2. Soren

Daddy…

The word plays over in my head. With his strong voice and possessive eyes, I obeyed him like a good girl.

His good girl.

How did he know?

There's no time to dwell on it before I hear shattering glass and a lot of yelling. Scrambling over his body, I try to protect him from further harm as police come crashing into the bank. Madness ensues in the following minutes as I'm dragged off the stranger's body.

A perfectly sculpted body, if I'm honest. And I always try to be honest with myself. From the second our eyes met right before the robbers made their move, I'd felt a bone-deep connection to this mysterious man.

"Miss, I need you to get off him so we can check him out." Someone tugs at my shoulders, dragging me away. "Are you okay?" another asks, obviously seeing the blood staining my hands and dress.

"I'm fine, it's his. I tried to stop the bleeding." Even unconscious, he's commanding.

"Do you know this man?" I shake my head as they continue to pull me away.

Outside is loud, so loud that my ears ring. When my teeth start chattering, I realize the adrenaline has worn off, and I'm about to crash. What I don't expect is to be placed in the backseat of a police car as the paramedics roll my savior out of the bank. I lost my purse somewhere in there, and it has everything in it. Including the last of the money I needed.

It's for a Pitbull at a shelter that's about to be put down due to aggression after being groomed in a dogfighting ring. He's huge, scared, and scarred. Very much so because nobody has given him a chance.

Three times a week, I visit this shelter to walk the dogs, play with them, or do whatever else I'm asked to do. When I met Blue, I was shaken at first—learning what happened to him and the way he lunged at the cage when I stopped in front of him. But slowly, I built his trust. He was supposed to spend the rest of his days at a sanctuary dedicated to dogs like him, but Blue refused to leave his kennel.

It was decided then that he would be euthanized. That's when I started pushing past my fear and spending more and more time with him. First, by sitting outside his kennel and reading books to him, then once he began showing signs of interest at hearing my voice, I begged Pete, the man in charge of volunteers, to allow me to change his food and water bowls. We worked through that tenuous interaction, and eventually, Blue began crawling into my lap and offering me his belly.

Adopting him is costing me a fortune, with all the licenses and permits I need, but I finally have enough money. Or I did.

Banging on the window, I yell at the officer standing guard outside my door that I need my purse. Not just for the money, but everything I own—my keys, my ID, my phone—my whole life—is in there.

"It's evidence now, ma'am. You'll get it all back once it's been processed." The officer's voice comes out monotonic. He probably repeats that a dozen times a week.

My parents are going to be livid. I've put all this money, my weekly allowance for the last six months, into Blue, and now I won't even get to bring him home. Not that they'll care about that. They don't like dogs. Or animals in general.

Despite my dad being a wealthy criminal attorney, he's very stingy with his cash, which I find hilarious considering that even though I graduated high school this year, he doesn't want me to get a job or go to college. He just reiterates that it's his job to take care of me. Whatever that means. All my friends have gone off to college, their parents thrilled to have them out of the house and learning to be adults.

Meanwhile, mine want me to remain dependent on them forever, it seems.

The ambulance leaves, sirens blaring, and I chew my bottom lip, worrying for the handsome stranger. He passed out a second after our lips met, so I didn't even get a full kiss. It would have been my first, too.

I sit in the back of the car for what feels like hours, but when we arrive at the station so the detective can take my official statement, it's only slightly after lunch. I'm so exhausted I could sleep for a week.

"Miss Chambers?" he prompts for the third time after asking me how I know my mystery man. "I already told you, I don't know him." I'm getting more and more frustrated by the minute.

"We've reviewed the footage; he was very familiar with you." I can only shrug. I don't know what they want me to say. I'd never seen him before in my life. "How do you explain his defense of you, then? The way he handled you?"

"I can't. I don't know what you want from me, I just want to go home." My tears spill over now, hot and heavy, as they slide down my cheeks and plop on the table I'm leaning over. They wouldn't even let me call my parents. "Can I have my stuff back now?" I'm being treated like a criminal, and when my father finds out, there will be hell to pay.

"Tell me how you know Adonis Lorde, and you're free to go. With your belongings." I smile in relief, and his eyes light up.

"Is that his name? Adonis?" It's very fitting. He certainly looks like some kind of god—all dark looks, brooding features, and a muscley frame. "Well, I met him today, seconds before the robbers came in. He grew angry when the one guy got rough with me."

