Page 18 of Savage

Instead, I disappeared back into the shadows.

8

COOPER

THE TWENTY-FOUR hours following my surprising late night visit were torture.

I hadn’t gotten shit done all day, not with the man in the mask stealing every bit of my headspace. He was all I could think about, wondering who he was, why he’d tracked me down, what he wanted from me. Or if I’d somehow made the whole thing up and it was just another part of my dream.

But that couldn’t be true, because surely I would’ve ended it in a much more satisfying way than his crawling back out my window.

And then I went and said he shouldcome back tonight? That I’dleave the window open? I needed to have my head thoroughly examined, because that was insane. Inviting a stranger, someone I’d seen do serious bodily harm to others, into my private space.

He wouldn’t come, though. I didn’t know what prompted the visit, or how he’d found out where I lived, or what he wanted, but I’d felt his resolve as he was leaving, like it had been a mistake to see me.

Why, then, did my fucked-up brain think that made this situation even hotter somehow? Was it just the mystery of it all?The fact that he showed restraint with me when it was obvious he could overpower me in a matter of seconds if he wanted to?

Or was I justreallyhard up after the last few months?

All of the above,I thought as I paced my room and checked the time on my phone. It was late, but maybe not sneaking-up-the-fire-escape late in his eyes. I hadn’t specified a time, and he probably wouldn’t come at all anyway.

But what if he did? What if he was outside watching me pace back and forth like I was counting down the minutes?

God,that was so lame.

I scrubbed a hand over my face and forced myself to sit the hell down and at least look busy. Like I wasn’texpectinganything to happen. Like I actually had a life.

I opened my laptop and stared at the screen for a long moment before shutting it.

No, maybe I shouldn’t be working but doing something more casual, like…reading a book in bed, or watching a movie in bed. Somethingin bedto entice him to join me.

Because that was what it all came down to—I’d been thinking about this masked stranger since the first time I’d seen him. Hell, I’d been dreaming about him. And all that sexual tension, pushing me up against the wall last night, calling me a Boy Scout in that deep, throaty voice…

A shiver rolled through me, and I stood up and went to check that I still had supplies nearby, just in case things went the way my cock wanted them to. When I was satisfied they were hidden but within reaching distance, I forced myself to lie down and try to relax, which was easier said than done. I hadn’t bothered getting a TV for the place yet, not just because there was barely space for one, but because I spent most of my waking moments trying to do something productive.

But right this moment, I would’ve gladly turned on something mindless. In fact…

I pulled out my tablet, looked for something action packed to hold my attention, and hit play.

Relax,I told myself as I drew in a deep breath and settled back on the mattress.Try not to think about him or all of the what-ifs.

Not the easiest feat when my eyes kept darting to the window.

I couldn’t say how long I lay there. Ten minutes, twenty? But with the show playing on the screen, my eyes began to feel heavy. Maybe I could close them, just for a few minutes. That would make the time pass by. Right?

I turned off the show and put the tablet beside me, not wanting to be woken by a broken nose. Then I scooted down the bed and got comfortable, making sure I had a good visual of the window, should my mystery man make an appearance.

It didn’t take long for sleep to find me, all the overthinking tiring out my brain to where the darkness pulled me in. Peace claimed me, warmth enveloped me, until I felt it surrounding me on all sides, wrapping me in its embrace like a strong pair of?—

My eyes flew open as the delicious weight and warmth registered in my brain as exactly what it was—my vigilante.

The one I’d been waiting for all night, here in my room at the end of my bed, his knees flanking my legs, caging me in place. My heart skipped several beats as I stared up at him, and I knew Ishouldbe terrified, or at least a little scared, but the only emotion coursing through me as I stared up at my masked man was…excitement.

No, that was a lie. I felt excited and turned on.

He’d come to me. Come for me. And now all I wanted was for him to comewithme.

Was that fucked up? Yes. But as he cocked his head, I shifted under him and arched my hips in invitation, like some horny slut boy.

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