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That realization shattered me. I never told him, and why not? Because I was a coward, because I was afraid of rejection. I let the fear of rejection stop me from doing so much in life, and now there was a good chance I was going to die filled with so much regret over the fact that I let those three little words scare me silent. It was such a mistake not to tell him the truth about how I felt. Who cared if he didn’t feel the same way? At least I would have said it, gotten it off my chest. At least then he’d know.
His face was all I saw. It wasn’t Conlon and it wasn’t Nicole. It was Logan. Those chocolate eyes and that mussed blonde hair. His hard body and the way he said my name, so soft and deep all at once. Logan’s voice was like velvet, smooth and thick with his slight Boston accent. I loved all of those things about him.
But, most of all, I loved his heart. I loved the way he protected his sister from the wrath of their mother and the way he put everyone else first. All Logan ever wanted to do was help people and give them a second chance, even when he was drowning in his own disease. He was openly flawed, stubborn, and sometimes so difficult it made me want to scream. But I loved all of those things because I loved him.
“He’ll get me out of this,” I said defiantly, hating the way my voice shook but happy that I was able to get the words out at all.
Conlon smiled in a way that was so condescending it made me grind my molars. “So naive. I’ll give him credit, though. He has great taste. I love tough, strong women, it’s always much more fun when they fucking break.”
“Fuck you,” Nicole whimpered, her voice nearly inaudible.
He ruffled her hair and she flinched so hard I thought the chair she was tied to would tip over. “Aw, you already did that.”
His sleeve rode up and I saw bloody white gauze wrapped around his forearm. It really was his blood all over the house. She must have cut him, tried to stab him. I hoped she tried to kill him, something I never thought I’d hope for. There was a lot of blood soaking through the hastily wrapped wound, and I could only assume she cut him deep.
“You know what we’re gonna do?” Conlon said and stood up, clapping his hands and rubbing his palms together. “We’re gonna call Logan and see what he’s up to.”
My heart started to beat faster as I saw him slip his phone out of his back pocket. He made a show of waving it around, flashing the screen at me just long enough to recognize that it was, in fact, Logan’s number. He paced back in forth in front of mine and Nicole’s chairs, tapping a finger against his chin.
“Hey, fucker.” He eventually spoke into the phone with a smirk on his face.
I couldn’t hear the response, but Conlon laughed and shook his head. “Don’t worry, your little girlfriend’s just fine. What’s that? Oh, no, see, she can’t come to the phone. She’s a little tied up at the moment.”
I growled in frustration and tugged harder at my restraints, ignoring the pain as the rope bit into the soft skin of my wrists. My ankles, however, weren’t tied, and I was able to knick Conlon in the shin hard enough to make him wince. He rushed forward faster than I could blink, his fingers wrapping around my neck while his palm pressed against the hollow of my throat. He squeezed and my mouth fell open in a silent gasp, my body stiffening.
“I have a question for you, Logan.” Conlon spoke into the phone as he stared down at me with menace. “You ever choke her while you fuck her? She’s got a pretty small throat, my whole hand fits around it.”
I struggled and he squeezed harder, effectively cutting off my oxygen. Nicole watched in horror and gave a small whine, shaking her head. “Greg, don’t! Please, please don’t do this. She hasn’t done anything wrong. Greg!”
“Shut up!” he screamed, his grip so tight I feared I’d pass out, or worse. My vision was beginning to blur.
I tried to keep an eye on what Conlon was doing as he pulled the phone from his ear and put it on speaker.
“Juliette, say hi to Logan. Let him know you’re okay.”
I couldn’t say anything. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
He shook me harder. “Say hello.”
“Logan,” I gasped.
“J?” his familiar voice came through the phone as Conlon pulled his hand back.
I gasped and coughed, sputtering as I heaved air into my lungs, hanging my head and staring down at my lap.
“Juliette.” Logan’s voice came through the phone, clear as day. Tears sprung to my eyes at the sound of my name on his lips. “You’re okay. Breathe.”
I let out a shaky breath and then inhaled again, willing myself not to go into hysterics. I wouldn’t give Conlon the satisfaction of seeing me breakdown in tears over the fact that he’d scared me. Even though he had. Brutally.
“Listen to me.” Logan spoke again, his voice so controlled it was as though I didn’t recognize it. He was angry, I could tell. Pissed to the point where he was speaking through what sounded like gritted teeth and a clenched jaw. But he was there, talking to me. “I’m going to get you out of this. I promise. I just need you to bear with me for a few hours, okay, babe?”
“Okay,” I whispered, still feeling like my windpipe was being crushed.
“Nicole, honey, you good?”
“I will be when you get me the fuck away from him,” she snarled, eyeing Conlon as he stood above us.
“Logan?” I said softly, a lump forming in my throat as I realized that there was a chance I wouldn’t see him again. Never be able to reach out and run my fingers over his scruffy jaw.
