Page 50 of Bound to a Monster

Lev delighting in that pain.

That’s the sickest part of it all—his smile never slipped even as he cracked Emory’s fingers back and broke the bones like sticks of chalk.

In the morning, I hurry downstairs to make my small cup of coffee. I was plagued by dreams of my husband pulling my hair and burying my mouth with his and fucking me with vicious glee, and I liked it in my dream.

I liked it when I woke up, too.

“You’re avoiding me.”

I yelp and look over at where he’s sitting at the table. He’s in an exercise shirt, damp with sweat, and he’s quietly reading the paper.

“Who still gets a physical newspaper?” I ask, trying to lighten the situation.

He smiles. So charming and handsome. “You’re not going to talk about it, are you?”

“I don’t really know what to say.”

He nods slightly and stands up. “Let me show you something.”

“Lev—”

But he’s already walking away. I watch him, trembling. Would he hurt me here? Would he do to me what he did to Emory? I don’t think so, but I don’t really know. Natalya thinks Lev’s a good person. Alex thinks so too.

Do they know about his darkness?

I follow reluctantly. Lev heads down into the basement, and I wonder if this is a murder sort of situation as I trail after him.

But the basement isn’t some dungeon. It’s partially finished, and one half is clearly a gym. Or at least it was. Now it’s been cleared out, the dark rubber floor empty and the weights shoved to the side.

In their place are several different fencing foils.

“I asked the guy which is the best and he asked which style you prefer. I had no clue, so I bought them all.”

They’re beautiful. Brand new and gleaming. Pistol grips, French-style handles, bayonet-style body cord plugs, all in the three different disciplines.

I pick up a lovely saber and test the weight. It’s perfect, way better than my old weapon upstairs. I swipe in the air and fall into my old stance, lunging slightly, going for a kill. Lev stands off to the side and watches with a tight smile on his face.

“How’d you get all this so fast?”

“One of my clients owns a high-end sporting goods store in the suburbs. I drove out and had him open early so I could get these.”

“It’s too much. They must’ve cost you thousands, and I don’t even fence in epee.” I gesture at the different blades.

“Don’t worry. We’ll go back and you’ll pick out whatever you really want.” He steps toward me and I raise the saber in between us. If it comes down to a fight, he could easily swat awaymy dull blade and take me right here, pinning me down to the rubber mat, using me however he wants.

Fuck me. Break my fingers. Fill me to the brim. Make me hurt.

“What you did to Emory,” I say softly, heart racing. “That was fucked.”

His smile seems almost sincere. “I didn’t want to have to do it, but he crossed a line.”

“He was drunk and stupid. You nearly killed him.”

“I should have.”

“What am I supposed to say to that?”

“You knew what I was. You grew up with men like me.”

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