Page 91 of Burn With Me

“Yeah, I will.” Watching them leave, I stare down at my phone for what seems like hours.

Finally, I copy and paste the words into the text thread with Ginny and hit send.

Then, I prepare to have my heart broken for the first time in my life.

Ginny

Aweek passes without Jackson.

When I left his place Saturday morning, I had meant what I said—it was over.

But this last week has been miserable without him.

I hadn’t realized just how ingrained he’d become in my everyday existence. And now, all I seem to do is wonder what he’s doing with his time.

Is he back to fucking every woman that catches his eye? Is he with that bitchy blonde bombshell—Viktoriya?

Is he as unhappy as I am?

All I’ve done besides work at the clinic and the restaurant is mope around in my apartment. Well, it’s notmyapartment. There’s something about staying at The Bryant that no longer sits well with me if Jackson and I aren’t in each other’s lives anymore.

Looks like apartment hunting is on the agenda for this weekend.

First, however, is tonight with my stranger. I didn’t show up on Saturday, and I’m wondering how he will take my request tonight.

I want to experience something in between both of the times Jackson fucked me. Something more than the soft andsweet, but less than the harsh biting and slapping so many times it took days for his handprint to leave my skin.

The teeth marks have healed, but there’s still a bruise under my shoulder that is tender and days away from returning to the pale color of my skin. It serves as a reminder of everything Jackson wants, and I hate that it also makes me think of Chris.

Carmela told me it was okay not to wear my wings tonight since they sit right against that spot, and it’s nice not to have the added weight of them at my back as I walk through the Grand Room to the Desires hall.

My outfit tonight is meant to be enticing. I’m more naked than clothed—black lace outlines my bare breasts and trails down my stomach in a single strap that’s attached to a small triangle that barely covers my pussy.

There are still random bruises on my skin, but the low lighting will make it hard for my stranger to see them. I have a feeling that he would have his mind made up before I even asked the question if he saw them.

For the first time in a long time, he’s not waiting for me when I enter the room. Sending my guard a questioning look through my mask, he just gives me a slight nod and says, “He’s running late.”

Late ends up being an understatement.

I’m two glasses of champagne in, and my skin buzzes with anger when he walks through the door almost twenty minutes after our arranged meeting time.

“Nice of you to show up.” My tone is bitter as I speak, the fizzing bubbles of my drink spurring on my fire-laced words.

He snorts and goes straight to the drink cart in the corner of the room, pouring a hefty amount of alcohol into his tumbler. “I don’t think you’re in the position to be upset, Little Ember. After all, it wasyouwho did not show up last weekend.”

“Last weekend, I took your advice and let my boyfriend plead his case.”

It doesn’t escape either of us that I saymy boyfriendor that it’s said in present tense as if Jackson isstillmine.

My stranger freezes, but only briefly before he lifts his mask enough to drink the liquid in his glass like a shot. “And how did that go?”

“It fucking sucked. I asked him to treat me like all the other women he normally goes after, and I ended up leaving with multiple bruises and a bite mark the size of Texas. He was brutal and unkind, and we broke up.”

He turns around as I tell him what happened, his body tight with something I can’t read as his eyes sweep down the length of me. My robe is long tonight, though, and the only skin he can see is a triangle of cream where the sides of it overlap on my chest.

“Are you okay?” he asks softly.

“I’mangry. And I’m tired of being angry. I just want to forget it ever happened.” Crossing my arms, I look down at the floor, gathering the courage to ask him to fuck me. Steeling myself for him to reject meagain, like he always does when I ask him to sleep with me.

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