I didn’t want to worry Roman, but I also didn’t want to hide anything from him. We’d grown too close to start keeping secrets now.
But I didn’t want anything to ruin Kingsley’s visit, so I decided to wait until after he left to tell Roman.
Now that the day had arrived, I was scared of how Roman would react and even more frightened that the threat in the note might be real.
I’d tucked the envelope away in my underwear drawer, planning to show Roman after we got back from the airport.
I took a deep breath and opened the drawer, looking at the words again, “I’m watching you, kleines Kätzchen.”
A shiver ran down my spine as I quickly put the letter back in the drawer and went to get Kingsley.
“You ready, kiddo?” I asked, knocking on his door.
“Coming!” Kingsley called back.
“I’ll be at the front door,” I said, heading to the closet to grab a jacket.
“Sage, you won’t believe this,” Kingsley said, rushing down the hall with his phone in his hand and a big smile on his face.
“Rosa emailed me!” Kingsley pointed to his phone.
“And?”
“She doesn’t want me to do the shoot here,” he said, and my stomach dropped.
“No, not at all,” Kingsley laughed, handing me his phone.
I let out a sigh of relief and handed the phone back to Kingsley.
I couldn’t believe I’d judged Rosa so harshly. I should have known better.
“Did you email her back?” I asked, grabbing my purse from the table and opening the door.
“I’m doing it now,” he said, typing quickly on his phone.
“That’s great news,” I said, patting his back as we walked to the car.
Kingsley looked out at the city as we drove, not as wide-eyed as his first day in Chicago, but still with a look of wonder.
He seemed different somehow, changed by the city and by the praise from someone like Rosa.
It was as if his confidence was slowly starting to grow.
I fought back tears and forced a smile, “And you’re changing mine.”
“How?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.
“By letting me be a part of your life and being my brother,” I said, shrugging and getting out of the car.
Before I could get his bags from the back seat, Kingsley pulled me into a tight hug, “I love you, sis.”
“I love you too, little brother,” I said, my voice choked with emotion as we said our goodbyes.
As I watched him walk away, I couldn’t help but feel happy for him. But the threatening note was still in the back of my mind, and I swallowed hard as I got back in the car.
“Okay, time to have that talk,” I said to myself as I drove home to Roman.
Sage was sitting on the bed, trembling, but she didn’t say anything.
Everything about this screamed Ekko, but he was in prison; it couldn’t be him; he couldn’t get to us.
“Someone is using my words to threaten my wife!” I said, throwing the note on the bed and sitting down next to Sage.
“I thought the same thing when I saw it, but I knew you’d never do something like that to me,” she said, rubbing my arm.
“Okay, we need to increase security, find a new penthouse, and you’re getting a bodyguard,” I said, turning to her, my anger boiling over.
“You’ve got some fire in you, huh?” I said, pulling her towards me.
“Maybe you need to be punished for your outburst?”
“I’m not in the mood, Roman.” She rolled her eyes and I kissed her neck.
“Lies,” I groaned, nipping at her throat, “you’re always in the mood.”
Sage moaned and wrapped her arms around me.
“You just like getting me all worked up before we fuck,” she said, her nails digging into my skin.
“Ah,” I gasped as she pushed me onto the bed.
“Yes, that’s it, take all that anger out on me,” I said as she climbed on top of me.
Sage fumbled with my belt and zipper, pulling them down to my knees.
I was already hard when she raised her voice at me.
I reached up to touch her breasts, but she pushed my hands above my head, pinning me to the bed.
“Uh-uh, no touching,” she said, letting go.
“Yes, ma’am,” I grunted as she took off her shirt and pulled her skirt over her hips.
Before I could say anything else, she slid down onto me and rode me like I was a wild horse.
Her nails left red marks on my chest.
“Yes, Sage! I’m coming!” I said, arching my back as she brought me to climax.
Sage rolled off me and lay on the bed, panting and sweating, “I hate that those words scare me now.”
She wrapped an arm around my chest and snuggled against me.
“I know; I’m so sorry. But they only have power over us if we let them.” I kissed her forehead, and she looked up at me.
“What are we supposed to do now?” she asked, her voice laced with worry.
“We’ll do whatever it takes,” I replied, my gaze falling on the worry etched on her face.
“Hey,” I said, gently lifting her chin so our eyes met. “Look at me.”
Her beautiful eyes, Sage’s eyes, met mine and I was filled with a rush of love and affection.
She nodded, her eyes closing as she rested her head against my chest.
As I closed my eyes, my words still echoed in the room. But I wasn’t sure if I even believed them myself.
