Free Caught for Christmas by Skye Warren Page B

something happen?” What I mean is, Did you find Jeb and Maisie?
    It’s kind of sick that I hope they won’t be found. If they are found by the Caivano family, they’ll be killed. But if they aren’t found, I’ll have to answer for their debt.
    West looks grim. “I won’t know until I see for myself.”
    “Can I come with you?” I’m afraid at what we might find at this mystery destination, but this is my mess. My problem. I got him into this, it’s only fair I be there with him.
    He shakes his head. “It’s too dangerous. I’d rather you stay here.”
    Dangerous. It is dangerous for me here, but not for the reasons he thinks. It’s dangerous to feel acceptance, to feel love. It’s dangerous for someone like me to hope. “You’d be with me.”
    “I don’t know what I’ll find there. Here there’s a security system and a dead bolt. And a pistol in that drawer.” He nods to the corner. “This is the safest place you can be.”
    I can’t help the relief I feel. I don’t want to see Jeb or Maisie if they’re hurt. And I definitely don’t want to see them if they’re alive. There’s a part of me that doesn’t even trust myself. That if I see them, I’ll fall prey to whatever con they try to run, to whatever lies they tell. The desire to have parents who care runs deep, an ache that will never really go away.
    It’s like a stay of execution. I’ll have to leave eventually, but not now. Not yet.
    “You’ll be careful,” I implore softly. If it could be dangerous for me, it could be dangerous for him. I know how skilled he is, but Jeb has gotten himself in deep. I’ve gotten in deep too.
    He nods, looking more determined than worried, my knight in shining armor.
    And I’ll be alone in the castle tower.
    “After dinner?” I ask, my voice small.
    He seems relieved too, that I didn’t put up a fight. He must not realize how desperately I want to stay here, how much I’ve come to love this place—and him. He gives me a kiss on the forehead before sitting beside me. “After dinner.”
    I want to believe I have a future with West, that he’ll be safe, that I will too. But the past has its hooks in me too deep. I’m no princess.
    I don’t deserve a fairy-tale ending.

Chapter Nineteen
    T here’s not much to do in West’s apartment—except snoop. I’m curious about him, but it turns out I don’t want to find out anything he doesn’t want me to know. He trusted me, even when I didn’t deserve it. I’ll make sure he can trust me now.
    I spot my faded leather bag tucked into a corner by the sofa. For a second, I wonder if that could be what the men are after. But there’s nothing but old tools that any lock pick would have.
    And yarn.
    I pull out the dark red yarn, already half-formed into a hat. Actually, it would make a lovely Christmas gift for West—and I wonder if I’d been subconsciously making it for him all along. The rich color would look beautiful against his dark skin.
    Then I think about the soft strands wrapped around him, like tied around his wrists, and I realize I can make something else with this yarn. It only takes a few minutes to undo the work I’ve done so far, and then I start on something better, something darker—a thick braided rope.
    When it’s finished it will still be soft, but it will also be strong.
    I’m deep in my work, fingers working nimbly when I hear the knock. I freeze.
    Carefully, as if it might break, I set the needles and yarn down on a table. My heart pounds when I spot Jeb through the peephole. I don’t open the door.
    He knows I’m there anyway. “Bee? Open up, sweetheart.”
    I dial West on the mobile phone he gave me, but there’s no answer. I text him, Jeb is here.
    I’m protected against someone storming the castle walls. What West didn’t count on is that Jeb wouldn’t try to hide. What West didn’t count on is that my own heart would want to betray him, a little girl who’s overjoyed that her daddy didn’t leave her after