Page 56 of The Ripper

I giggled when he put the plate on the counter next to my thigh and pulled a chair next to me, scratching the back of his neck as he looked at me with an expression I couldn’t quite read, somewhere between shyness and embarrassment.

The Grimm who was all over me a few seconds ago had nothing to do with the Grimm who now looked like a teenager struggling to ask a girl to prom.

“I tried to make you breakfast, but I clearly suck at it,” he said, pointing at the food.

My heart filled with something unknown, his words feeling like a punch to the gut.

“It’s perfect, thank you,” I smiled down at him.

I took the plate in my hand and cut the eggs with the fork, then almost gagged when I tasted them because there was so much salt, but I stifled the need to spit it up and forced myself to swallow, then popped a strawberry in to cover the saltiness. I had no idea how I was going to eat all this food, but I also had no intention of making him feel bad after he tried to do something nice for me.

“It’s good,” I lied.

He frowned, taking the fork from my hand and shoving a bite into his mouth. His face changed color three times before he stood up and spat the contents into the sink, then took a big chug of water straight from the faucet.

“It’s awful,” he said, picking up the plate and throwing it in the trash.

“Hey, my strawberries,” I giggled.

“Fuck the strawberries,” he wrinkled his nose in disgust.

Without giving me a warning, he picked me up again and threw me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, then walked to the door.

I burst into laughter at his caveman way of carrying me, and that laughter only grew louder when I saw the big men on the hallway avert their eyes from us as he passed them.

“Why aren’t they looking at me?” I asked.

“Because I told them not to,” he replied simply.

“You’re ridiculous,” I scoffed, then pouted, but he couldn’t see my face, so I pinched his thigh.

Huge mistake, because the next thing I knew, his teeth sank into the side of my leg, mercilessly biting my flesh, and I jumped, a wave of heat traveling down my body.

“Where are you taking me?”

“I’m taking you home so you can change and then out for some edible breakfast.”

“I liked my breakfast just fine,” I continued to struggle, trying to get him to let go of me, but my lie was met with a spank that was sure to redden my skin.

“I appreciate you trying to spare my feelings,” he said the last word mockingly, as if he was disgusted by it, “but do not ever lie to me.”

Another spank followed, and before I could protest further, we were outside.

“Grimm, I need to check on Klaus,” I said as he set me back on my feet.

“Klaus is fine, and you need to eat and put on something that doesn’t make me want to eat you,” his voice carried a menacing tone as he held the door open for me.

I didn’t know why I liked the idea of him wanting to eat me, but I had to rub my thighs together and make sure I sat in such a way that wouldn’t get the seat wet.

The ride to my apartment was quick and uneventful, except for the greedy looks Grimm kept giving me. In his presence, I was slowly becoming one of those women who fell for guys they barely knew. And with the feel of the fall, the insecurities I spent my entire life suppressing reared their ugly heads, making me doubt myself.

Suddenly, I felt as though I wasn’t enough.

But who could feel as if they were enough when sitting next to him?

It was odd to call a man beautiful, but in my eyes he was, so much so that I could barely look at him without feeling warm inside. Not in the conventional sense, as in light, delicate beauty. No. He was beautiful in a harsh way. Grimm was raw, untamed masculinity. Sharp features you could cut yourself on, strong arms that could snap you in half, long legs that could kick you into oblivion. Dangerous beauty, that you couldn’t stop yourself from wanting even though it could kill you, the type you wanted to be ravished by.

Lethal beauty.

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