“You protect me,” I repeated, still whispering.

“Not enough,” he repeated too, not whispering.

“If I didn’t have you –”

“You got me,” he clipped.

I took a step toward him, stopped and said, “I know. But if I didn’t have you, I don’t know where I’d be.”

“Right back at ‘cha, beautiful.”

I licked my lips then pressed them together before I unpressed them and said quietly, “You asked me not to date Jason again, I didn’t. And he didn’t get anything from me. I swear.”

I watched Creed’s chest expand with his breath then he crossed his arms on it and nodded.

“Can we stop fighting now? I don’t like it,” I whispered.

I saw his face get soft before Creed ordered gently, “Come here, Sylvie.”

I didn’t hesitate. I went there. When I got close, Creed’s arms uncrossed and I walked right into them. It was his turn not to hesitate and they folded right around me.

Against the hair at the top of my head, he promised, “We get through this shit, we get away, I’ll give you a beautiful life, baby. I promise. I f**kin’ swear, a year, two, all this shit will be a memory and you might not have everything you’re used to but what we do have will be beauty.”

I nodded, my cheek sliding against his flannel shirt, my arms wrapping around him tight.

“I’ll give you beauty too,” I promised back.

“You already do,” he whispered and my belly dipped.

“And I’ll give you Kara and Brand,” I went on.

“Lookin’ forward to that, baby.” He was still whispering. One of his arms left me and his hand came to my chin. He lifted my face up to look into his grinning one. “Look forward to makin’ ‘em just as much.”

That made me feel tingly and I grinned back.

I felt my grin fade and I pressed close before I said softly, “I love you a whole lot, Tucker Creed.”

His grin faded, his hand at my chin disappeared so both arms could wrap back around me and he gave me a squeeze before he replied, just as softly, “You’re my world, Sylvie. Always have been. Always will be.”

I pulled a breath in through my nose, gave him a smile that even I could feel was crooked and trembling, I closed my eyes tight and shoved my face into his chest.

Like always when I was there, his arms gave me yet another squeeze and he became what I was to him. Everything. My whole world.

As always.

As it always would be.

Chapter Nineteen

Worth Every Fuckin’ Minute

Present day…

I was showered and getting ready to check out of the hotel room, take off and discover what Phoenix had to offer when a knock came at the hotel door.

I walked to the door, looked out the peephole and stared at the beauty pageant beautiful, tall woman with dark arched brows and gleaming, straight brunette hair standing outside.

A woman who looked a lot like Kara Creed.

Shit.

Fuck.

Shit.

I sucked in breath, tamped down my irritation, arranged my features and pulled open the door.

She looked right into my eyes with her unusual light brown ones. The rest of her would make a less badass woman quail. She was built, all h*ps and tits and a tiny waist. Fashionable clothes, the fit, style and colors suiting her. Perfect skin that didn’t often get touched by the sun or she wore SPF makeup.

She was everything that was not me.

She said not a word. I didn’t either but she knew I met her daughter and I’d be all kinds of stupid not to see the resemblance so I decided not to play dumb.

We checked each other out for a while and finally, I spoke.

“Hey.”

Lame, yes, but what else did you say?

“You’re Sylvie,” she replied.

“And you’re Chelle,” I returned.

She lifted up her chin, exposing a long, slim, elegant neck.

I tipped my head to the side. “How did you find me?”

She didn’t hesitate to answer. “Only one nice hotel close to Tucker. He wouldn’t put you in anything but the best he could find. The best of the best isn’t close and he wouldn’t have you anywhere that wasn’t close.” She shrugged. “So here I am.”

She knew Creed. That wasn’t a surprise, they’d been married. She also knew how he felt about me. That, also, wasn’t a surprise, he’d told her.

But she called him Tucker.

Weird.

“And they gave you my room number?” I asked.

“For two hundred dollars,” she answered.

Seemed she paid Creed loads of attention and not just about me.

Time to move this on.

“Okay, Chelle, what can I do for you?” I asked.

“You can let me in,” she replied.

I shook my head but did it gently and dipped my voice low. “I don’t think –”

She lifted up a slim, elegant hand, slim, elegant gold bangles clanking as she did so and dipped her voice low too. “I’m not here to be ugly, Sylvie. I promise. I just want to talk.”

“About what?” I pressed.

“About things I’d rather not say in the hall.”

Goddamn it!

If I didn’t let her in, I’d seem bitchy. That said, I totally didn’t want to let her in.

I had no choice, really, and that sucked.

I stepped back, opening the door as I did and moved aside.

She walked in and it looked like swanning but I had the feeling that long-legged grace came naturally.

I closed the door, followed her and when I arrived in the bedroom area, I saw she’d stopped and was examining my zipped up, beat up, leather satchel.

I stopped well away and offered, “Do you want me to make some coffee? I’ve got one of those little pots and plenty of java.”

She looked to me and shook her head. “I’m good.”

I nodded and fell silent. She was here, I didn’t invite her. It was up to her to lead.

She regarded me closely. “I’m not what you expected,” she stated quietly.

“Nope,” I agreed, giving her no more.

I actually didn’t know what I expected, Creed was hot, successful and all man, he could get anyone, even someone as beautiful as Chelle. But she was way more polished and stylish than I would expect would turn the eye of a man like Creed.

She pulled in a delicate breath and asked, “He hasn’t spoken of me?”