Page 8 of Pucking Obsessed

I pull up the chair next to her bed, sliding into it with a quiet, deliberate motion. My eyes don’t leave her for a second, not even when I settle in. Her breathing is softer, steadier than when I found her in the bathroom and I’d like to think it’s because on some level she knows I’m here and feels safe enough to relax.

I can't help myself. I’m drawn to her, to the rhythm of her breathing, to the way her body shifts slightly and my mouth practically waters at the thought of what she’d feel like tucked up against my side, her body moving against mine throughout the night. Her usual walls are down right now, her defenses gone. There’s no fight in her, no hesitation. She looks... fragile.

Her hair’s a mess from the way I touched it earlier. I can still feel the way it slid through my fingers. It’s like silk, and I can’t get enough of it. The way her lips part when she sleeps is so inviting. Fuck, I want to taste them again. I want to taste every single inch of her.

I lean forward, my eyes tracing the soft rise and fall of her chest. It’s just enough to remind me that she’s still real, still here. I don’t know how I ended up in this moment, sitting in the dark watching her sleep, but it’s the only place I want to be.

The urge to touch her is stronger than I can explain. I want to run my hands over her skin, feel the warmth that radiates off of her, taste the softness of her lips again. It’s not just the sex I want. I want everything. I want her mind and her soul too. I’d do anything for her, and always will.

My mind drifts back to a few nights ago. My first kill and it was for Madison. The sleek black BMW trailing her, like a fucking predator. I could feel it in my gut. He wasn’t just driving. He was following. I couldn’t let that happen.

I side-swiped him. Hard. Watched his car spin out of control, slam into the guardrail like I’d done this a hundred times before. I was calm, and that should have been the first red flag of the evening.

I remember walking up to that car and grabbing him by the collar, ripping him halfway out of the window. His breath reeked of alcohol, but his eyes were full of defiance. This is who Madison would have had to look at, had to smell if he had the wherewithal to actually catch her.

"Why the fuck were you following her?" I demanded, but he didn’t answer. No words. Only the cocky smile of a man who thought he could get away with anything.

I reached in closer, fists clenched, voice a low growl. “Answer me.”

Nothing. Just that same smug look.

I snapped. My fist slammed into the side of his head, his skull cracking against the window trim. He went limp, unconscious in my hands. I didn’t stop. Reached into his jacket, grabbed the lighter. Then I set the fire.

I shoved something from the back seat into the gas tank, lit it, and watched it burn. The flames crackled as they spread, and I stood there, watching his car turn into a pile of fucking ash. No one is getting close to her, not while I’m still breathing.

My eyes rake over Madison. Her form is relaxed, at peace. She doesn’t know what I’ve done for her. How much I’m willing to do. How far I’ll go for her.

She shifts in her sleep, making a soft noise, and I almost lose it. The sight of her, vulnerable and perfect, tucked in this bed, like she belongs here with me.

I look at her hand resting by the side of her face, her fingers barely curled, and I can’t stop myself from wondering what they would feel like digging into the muscles of my back while I hover over her, mine wrapped around her delicate throat as I slam inside her until there’s no question who she belongs to.

I sit back, a little breathless, as I study her face, the way her features relax in sleep. I can’t help but wonder what it would be like to hold her while she sleeps, to keep her safe, to wrap her upin my arms and never let anyone near her again. Until then, I’ll be here, watching her. Waiting.

MADISON

I’ve made a colossal mistake coming here, but I chose the lesser of two evils. At least I hope I did. Castlebrook University looks like a dream on the outside, but as I walk across campus beside Kirsten Lockwood and her friend Winter, the reality is sinking in like a weight in my chest.

I’m going to figure out a plan, try to get a job where no one knows my father in hopes someone might actually hire me. I have very little money, and I’ve never rented something in my name, so finding housing on my own is going to be difficult, but it’s a must. I woke up this morning in a bed, tucked under a soft blanket and my head nestled on pillowcases that probably cost more than everything I own.

I can’t prove it, because the door was still locked from the inside when I tested it out, but I could feel Hayden’s presence, like he’d been in the room for a long time. I shake the thought away because it’s probably just my subconscious wishing it was true as silly as that sounds. I’ve avoided him the entire morning, and I know that can only last for so long. I don’t know if it’s possible to ignore someone who’s made it his life mission to watch me, but I’m going to try.

As we move through the crowded walkways headed toward the dorm I’ll be living in, Kirsten glances over at me and she’s smirking like she’s got one over on me. Her personality seems to have done a complete turn around from the bubbly girl who burst into my work and exclaimed that we were about to become sisters. “Hayden’s losing his mind, you know, because you’re purposefully ignoring him.” I notice her friend Winter looks away, almost like she’s embarrassed, when Kirsten claps her hands excitedly. “It’s my favorite thing that’s happened in a really long time. He never gets upset about anything and you’ve got him actually texting me to find out if you’re with me. Do you know how hard it is to get him to return a text message or pick up a phone call?”

“I really wouldn’t know the first thing about your brother,” I say, but I keep my tone neutral because I don’t need two Lockwoods upset with me. I just keep my gaze fixed forward, trying not to think about the ache that pulls at my chest when I think about the way Hayden looks at me. There’s something between us that I can’t deny. I’ve tried, not very hard, but tried all the same. I know we can’t do anything about it. Not with our parents getting married. I’m not in any place to entertain any sort of relationship, and I suspect that if I give Hayden an inch, he’ll take an entire mile.

As if reading my mind, Kirsten laughs. It’s boisterous and lacks the child-like quality her voice had yesterday. “If you’re worried about the whole stepsibling thing, it’s not like you’re actually related. Hell, Winter grew up with Tristan and they’re…”

Before Kirsten can finish her sentence, Winter brushes her long French braid over her shoulder and interrupts her. “Nothing is going on between Tristan and me,” she says, and even though her words are firm, I catch the flicker of something uncomfortable in her eyes.

Kirsten, of course, laughs again. Maybe I’m just being a bitter Betty because my whole life has been uprooted, but I find her to be loud and obnoxious.

“He just treats you like a boyfriend, huh?” Kirsten asks Winter, but then she’s looking at me like I’m going to side with her on a situation that is none of my business. “We went to dinner last week with our friend Lilac, and Tristan showed up, didn’t speak a word to any of us, paid the bill and then left because she wouldn’t use his credit card.”

Winter’s pale skin flushes pink, and I can tell she’s trying to avoid the subject. “He just feels responsible for me, that’s all. We’ve been through a lot together.” I want to push Kirsten down and roll her into the road so she’ll stop trying to agitate us, but I restrain myself because attempted murder on my first day of school probably isn’t the best look.

Kirsten rolls her eyes at Winter’s quiet protests, but then Winter holds her phone up, showing us the black cracked screen.

“I should probably get going,” Winter says, her voice sounding a little more defensive than it did before Kirsten started in on her about whoever Tristan is. “I was leaving ballet practice and some football players bumped into me and I dropped my phone.”

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