Page 24 of Judge's Mercy

“Again, this isn’t the conversation we need to have right now.”

I might as well not be here for all the acknowledgment she’s giving me. That’s not true, though, because I can’t help but feel like somehow this is connected. “But not you. Don’t get me wrong, you piss me off too, but not for the same reasons. You’re not like them; you’re kind and caring, even when you won’t benefit from it.”

“And that pisses you off?”

“More than anything. At least with other men, I know what I’m getting into. I have them figured out.” She wriggles one wrist free so she can turn to face me. With her fight gone, I allow it but keep hold of her other wrist, just in case. Or maybe I need the connection. I don’t know anymore. “You confuse me, Judge. I keep waiting for the asshole in you to show, but it never does. No matter how much I push you away or how cruel I am to you.”

“You’ve been hurt; it’s only natural for you to keep everyone at a distance so it doesn’t happen again.”

She laughs humorously. “See what I mean? Even now, you’re understanding. It’s infuriating.”

“I just want you to let me help. It’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

Her gaze drops, and she clears her throat. I feel another shift coming. “That’s not all. There’s more.”

“What?” I can’t stop myself from asking, which puts me in the same category as the stupid men she hates because I’m falling for her tricks.

Her cheeks heat. “You turn me on at a time in my life when nothing should. If anything, I should be repulsed by anything with a dick.”

“Thanks, I think.”

She grits her teeth and tenses her body. “The only thing I ever feel is all-consuming anger.” Her blue eyes meet my own. “Except when you’re around. Then I feel so much more.”

“How about honesty? Do I make you feel like telling the truth?”

She almost smiles, just a barely-there tip of her lips that’s gone as quick as it appears. “Nice try.”

“At least tell me whose blood this is.”

“You don’t want to know.”

“Let me be the judge of that.”

“You wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me.”

She bows her head, her short hair creating a curtain around her. After a long minute, she lifts her chin, and what I see terrifies me. Her eyes are narrowed, her face pinched, and her lower lip quivers when she speaks. “The hate just keeps growing. It’s always there, and I’m so goddamned worried it’s all I’ll feel for the rest of my life.”

“And you want me to believe I have some kind of control over that?” I tuck a wayward strand of black hair behind her ears, wondering how to get through to her. She’s confused and hurt, and she thinks she’s alone, but I’m right fucking here.

If I was braver, I might share with her the traumatic events I’ve been through, but the thought of reliving those painful memories for anyone terrifies me. While it may help Myla to know I can relate, there’s also a chance that delving into my past could bring back the darkness that once consumed me and is currently consuming her. Then, I would be of no use to her.

She licks her lips and takes my big, tattooed hands in her scrubbed-raw tiny ones. “Do you like me, Judge?”

My mouth opens, but no sound comes out. Someone out there is either bleeding to death or already dead, and I need to find out who it is—if not to get them help, then to get the prospects out to wherever the body is and clean it up. Above all else, I need to protect her, and if admitting my feelings for her will make her feel comfortable enough to talk, then that’s what I’ll do.

“I do.” I feel as though I’m holding my breath whenever I’m near her, worried I’ll show too much, but now that the words are out, I can finally breathe.

She lifts our joined hands to her chest. “Then please, Judge. Make me feel something else, even if only for a minute. I won’t ever ask anything of you again. Just. . . please. Please.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

MYLA

“Then please, Judge. Make me feel something else, even if only for a minute. I won’t ever ask anything of you again. Just. . . please. Please.” I beg, even though what I really want is an exorcism. I want him to reach within me and free me from the dark demon living there, rotting my insides. But that’s impossible, so I’ll settle for something else.

I had thought I was playing Judge, using my charms as a distraction, but the truth hits me like a freight train. This is no longer just a game—it’s what I truly desire. The darkness of tonight has left me drained, mentally and emotionally, and I need him to quiet my mind. I need him to make my body come alive. I need this righteous man to do sinful things to me.

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