Slow Release (Ebony and Ivory Book 1) by Suzanne Steele, Stormy Dawn Weathers

innocent, and ignorant of the monster that lurked within me. The ruthless kid who grew up in the streets was never far beneath the surface. It only took the slightest provocation for that monster to rear its ugly head. I haven’t told her about the letters I’ve been getting—letters that hinted at hurting her to get to me.
    Even Jerome saw the change in me. I knew it was getting bad when he hinted at it by bringing up the boy I almost beat to death my senior year of high school. Those years of boxing in my youth unleashed a vicious fighter in me that I never knew existed before that day. Luckily, Jerome pulled me off him after I beat him unconscious, but it was close. The boy had stabbed me, and the only thing that kept me from killing him with my bare hands was Jerome intervening. I still carry the scar from where he drove a knife between two of my ribs and punctured a lung. The adrenaline surge had been so strong that I fought him even while I struggled to breathe. I ended up in the hospital thanks to that little shit, but he never bothered me again. Come to think of it, nobody else did either.
    I wouldn’t stop this time, not when it came to her. It wasn’t all teasing when I told her I was a man hexed; there was definitely some truth to that statement. I was obsessed with a woman for the first time in my life. From the moment I first saw those captivating blue eyes of hers, looking back at me from a glossy 8x10, it was over. There was no other woman in the world for me. I would have moved heaven and earth to get her here. If anybody thought they were going to take her from me now that she was mine, they were walking a very thin line between life and death.
    I wasn’t the type to sit around and wait for some happily ever after to fall on my lap. I was the type to take what I wanted and keep it safe at all costs. If blood needed to be spilled to keep my woman, then so be it.
    “Are you okay, baby,” she asked, looking up at me with sleepy baby blues.
    “I am now. Go back to sleep, baby girl. I’ve got everything under control.”
    She nestled into the crook of my arm. She was right where she needed to be—safe in my arms.



Chapter Thirteen
    Skye
    I woke up alone at 9:30 am. I never slept that late. I could only attribute it to the late night conversations with Damon. Keeping up with my new boyfriend was, apparently, exhausting me. A tap at the door pulled me from my thoughts.
    “Yes?”
    “It’s Ms. Stratton, dear.”
    “Hold on a second,” I called out and then jumped from the bed to throw on some jeans and a muscle shirt.
    I opened the door, instinctively grabbing for the tray she held.
    “I’ll meet you at the table,” she answered me as she gave me a sweet smile.
    I walked over to the table in the small dining area of my bedroom. This room was more like a five star suite than a master bedroom, and after living in a hut that seven people shared, I was still getting accustomed to it.
    Ms. Stratton set down a china cup on a small plate and then started pouring coffee. It was like it was second nature for her to wait on people and see to their every need. I wondered if she had kids and if she was forced to work a job in order to support them like my mother. I felt my heartstrings pull at the thought. Considering Damon’s giving nature, I highly doubted she had to work two jobs like my mother. She sat across from me and eyed me with tenderness as she spoke.
    “I’ve never seen him like this before, not over any woman.” She patted my hand for emphasis. “I’m not in the habit of getting into my boss’ business when it comes to his lady friends, but after Damon’s parents died, I took him under my wing. You’re a good girl from what I can tell, and I know Damon can be intense. More than once, he’s offended employees, colleagues, and women with his gruff nature, but this is different; you’re different. He cares about you, and he cares deeply. Please don’t write him off if he seems brusque. I