Catching Summer (Second Chances, #6)

The last thing I needed to do was get in a car with him again. There was no telling where he’d take me. Lying back down, I forced a smile and said, “Thanks. No ice, please.”

As soon as he disappeared downstairs, I rushed out of bed and searched my room. My phone was nowhere to be found, and the house phone had been removed. What the fuck? I could hear him in the kitchen so I tiptoed down the stairs as quietly as I could. Peeking around the corner, I spied Philip fixing me a glass of iced tea. Everything looked normal until he reached into his pocket and pulled out a syringe filled with clear liquid. He expelled some into my tea and then got out another syringe and stuck that one in his arm, hissing as the contents were pushed into his veins. Holy fuck.

He was blocking the kitchen door, which meant I couldn’t escape through there. I didn’t have the keys to get out the front one. Goddammit, what was I going to do? My purse was nowhere to be seen and neither were my keys. Tiptoeing back up the stairs, I searched as fast as I could for anything I could use as a weapon. There was nothing except one of Austin’s guns locked in my safe, but I couldn’t remember the combination without the cheat sheet. I rushed to my room and did the only thing I could think of. Philip’s footsteps pounded against the steps and my heart raced. I jumped into bed and made sure my wastebasket was hidden beside my nightstand before closing my eyes, hoping like hell I could calm my breathing. I knew how this was going to work. I was afraid that if he suspected I wanted to flee, he’d use force.

Philip smiled as he entered my room with my glass of tea in his hands. I was curious to know what he’d put into it, but I sure as hell wasn’t going to drink it and find out. “Here you go,” he said, handing me the cold glass. He sat down on my bed as if it were normal and watched me with wolfish eyes. “Drink up. You’re dehydrated.”

Bringing the glass to my lips, I tilted it back and pretended to drink. There was no way I could do that without him getting suspicious when the tea never got any lower. Across the room, I spotted my favorite blanket draped over my loveseat. Shivering, I nodded toward it. “Do you mind getting me that? I’m freezing.”

He looked back at it and got up. As soon as his back was turned, I dumped the tea in the wastebasket that I’d set beside the bed. Philip grabbed the blanket and right when he turned around, I held the glass up and moaned, pretending that I’d drunk the entire glass. “Do you want more?” he asked, covering me with the blanket.

“I’m good, thanks.”

Taking the glass from me, he rested it on my nightstand and smiled. “That should take the edge off. It won’t be long now.”

I laid my head down. “For what?”

He leaned over me and traced his finger over my arm. “Don’t worry, my love. I’ll take good care of you tonight. Just close your eyes. I know you want to.” Then it all hit me. Whatever he’d put in my tea was probably what he’d slipped into my wine at the restaurant when I left my office. Sly bastard.

“I don’t want to close my eyes,” I said, letting my eyelids drop.

“You don’t have a choice.” Closing my eyes, I couldn’t stop my mind from running ninety miles an hour. What the hell was I going to do? There was no way I could pretend to be asleep and let him do things to me. I’d have to fight my way out. His fingers caressed my cheek and it took all I had to lie there motionless. “I’ve waited a long time for you, Summer. After tonight, you’ll never be able to get rid of me.”

His weight left the bed and I almost breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that he was going to leave, but I was wrong. The sound of his jeans thumping to the floor made my stomach clench. Then when his weight came back onto the bed, I wanted to scream. He traced my lips and cupped my cheek with his fingers. “You are so beautiful,” he murmured. His breath fanned across my lips, and I knew he was getting closer. Holding me in place with his hands on my face, he kissed me gently and then sucked on my bottom lip, moaning. He pressed his arousal into my leg and rubbed it against me.

“Once you’re pregnant with my child and Evan’s out of the way, we’ll finally be a family. You’ll see that I’m what you’ve needed all along.” Planting a hand on my thigh, he slid it up under my dress and traced the outline of my underwear. With both hands, he pulled them down my legs and settled his body between them. The closer he got, the more scared I became. He started to lift my dress, but a banging on the door stopped him.

Chuckling darkly, he lowered my dress and kissed me. “Just in time. It’s a shame you won’t be able to say goodbye.” My eyes started to burn, and luckily he got off the bed before the tears fell down the sides of my face. I opened them slightly and watched him put on his clothes. He pulled out a syringe and smiled before putting it back in his pocket. Whatever was in it couldn’t be anything good.





Chapter 33


Evan

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