Babysitting The Amnesiac Lycan King

Chapter 84

Chapter 84

There's a funny thing about lying.

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People think the worst part is being caught, but that's not true. The real hell is watching someone you love do it to your face and pretending you don't see it.

It's the way their eyes flicker-just for a second-the way their breath catches, the way they say your name just a little too carefully. But mostly, it's the way they look at you afterward. It looks as though they're begging you to believe them, even when they know you shouldn't.

That's the look Enoch is giving me now.

"No," he says, fast and sure. "No one could ever look like you."

He doesn't hesitate, but his jaw tenses. A tiny, barely-there movement, but I catch it because I know him. His grip on me tightens, fingers pressing against my waist as if anchoring me in place. Then he kisses me, hard and claiming, though he can shove the words down my throat and make me swallow them whole.

I let him.

Because what else am I supposed to do? Call him a liar to his face? Demand answers I already know he won't give me?

Instead, I smile-fake and easy. I let my fingers skim along his shoulders, curling behind his neck as if nothing's wrong.

But I feel it. The crack.

A jagged little fracture in the illusion I let myself believe.

Across the room, Brooke is watching. Her gaze slides from me to Enoch, then back again, smug and knowing. I know she thinks she just watched a glass shatter and is waiting to see how long I'll pretend the pieces aren't slicing into

me.

I hold her stare for a second longer than I should, then look away.

Because no matter how much my stomach knots, no matter how much I want to grab Enoch and demand the truth, I can't afford to fall apart.

Not now.

So I let him lead. Let the music guide us. Let the warmth of his hands fool me into thinking I can be happy, just for a moment. But my mind is already somewhere else.

By the time we get home, I've made up my mind.

I'm done waiting for the truth to be handed to me. If I want it, I'll have to take it.

**

The second I step inside my apartment, I kick off my heels, toss my bag onto the couch, and scrub a hand down my face. My head is a mess, my heart even worse.

Zoe's voice echoes in my mind. Tread carefully, Taryn. Liam's not the kind of boss you can charm your way around.

Yeah, no shit. Liam Calloway isn't just my boss-he's the kind of man who sees everything. The kind who gives you a task with just enough rope to either prove yourself or hang yourself with. And he gave me one hell of an assignment.

Write about Enoch.

30 Mar

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Chapter 84

His fears. His past. The controversies surrounding him.

Make him look good.

The words feel heavy.

I sink into the chair, open my laptop, and stare at the blank document which I'd

say holds the answer to my entire life.

King. The man who

fingers hover over

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worst. I've seen him when the weight of the world was on his shoulders and when he dropped it all

matter how much I try to push it down, there's something gnawing at the edges of

photograph at

looks just a little too much

and force

This isn't about me.

about my

truth about my parents-about where I came from, what happened to them, why I ended up in Riverstone to begin with-I need

No second-guessing. No hesitating.

I start typing.

chime of my phone barely makes a sound. But to me, it might as

a gunshot.

the screen,

Incoming call: Gamma Abel.

shower is still running. Steam curls from beneath the bathroom door, muffling everything but the steady rush

to answer.

but there's an edge to it. Something

a dry chuckle.

feed into my deflection. "You

Of course he

fine," I mutter. "We're

Then-"That

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Chapter 84

Fast.

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like something stolen. Temporary. A dream so fragile I knew better than to hold onto it

absence-your absence-it's not sitting

my eyes. Of course they are. They've been waiting for Enoch to falter,

Then his voice dips, quiet but firm. "Make

hollow feeling creeps

I don't.

Not really.

I won't

I lift my chin and steady my voice. "I always

on the lie. He just sighs.

The line clicks dead.

my phone onto the

The shower shuts off.

My heart jerks.

just as the bathroom

the room.

towel slung low around his hips, hair damp and curling at the edges. His skin gleams under the golden

flick to my

Then to me.

creeping awareness settles in

can react, he

he settles behind me, his heat pressing

my

back.

arms circle my waist,

a low

shoulder.

his words sink in, velvet and

waiting for me

lower, splaying against my stomach, pulling me

I can't.

11:35 Sun, 30 Mar

Chapter 84