Page 108 of Where Sinners Repent

My gaze lingers on her face. Her heavy lids flutter closed with exhaustion. Every time I think I’ve figured her out, she throws me a left hook. Or drugs me and straps me to a cross.

She’s the ultimate liability.

Because for the first time in a long fucking time, I’m no longer certain that I’m the one in control.

Chapter 27

Roxy

“Inever thought I’d come back here,” Maddy sighs, snuggling into the blankets further before reaching for a Malteser.

We have sweets, chips, and enough hot chocolate to last a month. Edward Cullen sparkles on the screen in front of us, and we are wrapped in layers of soft blankets. We have a real life sleepover happening here!

“I don’t know why,” I yawn, crunching on a chip. “This place is fucking magnificent. Also remind me to buy you new hair products; I’ve been using the shit out of them. Feel how soft my hair is!”

She reaches over, gripping a strand and giggling.

“It is soft,” she gasps, and I give her a look saying, see! “But I don’t want anything. Honestly, when I left this place, I was never looking back. It holds some bad memories for me.”

My brows draw. “Are you okay with being here now?”

Turning onto her side to face me, she smiles.

“Considering just outside that door awaits Ash and both twins,” she gives me a look. “And I’m here with my best friend... I’ve never been better.”

Her words make my heart warm.

“You can totally live here even after all of this is sorted out,” Maddy shrugs casually, as if she isn’t offering me everything. “Unless you wanna go back to your home.”

Suddenly, my throat feels dry.

“Well...” I swallow. “Before this, I was actually living in the studio.”

Maddy’s smile fades.

“Roxy...”

I shrug, trying to play it off. “It’s not as bad as it sounds. It even has a shower. And the coffee machine is an added bonus.”

She shakes her head, pushing up from the bed with her elbow. Reaching into the bowl of treats, she throws a Malteser, and it hits me right in the forehead.

“Ow!”

“You deserved that,” she snarks as I rub my forehead dramatically before grabbing the chocolate and popping it into my mouth. “You know, we’ve really got to be better at telling each other things.”

My heart stutters in my chest because she’s right.

“No, I mean it, Roxy. I think the universe made our paths cross. Think about it! When I met you, I was dealing with all this... Devils stuff and you were dealing with your brothers. Now you are one of us... We can help each other; we just need to let each other in.”

Nodding slowly, I sit up as well.

“You’re right,” I murmur. “Sometimes it feels easier just to deal with things on my own.”

She reaches over to grip my hands in hers. “Because that’s the way it’s always been. I get it. But things have changed, and you’ve got hundreds of people who now have your back. Once you are one of us, they’ll put their lives on the line to make sure you’re okay.”

The backs of my eyes burn. It’s a concept I can barely wrap my head around.

“Like you and Ash paying for my studio,” I choke out.