Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 81589 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 408(@200wpm)___ 326(@250wpm)___ 272(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81589 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 408(@200wpm)___ 326(@250wpm)___ 272(@300wpm)
Her red-rimmed eyes stare up at me, and it looks like she can hardly believe what I’m saying.
“If you make me count you down like a toddler, you won’t like the repercussions.” My words must hit their mark because she gives another half-hearted sniffle and then crawls slowly toward me.
“Good girl. Sit here and let me look at your head.” I pat the mattress.
The gash is just past her hairline. “What did you do? You weren’t suffering a head wound when you left my bedroom earlier.”
She exhales, her chest deflating. “I told you. I got into a fight with the table. It was dumb. I hit my arm and blacked out. When I woke up, my forehead was bleeding. I must have cracked it on the edge before I hit the ground.”
Her dark hair sits around her shoulders in waves. It’s slightly tangled from her brushing it out of the way and the lack of grooming items. I didn’t think she’d be able to make a weapon out of a hairbrush, but I also would not put it past her to try.
I gently tuck the mass of brown hair down her back and ignore the stiffening of my cock. Her sweet scent wafts at the movement, and for a moment, it’s all I can smell. Honeysuckle, lavender. Saliva builds in my mouth at the thought of taking her, devouring her from the inside out. She already thinks I’m a monster. Putting her flat on her back while injured wouldn’t help things.
Her big doe eyes peer into mine. She doesn’t shy away from my gaze, nor is she glaring like she is imagining all the ways she could kill me. At this moment, she is soft, broken, and in need of saving. Too bad I’m not the saving type.
I squeeze the cut together to make sure it’s clotting. She winces, but remains still in my hands.
“I think this will be fine. Just be careful from now on. Don’t get any ideas about hurting yourself. I’m not taking you to the hospital.”
She ducks her chin, a flash of pink racing up her neck. “I wasn’t trying to hurt myself, and I’m not usually so clumsy.” A moment of silence stretches on between us. Her pink lips part, and her eyes skit away from mine before meeting them again. It’s obvious she has something she wants to say, so I give her a moment to gather her thoughts. Truthfully, I don’t really care about what she thinks or has to say. She is a means to an end, but I would be lying if I didn’t admit conversing with her is the best type of foreplay.
“I don’t understand your vendetta. I’m not a bad person. I don’t deserve what you’re trying to do to me.”
I rearrange her hair again, even though it doesn’t need it. I want a reason to touch her, and that annoys me.
“And what am I doing to you?” I prompt, taking the time to inspect the breadth of her scalp to ensure she didn’t crack it anywhere else.
She huffs like I’m some sort of petulant child she needs to dumb down her speech for. “You’re taking whatever revenge you have saved up for my father, and my family, out on me. Your brother has already said as much, plus his sheer animosity whenever we’re in each other’s vicinity.”
I gently curl my fingers and scratch my nails across her scalp now.
She lets out a breathy sigh.
“My brother has no love for your family, that’s true.”
“And you?” she asks, almost in a sigh.
Should I tell her I’ve had fantasies where I obliterate her entire family in gruesome detail? Probably not while she’s so soft and pliant in my arms.
I trail my fingers to the back of her neck and dig into the bones right where her neck meets her head. Her breathy sighs shudder out of her now, and my cock aches with each sound she makes. Would she sigh and moan in my arms as I sink into her deeply, owning every inch of her flesh, or would she curse me, her nails digging into my skin, drawing blood? Both sound fucking great to me.
“Your brother—” she begins, trailing off in another moan, dropping her eyes closed with each tightening and release of my hands on her.
“My brother?”
“He’s so, he’s hostile… so evil,” she finishes in a rush, curling forward to rest her forehead on my stomach.
I shake my head, even though she can’t see it. “My brother is bitter. He’s broken and vengeful, but he isn’t evil. There’s a difference, stellina, remember that.”
She opens her eyes and shoves off my hips with her hands, then her eyes fly wide when she realizes what she’s done and where she’s touching me.
I let her go, even though I’d rather spend more time massaging her head to find out what other noises she can make. The ice pack is still frozen, so I get up and retreat into the bathroom to grab a washcloth. I wrap the blue gel packet inside before handing it to her.