Page 89 of The Cruelty of Thorns

What I was thinking couldn’t be possible. Julianus had never hurt me. If anything, he was protective of me, telling me to eat my meals and stay indoors at night.

And yet, this guy seemed to know him.

The guy who apparently had come to a decision about me. He reached down and grabbed my hand, pulling me to my feet. I wavered unsteadily, but his grip held me upright.

“Let’s go, love.”

“Where?”

“We’re going to take a ride.”

Before we left the room, he reached for the vase on the table and grabbed all the roses out of it.

“Can’t forget my calling card.”

When we got outside, he walked me to the motorcycle and mounted it then made me straddle the back behind him. He thrust the roses into my hand. “Hold onto these. And don’t think about jumping off. I’m being nice right now, but I can be a real wanker when I want to.”

He started the bike and walked it down the driveway, then turned and gunned it up the street. I tried to pay attention to where we were going, but I had all I could do to stay upright. When we started to climb the hill, I recognized the street where Julianus lived.

The man guided the bike up the driveway and killed the engine.

“Off you go, love,” he said, waiting for me to climb off so he could follow. I staggered and he grabbed me again and pulled me up the walkway to the steps. He pounded on the door and when no one answered, simply turned the knob until I heard something break inside it.

“Looks like no one’s home,” he grinned and shoved me inside. “All the better.”

I couldn’t hide my disappointment. Julianus was probably on his way over to the college to meet with me. If I had just stayed there instead of running off like a fool…

“Where’s his bedroom?” When I didn’t answer right away, he jerked my arm “Do you want me to get mean?”

“Upstairs,” I replied dully.

He pushed me ahead of him up the stairs, catching me when I stumbled. I lead him down the hallway to the bedroom where Julianus had made love to me. He paused in the doorway, looking around, before shoving me toward the bed.

“Stay,” he commanded, then crossed the room toward the tall armoire, yanking it open and rummaging around inside.

“Let’s see what kind of toys you’ve got in here,” he murmured to himself.

When I saw he was distracted, I slowly edged off the bed, figuring this was my best chance to get away. I glanced back at him, then stood up and made a break for the door.

I don’t know how he got across the room so fast. One minute he was over there, and then he was grabbing a handful of my hair and slinging me toward the bed. I rolled across the floor and my head slammed against the wooden platform, causing me to literally see stars.

“Fucking cunt,” he snapped, hauling me to my feet and throwing me onto the bed. My head was spinning and I felt like I might throw up at any moment, but I swallowed the impulse, afraid of what he might do.

He stalked closer until he loomed over me, his presence dominating the room, his lips curling up in a cruel sneer. “Let’s have some fun, hmm?”

CHAPTER 35

JULIANUS

End of the line

THERE WERE FEW hookers out at this early hour, but I made my choice quickly and approached the woman. My first thought upon awakening was Myra, how I wanted to bring her back to my house for another session like our last one. Just thinking about her sweet lips wrapped around my length got my cock painfully hard.

The trouble with that scenario was, I was ravenous when I awoke and I knew I wouldn’t be able to control myself around her unless I fed first, which is how I ended up in the alley with a hooker.

“Anything in particular you want?” she asked.

“Just fuck,” I growled, opening my pants and shoving my cock up under her short skirt. Her cunt was loose and wet, and while it wasn’t my preference, it did the job. I pumped into her a dozen times until I could feel my orgasm building, then let go with a grunt before bending over to sink my teeth into her throat.

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