Page 63 of Devotion

“You know who I am. You’ve seen what I’ve done—what Icontinueto do. I’m a fucking monster, Layla.”

The callousness in his tone isn’t lost on me. There’s no hint of remorse, no suggestion of there being an apology to follow. Just cold, hard facts.

“I’ve wanted you. For longer than you know,” he admits. “And while I know I’ve all but begged you to have me, the truth is… I’m afraid of what I’ll do to you.”

His eyes stay trained on me, and I’m unnerved when he doesn’t blink, sending my heart into a full sprint. He stares like I’m some small, fragile thing he’ll ruin, but I step closer, holding his gaze.

“I’m not afraid of you.”

My words seem to hit hard, and his focus deepens again.

“That’s the thing, angel… Youshouldbe.”

I swear Ifeelhis warning far more clearly than I hear it.

My stomach twists, knowing he’s right, yet again. Still, this truth does nothing to deter me from taking another step in his direction, not stopping until my toes nudge the tips of his shoes, and I’m breathing his air.

“I’m not… afraid of you.”

His gaze lowers from my eyes to my lips, and I’m not sure he’s breathing at all now. My breasts graze his chest every time my own lungs fill with air. I’m not backing down. Not even as I sense his silent plea for me to do just that.

He slowly lowers one hand from the doorframe and slips it beneath my hair, squeezing the back of my neck like he’d done before his first attempt to leave. His lips part, but words fail him. It isn’t until the second try that sound leaves his mouth.

“I’m obsessed with you,” he confesses. “Not that cutesy, romanticized bullshit in movies or on TV. I’m trying to tell you—no,warnyou—I’d burn the entire fucking world down for you.” He pauses and tucks loose strands of hair behind my ear. “Can you evencomprehendthat level of commitment?”

I’m panting, hearing him all but admit that I’ve got the beast within him wrapped around my finger. A beast who’s torn the flesh from people’s bodies, carved into them like wooden figurines. And yet… his touch is so gentle with me.

I lean closer, opening my mouth mere inches from his, swiping the tip of my tongue over the soft, plump flesh of his lips. His chest swells as his grip moves to my hair, tightening, drawing words from my mouth I hope I don’t live to regret.

“Don’ttellme you’re obsessed… fuckingshowme.”

My challenge lingers in the air, and his eyes darken.

“Once I’ve had you, Layla… I’m keepingyou.”

This feels like another warning, another red flag that should have me shoving him out of my apartment while I still have the chance.

“Do you understand what that means?”

His grip tightens on my hair with the question, and my scalp burns from the pull as he leans in, the heat of his breath warming my mouth.

“Your friends. Your family. They’d all be in constant danger. Not a single person you’ve ever loved or cared about would be safe from me. Because if I eventhinksomeone’s trying to come between us… I’d tear through them without a single fucking thought.”

I swallow deeply, and his eyes lower to my throat with the movement.

“Is that honestly what you want?” he taunts. “A monster in your life? One who’d move heaven and hell for you, no matter the cost?”

The sternness in his eyes says he wants me to fully grasp the seriousness of his threat. But I don’t need time to think it over. I’m nodding before he even finishes, dragging my hand up the solid mass of his thigh to his swollen cock.

“Show… me.”

I grip his cock harder, hard enough that anormalman would’ve pushed me away. But not him. He doesn’t even flinch.

I’ve heard every single word that’s left his mouth, but his warnings haven’t scared me away. I’m aware that this is quite possibly a testament of just how deeply his web has woven into my soul, but it’s true. I understood what this was, knew how it would end before it even truly began.

So, as irrational as it may seem to admit this… I wantallof that shit.

The danger. The crazy. The darkness. Even if Idomanage to lie to myself, denying this truth by sunrise.

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