His trips to the cemetery had ceased. Seating Rose into the car, Peter glanced back at his house. He imagined it full with the sound of laughter.
All in good time.
Smiling, he climbed into the driver’s side and headed toward the dinner. He was so looking forward to the dessert.
Epilogue
Edward was so angry, and he didn’t have the first clue how to make the anger stop. Over the last few weeks he’d gotten to know the young waitress, Isabel Benson. Not once had he anticipated what he’d found out about her. Staring down at her, he felt ready to murder someone. She hadn’t locked the door properly to the staff changing rooms, and he’d barged in to see her skirt around her waist with a blunt knife in her hand. What the fuck was she doing? Well, he knew what she was doing, but why?
“Please, don’t tell anyone,” she said.
Isabel was working the late shift at the diner. Closing his eyes, Edward felt sick to his stomach. Never in all his life had seen something so desperate. He couldn’t believe he’d not noticed the signs blaring at him.
“Why?” he asked, hurting for the young girl.
Tears filled her eyes as she looked at him.
“It helps to numb everything else. I can’t handle it anymore. Sophie is finishing high school in a few months, and she’s going to be good enough to get into a good college. I can’t afford it, and I’ve got to be the one to tell her. No one should have seen this. How did you get in?”
“You didn’t lock the door properly. What would have happened if someone else found you?” he asked, getting angrier with every passing second.
“I usually lock the door. I can’t believe I was so stupid.”
She rubbed at the section of her thighs that weren’t cut. Tears dropped from her eyes, and he couldn’t hate her. He wanted to hate her, but he couldn’t. He stared down at her thigh. Making a quick decision, he locked the door to the staff changing quarters. Grabbing a fresh cloth from the pile near the sink, he dampened it with cold water and came toward her.
Edward knew he should walk away from her. Isabel was dangerous if not handled carefully, but he was addicted to her. He came to the diner for a glimpse of her sweet smile and lush curves. She had too many issues. Not tiny issues but big issues that forced her to cut herself.
The problem was, she had no one. Everyone who was supposed to love her had walked out leaving her alone. He couldn’t be like them. He wouldn’t be like them. The only person she had was Sophie, her younger sister. Sophie could not deal with this. Edward didn’t know if he could deal with the kind of care Isabel needed, but he knew he’d care for her. There was no way he could leave her alone.
Kneeling in front of her, he noticed the discoloured white panties. They’d clearly been washed one too many times.
Pressing the damp cloth to the cut at the top of her upper thigh, Edward glared at her.
“You’ve never had anyone take care of you, have you?” he asked.
“I don’t need taking care of.” Her lips wobbled.
He lifted up the blunt knife he’d taken from her grip seconds before. “Do you call this taking fucking care of yourself?”
Shaking his head, Edward stared down at the other scabbed over cuts. How long had she been harming herself?
Cut and run, she doesn’t need you.
If this wasn’t a cry for help, Edward didn’t know what was.
“Please, don’t tell anyone,” she said. Her lips wobbled, and tears spilled out of her eyes.
Isabel Benson needed someone to be in charge. She needed an expert Dom to help her. He’d played with so many subs that he didn’t have a clue how to look after a sub full-time. The woman in front of him needed him.
He couldn’t walk away. From their few brief talks, Edward was already hooked and in too deep with this woman.
“I’m not telling, Isabel.”
She let out a sigh of relief.
Grabbing her face, harshly, Edward forced her to look at him. “Don’t think this is the fucking end of it, love. You’ve just earned yourself a keeper and a Dom.”
“What?” she asked.
“You’ve got that right, missy. You’re not going to be hurting yourself anymore. That stops tonight.”
“You can’t do this.”
“Do you have any idea the kind of danger you’re in? These could get infected, or worse you could slip and nick a major artery.” Edward shook his head. “I’m not letting that happen. You’re going to answer to me as your Master, Isabel. I’ll be taking care of you from this day forward,” he said.
“No, you can’t do that.” She tried to pull away from him.
“If you think of fighting me on this I’ll make sure the right people know. Do you know what happens then?” he asked, looking her in the eye.