he whispered. “Just let me take care of you.”

It was easy when he gave me the order. I didn’t have to think. I just did what he said without question. So I nuzzled closer and let sleep carry me away.



***



It was the weekend which meant we were spending it on Belvedere Island.

Ryland was working in his office, and I was writing a letter to Brayden. It was risky doing it here, but I was falling behind.

My guilt had been eating at me, and Brayden was suffering for it. I didn’t know what I was doing anymore. I loved my brother more than anything, and I wanted to believe I was doing this for him. That was true at the start, but was that still the case?

I still had no idea what Ryland’s motives were. Getting information out of him was like pulling teeth. I knew nothing about his family. The only time he’d spoken of them was when he mentioned his father, but that was in the past tense. Also, Ted had let it slip that he’d been his driver since he was a young child.

Ted probably had a whole vault of information on Ryland, but could I pry it out of him? I highly doubted it. He seemed as loyal as they came. On the ride over tonight, I’d hedged towards the subject and he quickly shut it down. He may have been older, but he was sharp as a tack.

So that left nothing but my brain to connect the dots. I needed to find a way to get Brayden to talk about him without alerting Ryland. But so far, I was coming up empty.

It was late, and I was tired, so I put my things away and changed into my pajamas. I was sure Ryland would be in soon enough, so I curled up and fell asleep.



***



I woke with a rush of air from my lungs and a racing heart. When I glanced around the dark room, panic threatened to engulf me. I flicked on the bedside lamp, expecting to find someone beside me. But I was alone, and a glance at the clock confirmed it was three am.

I didn’t know what had woken me, but a chill came over me as I clutched my arms around my chest. I was shaking.

I padded to the ottoman and wrapped a silk bathrobe around me before tiptoeing down the hall. The house was much larger when I was walking through it by myself, and much darker too. Though it was incredibly beautiful, there was also a haunted quality to it. The more time I spent here, the more I noticed that lingering sense of despair.

I poked my head into each room I passed, most of which opened without protest. There was a library on this floor where I often spent time, along with a state of the art gym. Several empty rooms with sterile bedding sat untouched, and I gathered these were probably guest rooms.

When I reached the staircase, I lowered my foot to go downstairs to the office where Ryland would most likely be. But then my curiosity got the best of me, and I moved upwards instead.

The first couple of floorboards creaked under the weight of my feet, and I carefully tested every one after to find the right spot. I didn’t like sneaking around, but I needed to know what Ryland’s motives were. Even if that meant I had to dig them up myself.

I made it up to the next level, only to be shocked by the state of it. Dim lights flickered along the corridor, highlighting the dust bunnies that had made this level home. While every other area of the house was immaculate, this one lay untouched. One corner of the wallpaper hung in tatters while several burnt out lights stood out like sore thumbs.

I tiptoed down the hall, wrapping my robe around me tightly. Even the air up here was cooler too. I jiggled the first doorknob I came to, only to be met with the resistance of a lock. The knob was an old-fashioned type that appeared to take some sort of skeleton key.

I found it odd but continued on my way, only to be met with the same resistance at every door. But at the end of the hall, a sliver of light spilled into the hallway, giving me hope my venture wouldn’t be completely fruitless.

I moved closer, holding my breath as I placed my hand on the wood, preparing to open it further. But before I could, I caught a glimpse of movement inside.

Ryland was sitting on the floor, cross-legged with a box in his lap as he sorted through the contents. His back was facing the door, and I couldn’t make out what he was looking at when he pulled something from the box. Whatever it was, he stared at it for a long time. The tension in his body was obvious, and instinctively I knew this was something he wouldn’t want me seeing.

My eyes wandered around the room, taking in whatever little details I could. Masculine colors dominated the bed and the few random items of clothing that were strewn about. It was odd that it was so messy and looked so lived in. It wasn’t Ryland’s room, but it was definitely a man’s room. There were stacks of CD’s on the dresser covered in at least an inch of dust. A signed poster from a rock band hung from the wall, and there was a PlayStation and about a million games beneath it.