Page 13 of Unhinged

“Say that again,” I demand.

“Taren,” she says my name again, only it’s more hesitant this time.

“I like how it sounds when you say my name.”

She tries to turn around to face me, but I firmly push her against the wall.

“No. Stay still.” I pull the gel out of my pocket and put some on my hand. “I’ve got something for the bruising.”

Gently, I rub the product into the bruised area. The only bruises I want to see on my little bird are those I’ve inflicted, which were born from passion. And yet, I know if we’re going to make this out with our lives, I’ll see her harmed more before our salvation.

A soft moan escapes her lips as my fingers dance down her spine. “Taren, why?”

Why? Why am I treating this pretty bird so well?

Because she’s mine.

“Why?” I repeat. “It’s the ultimate question, isn’t it?” Once I’m finished, I yank her around to face me. “Pretty little Alice.”

Her sky-blue eyes dilate with desire as she places her hand on my chest, making me tense. “Can you help me?”

I tilt my head. “Does Alice desire me, or does she just desire her freedom?” I grab a fistful of her hair and yank her head back. “Do you want to use me?” My nostrils flare with anger at the thought. “Do you think I can free you, and you’ll be safe?”

Her throat bobs, but that flicker of desire burns brightly. “No,” she breathes.

“Then what do you think I can give you, little bird?”

She bites her bottom lip, drawing my eyes to their fullness. Her breath hitches. “Hope,” she murmurs, her voice barely above a whisper. “Hope that I can feel something again.”

Feel something again.

Why doesn’t my little bird feel?

All these questions swirl around in my mind. “Tell me why you don’t feel,” I demand.

Her jaw clenches and a wall of steel covers the emotion that was blazing with her eyes a moment again. “I can’t.”

“No?” My voice is an icy whisper, a mirror of the steel in her eyes. “Or won’t?” I watch as she remains ice-cold under my gaze. I release her hair and cradle her face instead. “I’ll crack you open and learn your secrets. No matter how hard you try to hide them.”

Her eyes flicker with fear and defiance, her lips parting. “Crack me open then,” she dares.

I smirk, intrigued all the more by my little bird. Alice is as enigmatic as the moon, revealing only glimpses of her secrets yet enticing me deeper into her mystery. “Do you like danger?”

Her chest heaves with heavy breaths as she nods. “Yes.”

“Good, because you’re provoking a very dangerous man.” I grab her hips and push her back against the wall, careful not to be too forceful because of her bruise. She winces at the contact. “How shall I open you up?” I press my lips to her neck and bite hard enough to hurt, making her yelp at the contact. “Shall I bite you open?”

Alice doesn’t push me away. She threads her fingers in my hair and yanks me closer. “Yes.”

Intriguing. Dark and delicious.

How has this creature become so dark?

I bite her shoulder hard and then suck, wanting to leave my mark on her despite the danger. “Alice,” I breathe her name, my cock throbbing against her stomach. “Too tempting.” I kiss her collarbone and then nip it hard, making her moan. “I want to have you until the stars burn out and the world fades to nothing until all that remains is the echo of our bodies colliding in the universe’s silence.”

“Please,” she breathes.

She doesn’t realize my meaning. She’s full of desire right now. Desperate to feel, but I don’t know why. I want her forever. I want her for eternity. I want to drown in her, and until she loves me the way I love her, I won’t give her what she wants.

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