Interchangeable
Page 5
Hot, sharp pain ran up his through his leg, and he tripped, catching his balance on the wall. “Fuck!”
A woman’s scream overpowered the profanity.
Dahlia’s scream.
Chapter Nine
Dahlia couldn’t remember shaking as bad, other than the time she’d boarded the plane to Brazil with only TCD’s money, a file folder on her mother, and a suitcase to her name.
The crash of the door shook the walls as if they’d bury her alive. Motionless, she sat in the tub shaking as cold water continued to rain on her.
“Holy shit!” Cooper charged into the bathroom first.
“Dahlia!” Todd followed.
How could she blame them for intruding on her?
“Oh, God.” She pulled her knees up and covered her eyes. Fear of deception ran deep. They couldn’t trust her and she’d never given them any reason to try.
“Are you feeling okay?” Todd put his hand on her shoulder.
She opened her eyes. A bit of light crept between her fingers.
“We should have fed her sooner.” Todd rubbed her back. “We should have closed the panels in the wall, maybe she has a chill. She’s practically vibrating.”
“Well, let’s start by getting her out of the freezing water,” Cooper said.
Two men just broke down a door expecting to find her gone, but without missing a beat they chatted about the possibility she may catch a cold. Maybe they had other issues.
The water stopped.
“Come on, this place has awesome robes.” In an attempt to get her out of the tub, Todd put his arm around her.
“I can’t.” She pulled away.
“Dahlia.” Cooper came over and put his hand on her leg. “Are you okay with everything?”
She lowered her hands, blinking away the bright white of the tub flooding her eyes. “You guys broke a door down expecting to find me gone.”
“Hey—”
“No.” She stopped Todd from trying to explain it away. “I don’t blame you. I planned to leave.”
Except for the few drips of water from the showerhead, everything became silent.
“I planned to leave, give you both your lives back, and then realized I couldn’t.” Family shouldn’t leave. She couldn’t leave.
“Was there ever a day where you didn’t think about us?” Todd hooked his fingers under her chin and made her face them.
“I thought about you every day.” She looked between them. “Every day I wanted to go home and be with my family, but I’d destroyed it.”
“Really?” Cooper took her arm and succeeded in getting her out of the tub. Both men took their places next to her, warming her.
“You were never interchangeable. You both have something I need, and you both fill the holes in my heart. A day never passed I didn’t think about you, not want you, or not love you.”
“We’re back.” Todd took her hand.
Cooper did the same. “Yes.”
Then her men nodded at each other and clasped hands.
“TCD.” She looked down at their hands together. Taking Care of Dahlia. They created the perfect triangle.
~ABOUT THE AUTHOR~
Kim Carmichael began writing eight years ago when her need for graphic sex scenes and love of happy endings inspired her to create her own. She has a weakness for bad boys and techno geeks, and married her own computer whiz after he proved he could keep her all her gadgets running. When not writing, she can usually be found slathered in sunscreen trolling Los Angeles and helping top doctors build their practices.
You can visit Kim at:
http://kimcarmichaelnovels.com
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