Page 84 of Ravaged By the Dark (The Righteous 2)
Renee loved the windows down. Her hair was blowing in the wind as she and Arek drove along the countryside. It had been a month since Tyson was killed, and she’d never felt so light and free. The pain of what she saw, her mother’s death, and the trauma he caused her would take time to get over, but Arek had been a rock.
She looked over at the overly sexy man beside her and had no idea how she managed to get so lucky. How this epitome of seduction decided to be hers, she would never understand. But she wasn’t going to complain. His job…well, she was getting used to the idea. How could she be so narrow-minded as to think that it was okay for him to kill Tyson and get her out of that horrible situation, but it was wrong for him to do that for others.
She sighed, taking in a deep breath of the warm air. Closing her eyes and letting the sun bathe her face, she smiled.
“You okay over there,” Arek asked.
His eyes said he was worried, and she had to laugh. It was his go-to whenever she did the slightest thing out of character.
“I’m fine. Actually, I’m more than fine and getting better every day.” He smiled at that and gave her their entwined fingers a gentle squeeze. “So, how do you think Francine and Sally are going to get on?”
“Well, they are either going to get along great or burn the house down trying to outdo one another.”
Renee snickered at the image of the two older women wanting to fuss over everything and every one, each with their own brand of how things should be done.
“Alright, mystery man, where the heck are we going? We are in the middle of nowhere, but I have to admit this area is stunning.” She admired the large homes that could even make Trev and Arek’s home look small. All of them with their perfectly manicured lawns and gardens, blooming with exotic flowers. She hadn’t even seen one shit car in the last half hour.
When Arek didn’t answer, she looked over at him, and her heart sped up.
“Arek? What don’t you want to tell me? I can see you are keeping something back.”
He rubbed the back of his neck before cracking it, and she was becoming more anxious by the second.
“I kinda did something that you may hate me for, but I thought that it needed to be done, so we’re doing it.”
“Well, that answer was deceptively cryptic and told me nothing.”
Arek flicked on the signal of the Porsche, and they slowed to pull into a long driveway. She couldn’t even see the house other than the roof because it was so far up the lane. Tall, black gates stood in the way, and Arek pulled over to the little box and pushed a button. She was surprised when the gates silently opened without anyone asking who the heck they were.
“Arek, where are we,” she asked as they drove up the lane, the massive home getting larger with every spin of the tire.
A large fountain stood in the middle of the large roundabout with an assortment of highly expensive cars parked in designated spots. White pillars rose out of the ground like sentinels, and she stared up at them in awe as they came to a halt.
Arek turned off the car and finally stared at her.
“Renee, I…I ah, oh shit.”
“What the hell, you are scaring me?” She watched him wide-eyed, trying to figure out what all this was about when a voice reached her ears, and she froze.
“Pumpkin, is that really you?”
Renee’s eyes grew wide, her heart that had stopped now pounded like a jackhammer in her chest.
“You didn’t?”
“I did,” Arek said.
Renee slowly turned and stared out the window at the man that had given her life. He stood much as she remembered him. Handsome with his stunning beautiful eyes shining with happiness—only the slight wrinkles at his eyes and the salt and pepper of his hair told her that time had passed. Her hand shook as she reached for the door handle and pushed the door open.
As she rose from the car, she could see an older couple standing holding one another on the steps of the house while a pretty brunette stood beside them with three teenagers.
“Dad?”
“Oh my god, it is you!” Her dad rushed to her, and before she knew what was happening, he wrapped her in his arms and hugged her hard. Her body was tense, but his scent was the same, and his hugs were the same. Tears streamed from her eyes as she returned the gesture.
“Pumpkin, I’ve missed you so much. Look at you. You are stunning. How’s your brother did he come to?”
“No, Sir, it’s just Renee and myself. I’m Arek. I’m the one that contacted you,” Arek said as he came to stand by her side. Her dad didn’t let go of her hand but vigorously shook Arek’s outstretched palm.
