“What are you doing here?” he asks in a more composed voice after sharing the blanket with me.
“Checking in on you since you haven’t left the guest house in…two days. You’ve been barely eating the meals I’ve been sending you either.”
I wince and glare at Jeremy.
It’s been that long, and he made me lose track of time.
“The poor girl looks dehydrated.”
“I’ve been making her drink just fine.”
My cheeks heat, and I step on his foot, but I might as well not have touched him, considering the smile on his face.
Lia shakes her head. “Your father wants to see you. Get changed and come to the main house. We’ll have dinner together.”
“Okay. You leave first, Mom. We’ll catch up.”
“No. You’ll just continue locking up Cecily here. I’ll wait until you come down.”
He grunts after his mum ruins his plan to do just that, then we awkwardly stumble upstairs. We take a quick shower, and he stays in the bathroom to shave, but I throw on the first pair of jeans and top I come across and go ahead downstairs.
One, I don’t want to keep her waiting.
Two, I really don’t want her to think we’re fucking up there.
I find Lia tidying up the living room even though it’s kind of spotless. I’m thankful the actual fucking happened on the stairs earlier, so there’s no evidence of it on the sofa.
“Cecily, you’re here.” She beams at me. “How did you escape him?”
I touch my neck, my ear, and my hair. “I…um…”
“I’m kidding.” She grabs my hand and makes me sit down beside her on the sofa. “We haven’t talked much since you got here, for obvious reasons, but I wanted to thank you, Cecily.”
“For…what?”
“For seeing the man inside Jeremy, not the cold exterior he showcases to the world. It takes a brave soul to dig deeper and see him for what he truly is and not be repulsed by it.”
I shake my head. “You don’t have to thank me. He dug inside me, too. He’s way more than what his reputation claims.”
“Right? He’s like his father. Only a select few see what he hides on the inside.” A nostalgic look covers her eyes. “He had a tough childhood, my angel, partly because I wasn’t always there for him, and I hate myself for that every day. I’m beyond grateful he grew up so well.”
“Please don’t hate yourself.” I stroke her hand. “Jeremy understands.”
A soft light covers her features. “He does?”
I nod frantically. “More than you’d ever know.”
She smiles again with a contagious joy that I can’t help but mirror.
“I know you’re new to this life, but I hope you’ll get used to it. God knows it took me years, but I got there, and I’ll help you adjust… That is, if you’d like, of course.”
“Yes, please. I’d be forever grateful.”
“We girls need to stick together. I’m so happy you and Jeremy chose each other.”
“Me, too.”
Jeremy appears at the top of the stairs and comes down, narrowing his eyes on us. “I heard my name. What were you talking about?”
“It’s our secret.” Lia winks at me, and I smile.
Then I hug Jeremy as the three of us go to have a family dinner with Adrian.
Looks like I found myself a new family.
And it’s all thanks to the man I love.
The beast I can’t live without.
EPILOGUE 2 — JEREMY
ONE MONTH LATER
A new college year means one thing.
The initiation.
This semester, we’re doing it differently. It’s not about the hunt like the last one.
It’s not about who gets to strike as many participants as possible. No.
This year’s initiation theme is much more interesting.
What’s better than hunting? Hunting a specific target.
I came up with this plan, and Killian agreed right away because it gives him a chance to go after Glyndon.
Nikolai was all in for the fun. White, too.
The only reluctant one was Gareth, but we beat him four to one.
The rules are simple. All participants need to run, but only we know who the targets are. Sadly for them, there will be no winners and no new admissions to the club, but the participants don’t know that.
Then again, we never did initiations to have new members. It was a mere showcase of power.
Aside from our designated X, we don’t have to eliminate the others unless we want to. Nikolai and White certainly will.