Page 16 of Twisted Empire

“No. If anything, it makes me trust you more, because now I know you’re willing to share anything with me, even if it makes you look bad.”

There was another long silence.

“Why are you so good to me, Tatum?” Elias finally asked, the inside corners of his brows slanting upwards. “I literally tortured you.”

“Probably not as much as you’ve tortured yourself,” I said softly.

He snorted. “Oh, don’t give me that shit. I was fucking terrible to you. I hurt you. I tried to destroy you.”

“But you also saved me.” A small smile lifted the corners of my mouth. “Remember that day during the storm, when you pulled me off that cliff? I was so sure I was going to die.”

“Yeah.” He looked down at the floor.

“I went to the edge on purpose. I was so mentally fucked up in that place that I thought I deserved to die.”

“Which was my fault,” Elias cut in.

I held up a hand. “Just listen. I thought that was what needed to happen. So I went to the edge of that cliff, and honestly, I was this close to jumping. But then I heard a voice from somewhere, telling me not to do it. That sort of jumpstarted the rest of my brain into begging me not to do it. So I stepped back. I saw things clearly for the first time in weeks, and I started to believe in myself again.” I sighed and chewed my lip for a second. “For a long time, I thought that voice came from me. In my head somewhere. But now I think it was you. You were there, calling out to me, telling me not to do it. Right?”

Elias blinked slowly. I could tell he was picturing that day like it was only moments ago. “Yeah, I shouted some stuff to you. When I first saw you, I started running to you, but with the wind and rain, I didn’t think I’d get there fast enough. I wasn’t sure if you were doing it on purpose or if you were just out of it and not really aware of what you were doing. But I knew you were close to going off that edge, and I had to stop you somehow.”

“If you hadn’t called out to me and I didn’t start thinking straight again, I don’t know what would’ve happened. I might’ve jumped. But I didn’t, and I think it’s because of you.”

“I—”

I held up a hand and cut Elias off. I knew exactly what he was going to say to try and argue my point. “Yes, Elias, you might’ve contributed to making me feel that low, that broken… but then you brought me back to life. You saved me.”

He stared at me, eyes wide and incredulous, as if it simply never occurred to him that amongst all the bad, there was something good in him. Something wonderful. Something which lit up all the darkness inside.

“I just wish you could see yourself the way I see you right now,” I said.

“Right back at you,” he replied, his voice a low, throaty growl. He was silent for a second, eyes burning into me. “I might not be like the others here, but I’d still kill for you if I had to. You know that, don’t you?” he said.

I nodded.

Pure want and need gleamed in his eyes as he stared at me, and everything else in the room seemed to disappear. It was just us in the world now.

Our breaths filled the air around us, shallow and fast. I didn’t have a chance to say anything before my back collided with the mattress and Elias tangled one hand in my hair, pulling my face toward his. I gasped and his lips captured mine, swallowing the sound.

I didn’t want to fight him. Not anymore.

Earlier I’d tried to tell myself that I didn’t belong to him, that he was nothing but a malicious heartbreaker, but I was only lying to myself to try and make sense of everything Tobias told me. The truth was: Elias was my perfect match. My heaven, my hell. My body begged for him with every rapid heartbeat, and my mind called for him in a high hum, loud and desperate. I needed him more than I needed air to breathe.

Our bodies melded together, and our movements were frenzied as hunger overtook us. Tugging at the zipper of my dress, Elias released me from the gauzy fabric and freed my breasts. His head moved lower. He kissed and sucked at my nipples, sending jolts of electricity straight to my clit.

His rough stubble scratched at my delicate skin, but I didn’t mind. In fact, I liked it, that potent mixture of pain and pleasure.

“You deserve the whole world.” His words came between kisses and nips over my chest, each one making me moan. “And you never deserved any of this. Any pain. You deserve a man who fucking worships you.”

My entire body trembled with need. “I liked some of the pain,” I admitted in a low whisper.

His lips curled into a smile as he looked up at me. “I know. But don’t you ever want something else?”

I bit my bottom lip as I considered his question. “No,” I finally said breathlessly. I didn’t want it sweet and tender. I wanted it the way Elias liked to give it to me: rough, hard, dominant. I wanted him to force me, force my surrender. “I just want you the way you are.”

“Then that’s what you’ll get,” he growled, flipping me over. I yelped as he pulled me up so that my ass was in the air and my head was facing down.

He bunched the skirt of my dress up and pushed my legs apart. Then he leaned down, mouth only inches from my ear. “Maybe you don’t deserve this. But you want it and so do I. I want to make you scream, and you’re gonna love every bit of pain. Isn’t that right, little slut?”

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