Page 45 of Heartless

He tastes likehome, a home I’ve never found in Hayden Fields without him.

Without warning, Cass’s grip tightens, and in a surprisingly graceful motion he gets to his feet with me in his arms, just so he can slam me down on my back on the bed, causing me to gasp in delighted surprise.

He’s not far behind. In seconds, Cass is over me, yanking one of my legs up over his hip and burying himself inside me with a growl. “Fuck, Winnie. If you’re trying to convince me to let you leave…” he trails off with a groan, and I can feel how desperate his movements are. Howfrantic.

“You’re doing a really shitty job of it. Come for me, comewithme, sweetheart.” His fingers find my clit, stroking it harshly and driving me straight towards my release. “There you go. Just let go. Let me feel your cunt squeeze around my cock when you come.” He keeps going, praise and encouragements falling from his lips as he fucks me and rubs my clit in a way that’s driving me crazy.

“Cassian!” I don’t get to finish the sentence. Whatever it might be. My spine arches, head thrown back against the bed as I nearly scream with appreciation at the pleasure rippling through my body as my orgasm hits.

But any other sounds are lost in his mouth as he kisses me, thrusting into me once more before he shudders and rolls his hips into mine with small, rocking movements while he comes.

“Next time,” I pant, while my head is spinning, but I’m still holding him against me with my arms thrown over his shoulders. “You’re taking off your fucking clothes. All of them. Or I’m putting mine back on.”

Cass chuckles and nuzzles against my throat, tugging me onto my side as he rolls onto his. He keeps going, pulling me over him until my head is pillowed on his chest. “Next time you can have whatever you want,” he tells me. “And just for my own sanity…your phone is in my nightstand. I’ll take you home once we have a plan, all right?” His eyes glitter and he grins down at me. “So you can stop planning on how you’ll strangle me in my sleep.”

“I wasn’t going to strangle you in your sleep,” I argue, nipping lightly at his shoulder. “I was going to tie you up with your own bedsheets and ransack your apartment, obviously.”

His breath hitches as I bite down, and then Cass snorts. “Obviously,” he agrees, voice dry. “What was I thinking?”

Chapter

Nineteen

“So, to clarify…” I close my eyes and lean my face against the window of the car, savoring the coolness against my cheek. Outside, the sky is still getting darker, and I’m not sure if we’re going to make it back to Hayden Fields before it starts to rain. “Our plan,yourplan is?—”

“You don’t need to go over it again,” Cass interrupts wearily, knowing what I’m going to say. “We’ve gone over it?—”

“Is thatyou have no plan. Because apparently, you suck at planning. So you’ve packed a bag and you’ve decided to crash with me. In Hayden Fields. Our hometown. You know, the one where you?—”

“Thank you,Winnie,” he cuts me off with a sigh. “Really,thank you.”

I roll my shoulders in a shrug, grinning a little even without seeing his face. “I’m just being helpful, Cassian.” Lightly I run my fingers over the fresh bandage on my hand, unable to help the nerves that prickle under my skin at the thought of going home.

Something is going on in Hayden Fields.Someone, obviously, is now targeting me like Lacey and our diner regular,though I don’t have any idea why or who it is. But running away isn’t the right option, especially since I can’t be sure if the person won’t just follow me to Akron.

But…

“What if people recognize you?” My words are soft compared to the sound of the engine, and now my eyes are closed because I don’t know if I want to see his expression. But to my surprise, Cass reaches out to smooth his hand over my hair, tucking it back behind my ear. “What if people?—”

“I’ve been coming back to Hayden Fields for years, sweetheart,” he reminds me softly. “But I will say it’s touching that you’re worried about me.”

Finally opening my eyes, I turn to glare flatly at him. “Worried aboutyou?” I repeat with a snort. “You misunderstand. I’m worried about me and my reputation.”

His chuckle is music to my ears, and he flicks my cheek playfully. “What reputation? As the town’s favorite babysitter? Haven’t you heard what happens to well-known babysitters in Hayden Fields?” His humor never falters, and I open my eyes to look over at him.

“You’re so confusing when it comes to that,” I murmur hesitantly, unsure if this is a subject I’m okay with broaching at the moment. “I never know if I’m allowed to bring it up or I should pretend it never?—”

“There’s no pretending it never happened,” he replies, cutting me off smoothly as he pulls onto the street that connects to mine. “No denying it, or smoothing over it. Besides, do you think I haven’t killed anyone else in the years since then?”

His words hang in the air, and I don’t know how to respond to them. I tap my fingers on the console, nervousness making my stomach churn uncomfortably.

Fuck,I’d really never considered that as a possibility.

“Have you ever wanted to kill me?” I ask, hating how my words hang in the silence of the car.

He doesn’t answer. Not for a few seconds, anyway, and I can see him thinking about his words. The fact he doesn’t answer right away makes me nervous, and within moments, I’m fidgeting in my seat, fingers tapping against the console.

At least, until he covers my hand with his and presses it flat. “I was never going to kill you,” he murmurs. “I wouldneverhurt you, Winnie. Maybe I didn’t understand my feelings for you back then. At least, not like I do now. But I wouldneverhurt you. I’ve never considered it. I’d killforyou,” he adds with a small, impish grin.

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