"And felt you up," he points out, and I feel sick. I've been trying to forget about that. There are bruises from where the jerk touched me.

"I'd like to go home now." Crossing my arms over my stomach, I look away from the detective.

He sits, staring at me like I'm a bug under his microscope or something. Studying me as if I'm a science experiment when all I want is to get Blue and go home.

"All right, Miss Chambers. You can go for now, but don't leave the city. I'm going to have more questions for you." I don't know what for. He seems more interested in how I interacted with Adonis than the actual bank robbery.

Quickly leaving the room, I'm handed my belongings as I rush out the front of the police station. I'm not even sure where I am as I step into the sunlight. The summer sun warms the air, heating me despite how cold I feel inside.

All eyes appear on me as I begin walking towards the first bus stop I come across. I don't know where it'll take me, but anything has to be better than here. I feel so… violated after that interview. I know from my father that what I just experienced was a light interrogation. There was no interview happening there.

Fishing out the few dollars in change I have, I get on the arriving bus and take an empty seat before pulling out my phone to let the shelter know I'm still coming and beg for them to wait for me. I was surprised my three hundred dollars—the final adoption fee—was still in my wallet. I expected it to have gone missing. Not all cops are good, and some people can't resist taking what doesn't belong to them.

From San Bernardino, it takes nearly an hour of bus riding to get to Riverside, where the shelter is located, but I'm finally there. Covered in dry blood that raises the staff's eyebrows and a thick sheen of sweat covering my flesh, but I make it just in time.

Thankfully, the paperwork has been filled out for weeks, and they're happy to provide me with the leash, collar, and muzzle I'll need to take Blue home. I hate the muzzle, but it's part of the agreement I made. If I'm taking him out in public, he has to be wearing one.

"You're sure you want to do this?" Pete asks me one final time as he hands me a bag with the rest of my paperwork.

Scratching Blue behind the ears, he sits quietly at my feet. "Positive." I grin as we leave. It takes a while before the dog becomes comfortable with all the noise and the number of people around us, but he doesn't lunge at anyone. He growls and barks, which is scary enough, but he always listens when I call for his attention. I think it has more to do with the bag of kibble-sized treats I feed him when he gives me his eyes.

Training Blue has been challenging and rewarding in a way I've never experienced. We still have a lot to learn about each other, but as long as he's willing to put in the work, so am I.

"Hey there, pretty lady," some guy calls out to me. I ignore him, but he carries on, coming closer, which angers Blue.

"Leave us alone." I don't turn, I keep walking. Blue keeps glancing back, his growls growing in intensity as the stranger doesn't back off.

"Aww, come on, little honey trap, don't be like that." More men have joined him now, laughing like this is all fun and games.

I don't want Blue getting into trouble because these jerks can't take a hint, but when I face them, Blue starts lunging, growling, and barking like he's in one of those cage fights. They stop advancing but don't back off, not until I give Blue's leash some slack. They scatter when he lunges a little closer this time.

"Good boy, Blue." I pat his belly and scratch his ears before giving him a treat to lick out of my hand.

The bus ride getting here seemed to take forever, but the walk to my father's expansive home in Irvine takes us a couple of hours that appear to pass by quicker. I think it's because I have Blue; I know he's safe now. Despite the exhaustion that's been weighing on me all day, I feel lighter than I have in years.

Strolling up the driveway to the main house, my feet are killing me, and I'm ready for a hot shower. "Where the hell have you been?" one of my father"s security guards snaps at me while sneering at Blue.

I ignore him as I enter the house. Mom immediately starts fussing over me. "Soren! What happened to you?" Her eyes rove up and down my body, taking in the blood I'm covered in.

"I'd really like to have a shower and change before I explain." She nods her head, shooing me up the stairs with a promise to have Maggie, our in-house chef, bring me up some dinner.

As soon as I enter my room, I remove Blue's muzzle and unhook his collar. After showing him where his new bed and water bowl are, I strip out of my dirty clothes before heading into my bathroom and turning on the showerhead.

I only take a few minutes before dragging myself out of the stall. After drying off, I slip on a long sleep shirt, fall into bed, and dream of the man who spoke possessive words to me and made dirty promises with his intense gaze.