Total pages in book: 225
Estimated words: 218500 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1093(@200wpm)___ 874(@250wpm)___ 728(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 218500 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1093(@200wpm)___ 874(@250wpm)___ 728(@300wpm)
She makes a horrible choking sound and starts to wail in my arms.
I hold her tighter, pressing kisses to her forehead, her soaking wet cheeks, her nose, her beautifully soft lips.
She sobs with terrible, wet choking sounds. And I keep kissing her.
I want them to stop, but I don’t want that ugliness inside her, making her feel like this. So, I’ll absorb it and work on making things better.
“Chloe?” I whisper.
She doesn’t answer.
“I’m gonna show you why this was the best thing in the world for you,” I vow. “I know you’re mad at me. I know you’re sad. I have to tell you something. I’ve never given a shit how anybody feels about anything. Not for as long as I let myself remember. Until you. I give a shit. I care. I’ve always gotten fixated on goals but never something like this. Never a woman. I’m gonna make it better. Gonna make you so deliriously happy, you’ll realize this is right. I promise.” I kiss her again on the mouth.
She’s not pulling away. She’s not snuggling in. She’s just crying in my arms.
She feels so fucking right, though.
I’m lost in thought a few minutes later, still holding her, when she shudders hard.
“H-he…” she stops and sniffles. “H-he…” She stops again. I caress her hair and wait.
She sniffles again and looks into my eyes. The pain in hers… it’s doing something to me.
“He didn’t even think about fighting for me. I know he can’t. His legs… he… he’s afraid of you. But… he didn’t even think about trying. And I don’t think he would have even if this were eight months ago.”
She’s getting it.
And damn. I’m more fascinated by her than ever. I’m a lucky man to have found her. But things are twisting in me, peeling away, sensations rising. I can’t take time to decode them, though. I need her to know she has me.
“I know, Chloe,” I say, dashing tears away with my thumbs on her cheeks. “I promise you, baby, I’m gonna bust my ass to make you realize that me doing this is right. You now belong to a man who is afraid of nothing and no one. You’re mine now. I might have fought dirty to get you where you are right now, but that should give you a clue about who I am. I’m a man who will fight through smoke, gunfire, even hellfire for you. I’ll fight for you even if it’s you I have to fight against.”
“Why?” she asks in a small, broken voice. “I don’t understand why.”
“I don’t know how to answer that. Because I don’t understand it, either. You’re the goal. Making all your dreams come true. Giving you everything I felt you yearned for that night when I first overheard you and Alannah. It woke something up in me. You’re what I want.”
She says nothing.
After a few minutes of holding her, stroking her hair, I say, “Have you ever been so thirsty when you get a drink to your lips that you can’t seem to swallow it down fast enough to quench your thirst?”
She doesn’t respond so I keep going.
“You have to muster control, so you don't drink so fast you choke on it. That's me with you. And I'm not sure how much control I have left when it comes to you. Lost control a little tonight when he wanted you to fuck him.”
“A little bit?” she queries sarcastically.
I smirk and shrug. “I’m beyond parched for you, Chloe. So fucking tempted to give in to the urge, to choke to death if I need to because it means I get to take my fill. Consume you.”
She looks up at me, fear in her eyes.
“I’m so happy you’re here,” I tell her.
She stays where she is, but her body is tense. I’m frightening her. I get it. In one sentence promising happiness and the next saying I want to consume her.
“I had to stop him tonight. I couldn’t let him have you. Couldn’t let you fuck him tonight. I can’t let anyone put their hands on you that way again. You’re mine, Chloe. The notion of anyone else touching you the way I wanna touch you… no.”
She buries her face under my chin. It feels like she’s snuggling in, but I know she’s actually hiding.
After a few minutes, she pulls away from me and I know she’s been wanting to do it for a while but is worried about how I’ll react. I let go of her.
“I’m not gonna hurt you,” I tell her.
“But you’re doing that.”
“No, I’m not. He’s the one that hurt you. I’m gonna fix it. I won’t ever hurt you.”
“Are you sure about that?” she asks.
Good question.
I answer honestly. “Maybe not a hundred per cent sure. I’m not feeling exactly stable where you’re concerned. Do us both a favor and let me make you happy.”