Chapter 11
I boxed up every gift Bran gave and shipped them back.
If he wanted me back, he had to get Alex out of prison.
Sarah’s warning meant Bran would have to act in the shadows.
Since that night, Ryder had disappeared.
It reminded me of years ago when his family’s werewolf – related chaos cut him off from me.
Late one night, an unknown number jolted me awake.
“Meet me at our spot. Good news,” Ryder
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said.
At the mansion, the door flew open as if Ryder had been waiting.
Before I could speak, he pinned me to the wall.
He swept me off my feet and carried me to the familiar – yet – changed room.
As he laid me on the bed and reached for my clothes, I cried, “Ryder!” But he quickly pulled. out a lit phone and played a video.
Alex’s voice filled the room.
On screen, he wore prison blues, trying to smile. “I’m okay. Don’t get help.”
His gaunt face was a shock.
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Ryder held the phone aloft with one hand while using the other to gently wipe away my
tears.
But tears just kept coming.
Sensing my distress, Ryder paused the video and pulled me into his embrace.
The video, which was just over three minutes long, took me a full half hour to watch.
I played it over and over again – once, twice, three times… I couldn’t seem to stop.
Ryder sat beside me on the bed, patiently accompanying me through each replay.
But finally, after countless viewings, he snatched the phone from my grasp and turned it off.
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“Give it back to me, I pleaded.
“Stop crying” Ryder commanded.
“Give it to me!”
Ryder tossed the phone to the far end of the room and grabbed my wrists. “Look at me“.
“Three months. Just wait for three more months, and I’ll get Alex out,” Ryder declared.
“You’re lying.”
“I’m not. I’ll never lie to you again.”
“I made a deal with someone. That person promised to get Alex out in three months,” he explained.
“Why three months?” I pressed.
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“Because the deal I made with him –” Ryder replied.
I tried to keep my expression neutral, but I was skeptical.
Ryder locked his gaze with mine.
“I might be crazy. But it’s all because of you.”
I averted my eyes from Ryder and reached for his bathrobe sash.
In a flash, his hands clamped around my wrists.
He pinned me beneath him.
“Happy? I can give you what Bran never could. Quit the games and come back. Let’s be us again.”
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Looking at his desire – clouded face, I asked, “Anything I want?
I said, “Marry me.”
“Bran won’t marry you either.”
“You want me back, like before. I thought we’d mate. But if no mating, I can’t fake love. Can you live with that?”
On the surface, Ryder seemed calm, but his heart was being torn.
He glared down, “Do you love me?”
I met his gaze, “Do you love me?”
He didn’t hesitate, “Yes.” Then added, “We can be together always.”
I smiled sadly, “But when you mate…”
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Suddenly, pain gripped his chest. “I won’t mate soon,” he blurted.
My smile faltered.
Seconds passed like hours before I forced a radiant smile.
“I trust you,”
Ryder’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
Ryder tried to lift his head, but I clung to his neck, nails digging in.
“Isabelle,” he breathed.
I closed my eyes, drowning in memories. When Ryder finally lifted his head, he saw my tears.
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Our past flashed before me.
Ryder clasped my nape, his voice husky. “Isabelle, I love you.”
We made love for a whole night.
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