Page 30 of Sinfully His

He released my hair and started circling me, rubbing his bottom lip with his thumb. I stared at the floor, at the beautiful tiles under my shoes, and tried not to think about anything else.

Technically, I wasn’t lying about the boyfriend. Raul was never a boyfriend, not in any real sense.

Even before I met Father Manwarring, I knew what I felt for Raul was just a crush. And a boringly stereotypical, “acting out” one at that. At first, I tricked myself into thinking it might be love. Still, the more I thought about it, the more time we spent together, and even when I lay with him for the first time, giving him my virtue, I knew the entire relationship was not going anywhere, especially if I were to finally get into grad school.

We had never officially broken up, though, so I guessed that meant we were still technically together? We had sent a few text messages in the summer. He was talking about eloping and starting our lives together, but the more I thought about it, the less I wanted to do it.

Still, Father Manwarring did not need to know that.

He was quiet for a long moment, his thumb still rubbing his bottom lip. I fidgeted, shifting from foot to foot as he circled me. I was already so scared of lying to him like this, but the more he circled me, the more I wanted to run.

“You have a boyfriend?” he asked, something sinister in his voice.

“I do,” I said, tightening my stomach so my voice didn’t shake as I took a step back.

He took a step toward me, and I got the feeling that he was playing with me, and whatever happened, I couldn’t let him catch me.

“Didn’t I tell you I own your pleasure?”

CHAPTER 14

THOMAS

“What?” she said, her eyes wide as I took another step toward her. Heat raced up my spine and rage cinched around my heart as I curled my fists, trying to control my anger.

She took several steps back.

“I said, I own your pleasure. No one else.” My words came out through gritted teeth as I paced closer to her, and she moved in between pews like that could save her.

“But... my boyfriend…he and I have done... it… we’ve had sex, of course, over the summer. You need to understand, I’m not as sweet and innocent as my mother thinks I am.”

Her eyes were darting all over the room, but I didn’t think she was lying to me. I thought she’d had a boyfriend, or maybe she still did, but there was no way he could make her feel the way I did. There was no way that he could have made her come on his fingers the way I had. When I made her come, it took her by surprise. She was wound so tight only a few strokes had her shaking for me.

If he could satisfy her the way I did, then she wouldn’t have been so easy to manipulate. She wouldn’t have welcomed my touch so readily.

“I don’t think you’re telling me the truth,” I said.

“No, I am. I swear I have a boyfriend. His name is Raul.”

She kept moving away from me, almost tripping over her own feet as she refused to turn her back on me and run. All I had to do was take long, controlled steps and the distance between us never changed. It made me think of a mouse trying to get away from a cat that was much larger, much faster, and much more agile.

“I don’t believe you,” I said. “If you had a boyfriend, why did you so willingly open up those pretty little thighs for me?”

Her eyes darted around the church as if she was waiting for someone to come and either save her, or maybe catch me in the act.

There was no one else in this church. Every priest here loved playing bingo with the nuns, so when I volunteered to stay back, they were all too eager to head out. No one was going to overhear us, no one was going to come save her from my wrath.

“I… it was a mistake.”

“It was a sin,” I countered. “So tell me about this boyfriend. Can he make you come the way I do?”

“His name is Raul?—”

“You said that already.” I took another step toward her, and she moved from the end of one pew to another one on the other side of the aisle.

“Well, it is, and I think I love him.”

“You think?” I didn’t bother to hide the smirk on my lips. “Are you not sure? Where did you and Raul meet?”

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