Page 36 of Alfie, Darling

PETROS

The cable ties released with a snap as I slid my knife carefully between Alfie’s skin and the plastic. Hurrying, I uncuffed him before surveying the damage.

‘Fuck, Alfie. I’m sorry.’

‘Pretty sure it wasn’t your fault.’

‘I left you here like a sitting duck, so stupid!’ Guilt clawed at my stomach as I lifted Alfie from the bed and took him to the bathroom. Bottles fell as I rooted through the cabinet beneath the sink. Antiseptic fell out, and I snatched up the bottle. Leaving him there, I fetched the half-used first aid kit from my room and knelt in front of him after thoroughly washing and sterilising my hands.

‘I don’t think she went too deep,’ Alfie said while flinching as I tenderly probed around one of the cuts.

‘She knows what she’s doing. She’s had it done to her often enough.’

Anger made my fingers tremble as I pulled out some gauze and began swabbing it over the bloody cuts. The way his breath hissed above me filled me with a level of ire for Harriet that I’d never felt before. I’d done this a hundred times over the years, picking up her battered body, cleaning it and putting it back together. We’d learned together during her captivity; the art of fixing on my part, and the art of destruction on hers.

‘This will hurt,’ I warned.

‘It’s okay,’ Alfie said, closing his eyes and leaning back on the chair, his warm hands resting on my shoulders. Threading the surgical needle with a suture, I took a deep breath. It never got easier. Working methodically, I started to stitch his wounds back together, matching up the severed tattoos as best I could. They wouldn’t be the neatest scars.

Alfie’s fingers dug into my shoulders, yet he kept his lips pursed closed as I worked.

‘I used to do this to Harriet,’ I said softly, piercing the needle through his skin and pulling the edges back together. ‘Her owner enjoyed knives. Loved to see how many she could take before she passed out. He’d fuck her until she woke up, then start again.’

Alfie remained tight-lipped.

‘I was just a kid, really, when I was forced into his service, and saving Harriet was the one goal that kept me sane throughout the years there. We saw terrible things. She was made to do terrible things. I’ve long wished we could abandon this revenge mission and try to be happy, but I understand why she can’t let it go. I don’t think it will heal her, but not trying will kill her. It consumes her. It’s been her sole goal for more than a decade.’ My fingers were slippery with his blood as I worked, but stopping would make it harder for him to go back and finish.

‘I love her. She’s my only family. But you didn’t deserve this.’

‘Maybe I did,’ Alfie whispered, his fingers skirting my jaw. I looked up at him as he spoke. ‘I’ve spent years jumping from bed to bed. I’ve given a lot of pleasure, but I imagine I’ve inflicted a lot of heartache too. I’ve never been able to let anyone else in. Sex is the only thing I’ve ever been good at.’

I kept working, my mind filled with a million different thoughts. Why did his touch send electricity through me? Why did it make me feel so guilty? Alfie wasn’t safe here, but getting him out would cost me my relationship with Harriet and possibly my life if she found me. Was Alfie using me? Was I using him? Pain gripped my temples, and I forced the barrage of thoughts out of my head. I had to do the one thing that felt right.

As I finished up the last suture, snipping the thread, I let out a breath. ‘I’m going to take you home. Now. We need to go.’

Alfie placed a hand back on my shoulder as I made to rise, his head shaking softly. ‘No. No more running. I need to make it right.’

I closed my eyes for a moment, concern darkening my thoughts. Strong fingers tipped my face upward, and I met his dark eyes.

‘What can I do?’ I asked.

‘Make me feel human again.’ Alfie’s words were soft, but brimming with need.

When he pulled me towards him, I followed his urging, our lips meeting in a desperate clash of desire. He’d grown a short beard in the weeks he’d spent with us, and I ran my fingers through it, forcing the kiss to deepen as I pulled his mouth wider. The heated stroking of his tongue lit a fire deep within me. Kissing Alfie felt different to anyone I’d kissed before, like a homecoming. Like there should be a parade celebrating every single touch.

‘I’m worried I’ll hurt you,’ I whispered, breaking the kiss and leaning our foreheads together. The way he panted against my mouth had my dick thickening against my trousers.

‘I don’t care.’

Wrapping him in my arms, I carried him carefully back to the bed, using one hand to push the bloodied comforter onto the floor before laying him down. My pulse quickened as I lay down next to him, feeling as nervous as I did my first time.

‘I don’t know how to do this... with a man,’ I admitted.

‘It’s not very different. Just do what feels good.’

Leaning up on one elbow, I kissed Alfie again, the overwhelming desire welling up and spilling out to coat each of our desperate kisses. Careful not to touch his wounds, I let my hand trace his body, marvelling at how different each sharply toned ridge felt. When he gasped as I grazed his hips, it set a raging fire within me. What sort of magic did this tattooed hellion possess to bewitch me so thoroughly? His eyes hooded when my fingers caressed his already pulsating dick. I’d felt my own thousands of times, yet his felt completely different. Marvelling at the metal studs that graced the length of his cock, I watched his face as I circled each one.

God, he was beautiful. Even thin from a lack of proper food, and pale from too much time underground, he held an enigmatic charm that was impossible to deny. He was like a terrific magnet, pulling those near him utterly beneath his spell.

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