Page 7 of Mercy for Reaper

I force myself to repeat those words over and over in my head, but they hold little power in the presence of someone like Holly. With her around, the words are useless.

I could tell that my actions and my confession were overwhelming Holly, so I took mercy on her and let her go. Not to mention that being so close to me in my current state was probably disgusting. After all, I’d arrived at her house wounded and bloody, and I’ve been mostly passed out since then with only minimal clean up.

After releasing my hold on her so she could stand, I’d convinced Holly to let me get out of bed for a shower. She was nervous about standing, but I argued that I needed to wash the blood out of my hair so she could properly assess my head wound. It took some careful maneuvering, and I was weaker than I would have liked, but she managed to help me into the bathroom where she drew me a bath and found me a spare toothbrush. She’d flushed a deep shade of crimson as she asked if I needed help getting into the tub, but I decided not to push her and managed to get in on my own. God, it felt good to get clean.

Once I was done, I felt immensely better but exhausted all over again. I managed to get out of the tub and wrap a towel around my waist, but I’d had to elicit Holly’s help getting back into the bed. My cock thickened at the feel of her pressed up against my naked skin, but I was too tired to really appreciate it.

Now back in bed and grateful to Holly for also changing the sheets while I’d bathed, I let her carefully poke and prod the wound on my skull. Finally, she declares it minimal enough that I don’t need sutures, but she is still certain I have a concussion.

“I’ll make you something to eat. Eggs okay?” she asks.

“Eggs sound great.” She nods at my response, and I watch her leave the room, my gaze following the graceful line of her back down to her full ass.

God, all I can think about is being inside of her. When she’d asked if I’d ever hurt anyone who didn’t deserve it, I briefly considered that lying might get me there faster, but I can’t bring myself to do so.

A part of me wanted to tell this precious angel that I have never hurt a single soul in my life just so she views me in a different light, but it would be useless to lie considering the fact that my body would be betray the truth; my skin is dotted with scars that I have tried to hide with ink, but many of them run too deep. Now naked in her bed after my bath, those scars are on full display.

She can probably read the truth in my eyes anyway.

Or maybe what’s reflected in my eyes is not the horrors of my life, but instead, my desire for her.

Holly returns with a plate full of eggs and a glass of juice a few minutes later, and I accept both eagerly. While I eat, she checks the wound on my arm again. When I’ve finished eating, I set the plate aside. She’s standing so close, rather than dropping my hand back to my lap, I let it snag on her hip. She inhales sharply at my touch and looks up at me.

I know deep down that I should wait, but I don’t know how much time we’ll have together; I don’t want to wait anymore. Who knows what’ll happen tomorrow or the day after? We’re already on borrowed time.

The need to possess this girl, to claim however much of her I can, and to bind her to me in any way possible is stronger than anything I’ve ever felt before. I have never entertained such thoughts with anyone else, but looking at this perfect girl in my arms, all I can think about is keeping her forever, even getting her pregnant so everyone knows who she belongs to.

Does that make me a psycho?

I bet it makes me sick in the head that I want to claim this girl when I met her less than two days ago, and I’ve barely been conscious for most of it. By claiming her, I would be binding her to my fucked-up life, but I can’t deny the appeal of spending the rest of my life basking in the warmth of her touch and voice.

I bring my other hand to her waist and pull until she falls against me, then I lift her a little until she has no choice but to straddle my thighs over the bedsheet. Holly braces both hands on my chest to steady herself, and her fingertips press into my bare skin.

No one’s touched me the way she does in my entire life, with such care and compassion. I refuse to lose that feeling.

I want her!

My dick is hard enough to hammer nails, and having her so close to me is chipping slowly at the control I’d convinced myself I possess. Her breath catches in her throat when I brush the back of my hand over her jaw and down her neck, my eyes locked on the swell of her tits.

“Reaper . . . W-what are you doing?” she asks shakily, wetting her lips, and fuck if that is not the hottest thing I have ever seen.

“I want to thank you for saving my life.” I say the first thing that comes to mind, locking my gaze with hers as I trail a hand down to the swell of her breast. She jerks in my arms, a low whimper escaping her when a finger brushes over her nipple.

“Flowers,” she says breathily, shifting restlessly on my lap. “Most people would send flowers and a card as a thank you. I . . . I like tulips.”

“I’ll remember that,” I say, trailing my hand down her stomach and sliding it back up under her top. Every graze of my fingers over her skin sends a raging storm of heat to my rigid cock, and it’s taking everything in me not to push her back on the bed, tear off her little shorts, and bury my shaft inside her. “I’ll get you the flowers and a card later, but for now . . . let me do this for you.”

“We can’t . . . Oh, God,” she whispers breathily when I cup her perfect tits in my hands. She moans, arching into my touch when I brush my thumb over her nipple, her hips rocking gently against my cock. “Reaper, we shouldn’t . . .”

“Why not?” I rasp, dropping my mouth to the slope of her neck and brushing my lips over her skin, sending a shudder visibly rocking her body.

“Your head a-and your arm . . . You’re hurt.”

“I’m fine,” I assure her, which is partly true. My head still throbs, and there’s an ache in my arm, but my desire for her overwhelms everything else. I don’t know how much damage this will cause to my injuries, and quite frankly, I don’t care. Holly, on the other hand, the sweet angel that she is, is clearly worried. “I’ll be careful.”

My words don’t seem to assuage her concern one bit, so I decide to try another tactic: distraction.

I kiss a trail up her neck, gently nipping at the skin before soothing it with my tongue and soaking up her reaction. She whimpers when I kiss her jaw before slowly gravitating toward her mouth, and when I brush my lips over hers, she parts so prettily for me. I tease my lips over hers, our breaths mingling hotly with each other, and the sparks between us growing with every second I hold off truly kissing her.

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