“Thank you for letting me, Sam,” I whispered back, feeling the first tremors of her muscles flutter around me.
I knew she would feel like she would never be free of him. She would tell me again and again how she felt safe with the temporary witness protection the sheriff’s office offered, but I knew deep inside, she still feared he would show up behind her one day, and try to finish the job he started. She would always be looking over her shoulder.
If the case went federal, and the U.S. Marshalls got involved, she would be uprooted and hidden away from me forever, and I couldn’t chance it. That was why I had gone straight to George and Bobby with what I knew. We needed to build a case while she was here, a case that was tight, so he could go to prison for a long time. I hated it. I hated that he was still breathing, and that he had somehow hurt her. I hoped that one day she would trust and love me enough to tell me everything.
There were still two brands of his name on her body. I planned on taking her to get tattoos over them, and I knew she would agree… I hated thinking his name was permanently etched onto her. It made me want to end his life every time I saw her naked.
But, could I actually take another’s life?
How?
What would I become after?
Did it matter? I needed to protect what was mine.
And if he found her again…
I would end his life, because I knew there was so much more to the story than she was telling me, so much more he had done to her. And I would kill him for it. It was only a matter of time; only a matter of time until my Hyde came out and the part of me that was Thomas would come out and play. Doctor David Stanton has until then to breathe, and until then, she was mine, every brutally beautiful inch of her.
Epilogue-The Love Notes
Letters written between Kade and Samantha in their two months apart.
Brutally Beautiful Playlist
Whiskey In The Jar – Metallica
Leaving Earth – Clint Mansell (Mass Effect 3)
Simple Man – Shinedown
Paint It Black – The Rolling Stones
Raise Your Glass – Pink
Radioactive – Imagine Dragons
Acknowledgements
To my writing bestie Carol Ann Albright Eastman, thank you SO FUCKING MUCH for all the pep chats and awesome advice you’ve given me. Especially all the lessons on the correct way to write crap. May we meet one day for real, although I am sure we’d definitely get arrested. But, no worries, I happen to know a guy…
Thank you to all the talented writers that have touched my life in some way: Angelisa Stone, Deena Bright, and S. L. Jennings, you girls rock. And a huge thank you to Triple M Book Club – a place to honestly share all the angst I have for the books I read, and the once in a while dirty talk, minus the elephant penis picture. I’m still scarred from it.
The biggest thank you goes to my family. To my mother Rita who has been my loudest cheerleader since the day I was born. You made me feel like I could do anything in this world, and then let me. Thank you for letting me - be me.
To my husband, Danny, the one I could keep up all night with my ideas and characters, thank you for all the support and encouragement.
To my daughters, Hailey Grace and Emily Marie, thank you for all your crazy, and for all your laughter and silliness. I love you both so very much.
I could name a hundred different people who I want to thank, but this last acknowledgement is strictly for YOU, readers. Thank you. Thank you for believing in me and reading my stories. Thank you for contacting me, friending me, and supporting me. I love you all!