“I’ll be nice this me.

” I open my mouth, but he cuts me off with a deep growl of

warning, “But only if you are too, Adeline.” The click of my teeth snapping
together is audible, pulling another grunt of amusement from him. My pride takes a
hit, and I want to knee him in
the balls for it, but I couldn’t li my leg an inch if I tried. “What are you going
to do?” I choke out, the stuer of my words in sync with the beat of my heart. His
hot breath fans across my cheek, and I feel the glide of his lips alongside my jaw.
I swallow, but I nearly choke from how dry my throat has become. Those lips descend
to the column of my neck, skiering along unl he pauses on the spot right below my
ear. “I’m going to claim you,” he says, right before his teeth clamp down. My back
arches involuntarily, repulsion and pleasure marrying in my nerves, sending misfires
to my brain. All coherent thoughts escape from my mind as a result, leaving me with
nothing but basic insnct. He groans, his teeth piercing as his tongue laps at my
flesh. My mouth opens, a silent scream suconed away just as his mouth does the same,
drawing in deep like he’s drinking the essence from my body. And then he’s pulling
back, dragging his teeth along my skin as he lets go, leaving the spot smarng with
pain. My hands press into his chest for stability or to push him away, I am not
sure. Though my queson is quickly answered when insnct coerces my hands to curl,
gripping his hoodie ght and anchoring myself to him as if he’s my lifeline. When
really, he’s the one who’s killing me. Severe shivers wrack my body when he licks a
wet trail down to the juncture of my neck. He pauses, and it feels like my body is
hanging over a pointed knife. I hold my breath, the ancipaon raling my bones. And
then he’s bing down again, pulling an animalisc sound from the depths of my chest.
He does this, over and over, leaving a trail of bruises down my neck and across my
shoulder. I’m breathless by the me he pulls away. “Good girl,” he breathes, his own
voice airy. Somehow, that makes me feel worse. I want him to hate it as much as I
should’ve. I can’t explain why I do what I do next. I’ll ask God later. But in that
moment, I’m so overcome with a tsunami of emoons that I reach up and bite his
cheek. Hard. Blood spurts into my mouth, but I don’t care, I just bite harder.
Maybe I want to hurt him back. Give him a taste of his own medicine. Make him feel
whatever I feel.
Regardless of the reason, he doesn’t take kindly to it. His hand wraps around my
throat, pushing me back while he rips his face away. My head thumps against the
wall, a dull throb radiang from the spot. He’s squeezing ghtly, but I don’t care. I
feel jusfied. If he kills me here and now, at least I can say I le one last mark on
him. He growls low, a sound of frustraon and something else that I can’t put a name
to. I stare up at him, blood coang my tongue and trailing down my chin. It’s a
small amount. I didn’t get the chance to rip his face to shreds like I wanted. But
the small dots of blood on his face leave me feeling invigorated all the same. “I’m
beginning to think you like to be punished, which means I’m just going to have to
do beer.” Before I can react, he’s liing me up and tossing me over his shoulder
like a sack of potatoes. “Fucker!” I snap, banging my fists against his back. I am
not a potato. A sharp slap to my ass is his only response. He carries me down the
steps, takes a le turn into the hallway and down towards the sunroom. The enre me I
fight, kicking and punching, but he acts like a buerfly is aacking him. As if he
hears my frustraons, he says, “Baby, the wind can do more damage than what you’re
doing.” “Want to see my teeth again, asshole? I’ll keep making your face uglier.”
“Keep telling yourself that, but we both know my scars make you wet,” he retorts,
amusement coloring his words. I growl, frustrated by how fucking unruffled he is. And
because he’s not enrely wrong. No, dumbass, he is wrong. More curses flood out of my
mouth, but they’re cut short when he drags my body down his front unl my legs are
wrapped around his waist, and he’s cradling me to his chest. Oh, fuck this. I li my
hands to scratch his face, maybe do a lile eye-gouging, but instead, I just squeal.
He swoops me backward, my stomach booming out as he sets me on the ground, flat on
my back. He kneels before me, his arms on either side of my head as he braces
himself over me.
Above him, the stars are twinkling bright, and the nearly full moon is casng a so
white glow down in the room. It’s almost dooming that the sky happens to be
completely clear of clouds tonight. Overcast skies constantly plague Seale. I
swallow, tears pricking my eyes. “Such a gentleman, leng me look at the stars as
you murder me,” I mouth off, forcing the words through my ghtened throat. I really
need to shut the fuck up. But I can’t seem to stop myself. Apparently, when I’m in
a life-threatening situaon, all I can manage to do is make it worse. Some might
call it fearlessness, but I just call it stupidity. He supports himself on one hand
as the other reaches behind him. I open my mouth, gearing up for more insults, when
his arm reappears, a gun in his hand. Another audible click of my teeth later, and
I’m back to being choked silent with fear. “You let a man touch you in here. Make
you come,” he states, his tone bled dry of emoon. “Normally, I’d replace his fingers
with my own, but I think you need something else to teach you a lesson.” “Okay, I’m
sorry,” I rush out, my eyes widening as he points the gun to my chest. “I-I’m
really, rea—” “Shh,” he hushes. “You’re not sorry yet, lile mouse. But you will
be.”