Stone In Love

Chapter 12

I stopped circling and scooped up my nearly empty water bottle, downing the rest. Vincent said nothing as I walked to the kitchen and set the bottle on the counter. When I looked at him, he was watching me expectantly, like he wanted an encore.

"I hope that's enough for you to go on, Vincent. It's more information than I've given anyone apart from my best friend and my therapist. I'm still trying to figure out why you and your brothers are involved with this stalker. I assume Colin knows about him too?"

"Yes." Vincent offered his blunt reply as he stood and strode deliberately toward me. His severe expression had me taking a tentative step back, but he didn't seem to notice my apprehension as he grabbed my shoulders and pulled me into an embrace. It was totally unexpected but completely wonderful. "You're very brave, Reese," he said against my head. "It kills me that you have been alone all these years."

I tore my face away from his delicious-smelling shirt to gaze up at him, meeting those intense gray orbs. "I haven't been alone. I've had my parents. And I do have friends who care about me, believe it or not."

"I wasn't insinuating you didn't have support, but they don't know the truth."

"And you do?" I wiggled away from him, despite the strong desire to remain cocooned inside his arms. "You know nothing about me, Vincent."

"I know more than you think."

Oh, snap.

"Really? Do you work for the FBI? Or, is it child protective services? Please, elaborate."

His jaw went rigid, as if he was preparing to get hit. This didn't surprise me. My eyes were probably giving off that lethal vibe Colin mentioned. "I don't work for the government. My information comes from another source, but I'm afraid I can't divulge that information. Not yet."

I breathed out an exasperated sigh, feeling the early signs of a meltdown as I clenched and unclenched my hands. I had given him everything and he'd given me nothing, which had me revisiting the mob theory. "This man your brother fought. Was he working alone, or are there others tracking me?"

"There are others, I'm afraid."

"Great. Just great. So, I'm supposed to believe you're the good guys? Were you sent by someone to keep an eye on me? You need to start giving me some answers, because you all sound like stalkers."

Apart from his heavy breathing, Vincent kept quiet. It didn't even seem like he was trying to come up with a lie, which gave my anger a free pass.

"I think you should go."

Vincent's lips pinched and his eyebrows bunched, making him look like his feelings had been hurt, although that seemed unlikely. "Please, don't send me away. I care about you, whether you believe it or not."

I attempted to keep my hands at my sides. For some reason, they wanted to reach for his silky hair. Maybe to caress it, or maybe to yank it out by the roots. "I guess I just don't understand you. Surely, someone of your importance doesn't have time to chase a woman who is clearly not right for him, or hunt down mysterious people tracking her. There's got to be more to it. So, if you're not going to share it with me then I don't think we have anything else to say to each other."

A long moment of silence followed, in which I stared at his mouth, waiting for it to form words or kiss me. I would have taken take either, which only proved I was an ass.

"I might be able to find your birth parents."

A choke that sounded like a sob erupted from my throat, and I pressed my hands to my chest as it spasmed painfully. "How do you know...? Is that why...?"