Page 37 of Lethal Truths

A groan slips from me of its own volition as I press forward and kiss him back. I open my lips to him, tentatively, unsure of what’s happening or how I’m going to keep myself from ruining this with him again.

“Griffin,” I murmur against his lips, not even sure what the hell I’m wanting to say.

As if my voice shattered our bubble, Griffin rips himself away from me, stumbling backward like he can’t get space between us quick enough. He blinks at me, breathing heavily.

I’m sorry, he quickly signs, dropping his gaze to the floor as his cheeks turn pink.

“Don’t be,” I rasp, taking a step forward. “Griff, don’t apologize. You have no idea— I…“ I shake my head, unable to sort through my haywire thoughts to find the right words.

He furrows his brows, eyes dropping to my lips. Raking his teeth over his bottom lip, he closes the distance between us and slams his mouth to mine again. This time, the kiss is less brutal and frenzied, slower and deeper, like he’s tasting me properly.

To finally have his lips on mine after so long of believing he regretted our one night together is almost enough to have me coming in my jeans. I put one hand on his chest, right over his thrashing heart, and wind the other through his hair, pulling enough to hurt. Griffin responds by biting my lip as he backs me into the wall once more and presses into me. Our bodies meld together, and when he rolls his hips against me, his dick teasing mine in the most enchanting way, I nearly fall to the floor on my knees.

I can see it all now, the delicious dynamics that’ll unfold. Prudence will be my pet, my plaything that I command and please and punish however I want. But Griffin, despite his soft, giant heart, he’ll be commanding me, just like he did a year ago. The three of us would make such a wonderful mess of things. And when Griffin and I have finished with Prudence, Creed will happily peel her tired and sated body from us and destroy her all over again in the privacy of his room. He’ll taunt us with her cries and moans, but he won’t let us join; he’s always been selfish like that.

And yet, somehow… I know it would all work. I know it would be perfect and explosive and life changing. And because of the small flame of hope and new chances that spring to life in my chest as I think it all over, I know that I need to find Prudence. Tonight. Right now.

She’ll undoubtedly be broken. She’ll detest me every step of the way, as she seems to enjoy doing. But I’ll build her back up, forcefully if I need to, just so she can see how wonderfully wicked the four of us could be together. Griffin is worried about her forgiveness, but I’m not.

I’ve never been gentle with her, and that won’t change now that I’ve decided to keep her from The Celestials. I’ll demand her forgiveness. I’ll wring it from her as I fuck her senseless, until she has no choice but to agree to our terms and accept our affections. No matter how twisted or sometimes painful they may be.

And oh god, I truly can’t wait.

Pushing back from Griffin’s lips, even as my cock disagrees, I pull his forehead to mine and catch my breath. His eyes are closed, the smallest dip between his brows like he’s worried I’m about to lash him for kissing me. Instead, I smooth my thumb over his chest in random patterns, smiling when he finally blinks open those icy blues.

“I’m going to find her, Griffin. I won’t come back until I do. And then we’ll chip away at the walls she’s built until she has no choice but to forgive us,” I breathe.

Griffin wants to argue — I can see it in his eyes — but more than that, he wants Prudence. I know that. And damn it all to hell, so do I. I’m admitting it now, even if it’s fucked up. I did spend months trying to ruin her, after all. But there’s always been a toxic kind of desire there, right under the surface. And once I have her back, I’m going to allow myself to explore it.

25

Prudence

Jude, Bruce, and another man I haven’t had the displeasure of meeting yet come into my room the second I manage to find some semblance of a fitful sleep. I hadn’t wanted to close my eyes and leave myself even more vulnerable, but there’s only so much a body can take before it shuts right the hell down. Seems like I’ve hit my limit.

I don’t know if they were somehow watching me, or if this is terribly bad timing. Either way, I’m sure my eyes hadn’t been closed for more than a handful of minutes before the clanking of the door being opened snaps me awake once more and I’m staring at the trio in horror.

Bruce leads the other two inside, his face impassive while he nears me. Jude’s green gaze is still flicking over my upper half like he’s itching to finish the frigid washing he started. The third man, lanky and blonde, eyes me like a meal in the worst possible way.

My hackles go up in an instant. “What’s going on?” I ask, looking from one man to the next.

When Bruce walks up to me, invading my space and flooding my nose with his overwhelmingly heavy use of cologne, I almost vomit. He nods to Jude, who promptly comes over and grabs my waist, lifting me enough to take the pressure off my wrists. Not that I can feel them any longer. Then Bruce reaches up and starts to untie me, and my heart kicks into overdrive.

The second I’m unbound, I thrash wildly, kicking out with my feet and taking Jude by surprise. His grip around my waist falters and Bruce’s shock renders him useless. I have a split second of an opportunity and I won’t waste it. My feet hit the ground, and I sprint around the men and toward the door. I’m so close, I can almost taste my freedom and my eyes blur with relieved, manically happy tears.

I don’t make it, though.

The third guy, whose name I don’t know, catches up to me easily. He tackles me to the floor, ignoring my yelp of pain when my chin smacks the concrete. Blood blooms across my tongue, the metallic burst overwhelming me, and I know I’ve bitten it on impact.

“Not so fast, pretty,” the man holding me down whispers. “Your fate is already sealed.” He stands, dragging me up with him with a hand wrapped in my hair.

“What are you going to do to me? Is it a full moon? Tell me, please!” I stammer, tripping over my feet as the blonde yanks me around.

Dutifully ignoring my frantic questions and irate screams, the men work together to manhandle me from the room. They lead me down a long, barren hallway — that looks like it was carved right through the ground — and into a creepy, circular room with a fucking altar in the center. There’s a hole in the ceiling right above it and I get the sickening sense that moonlight will stream right through there and illuminate whoever is lying below.

They maneuver me onto the cold concrete slab, strap my wrists to thick leather cuffs, and then leave me without a word. Oh lucky me. I went from one prison to another in minutes.

Time slips by while I bounce between panic and acceptance. I had already known I was going to die here, right? So why am I choking on that cloying fact now, wishing for a goddamn miracle that’s never going to happen?

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