Chapter 39

Connor led us to Jayden Donaldson’s apartment. There wasn’t much in it; he was obviously broke, new to town and had few possessions. He had a toothbrush, some other toiletries, a few changes of clothes and a couple of frozen meals in the fridge. We found nothing that suggested he’d been involved in any of our crimes. We left disappointed, but not very shocked.

I still wanted to know what he thought Aoife had stolen and why he’d insisted she wasn’t his daughter, but I’d have to wait until he or Nora was well enough to question. It didn’t look as if Jayden had anything to do with the missing gems or his daughter’s murder, but he was almost certainly going to jail for kidnapping, assault and attempted murder. He’d made bad choices.

I was finally off shift so I drove Connor to his fancy gated home on the hill. I parked in his driveway and we both sat quietly. Coming here brought all the memories of our date flooding back – the food, the dancing, the confession. With a little distance, I could admire how he’d dealt with it all; he’d never shown me anything less than calm patience – and maybe an emotion I wasn’t ready to name yet.

I took a deep breath and pulled up my big girl panties. I either had to take the plunge with Connor or run away from the idea of us forever. And I was tired of running.

Whatever he felt for me, it wasn’t conditional. It didn’t come with strings and bribes; he honestly seemed to like me for me. He liked the goofy Bunny that sang too loudly on tabletops, he liked the crazy Bunny that plunged into danger head first, and he even liked the serious Bunny that loved a mystery and was fascinated with supernaturals and the law.

He liked me as I was, not the person he wanted me to be. And I liked him exactly as he was, too: a prince running away from a life of wealth and privilege to strike out on his own. No wonder he understood me so well because we’d done exactly the same thing. We’d both run away to Portlock, straight into each other’s arms.

Tears built up in my eyes and I blinked them away. I finally looked back up at him. ‘I’m so sor—’

I couldn’t finish because his mouth was on mine. He fumbled to unlock my seat belt and hauled me onto his lap. I kissed him back with abandon, revelling in the moment when the zing hit me. It was the strongest one yet and I cried out, but this time I leaned into it, embraced it.

Connor pulled back, his eyes wide. ‘You accepted it!’ he said with genuine surprise. ‘Accepted me.’

‘Is that what I did?’ I smiled. ‘And what about you? Do you accept it?’

He smiled. ‘I did that long ago, right about the time you gyrated around your living room for me. I knew then that you were a keeper.’

I laughed and kissed him lightly. ‘I’m sorry it took me so long to get my head straight. I’ve been an idiot resisting this – resisting you. When I saw you after Donaldson had…’ I shook my head. ‘I thought for a second…’ I blew out a harsh breath. ‘I’m going to finish a sentence now, I promise.’

I cleared my throat and forced myself to say the next words. ‘I realised when I was scared that you were dead that I’ve been so wrapped up in myself and my baggage that I didn’t see what was right in front of me. I see you now, Connor Mackenzie. Can we start over? Will you forgive my idiocy?’

He cupped my face and looked into my eyes. ‘There’s nothing to forgive, my darling doe.’ Then he kissed me again.

I writhed a little in his lap. ‘Let’s take this inside,’ I purred.

‘Are you sure?’ He wasn’t asking about our location.

‘A thousand percent,’ I promised.

His mouth turned up. ‘That is a lot of percent.’ He climbed out of the car, swung me into his arms and carried me effortlessly into his house. I’d been in his arms like this before but last time I’d been bleeding out from a gunshot wound. This time was infinitely more pleasurable.

Connor carried me up to his room. I looked around long enough to register the high ceilings, heavy furniture and a four-poster bed on a raised dais, then I stopped looking around because that was when he threw me into the middle of the bed, making me giggle as I bounced on the silken sheets.

He stood next to me looking every inch the predator I knew him to be. I lowered my eyes and did my best to look like prey.

I did so love to be eaten.