Page 110 of Twisted Legacy

“Really? Because you just walked in here, like you got your ass kicked last night.”

I mumble, “That’s because I did. Literally.”

He must’ve heard me because he stands and walks over, lifting my shirt. I swipe at his hand. “Don’t.”

I’m sore and don’t move fast enough to keep him from seeing the bruising on my ribs from Holden pinning his knees against me. I avert my eyes as he takes in my torso, rubbing his hand along the mottled skin.

“Did you want this?”

I chew my lip, thinking over the best way to respond. If he’d have asked when Holden was giving his evil villain monologue, my answer would’ve been hell no. But by the end, I was wet and needy just like he said I’d be.

“No judgement, sweetness. I just need to know if I’m adding to my body count.”

“You don’t have a body count.”

He tilts my head up, eyeing the faint hand print I know is on my throat.

“Not yet, but I have a list I’m building of future victims.” He forces me to look at him. “Now answer the question. Did you feel safe, and did you want it, or did someone come back to finish what they started?”

I could lie. I could tell him no and send him after Holden, but that would be a bitch move and manipulative as hell. I’m still processing everything, but dealing with Holden falls to me. And I’m safe now. Strange as it may seem, I know I was safe then, too. “Yes, I wanted it.”

He curses and growls, “Lucky bastard.”

“It’s not. It’s not like that.”

“You don’t owe me any explanations about who you hook up with.”

I grab his arm to keep him from walking away. “Wolfe, I- It just happened.”

His smile is forced. “Thea. It’s your life. Your body. As long as you were safe and are happy with your choices, you won’t hear anything else from me about it. I told you we couldn’t happen again and I’m glad we’re on the same page.”

“I didn’t do it to spite you. We didn’t even have sex. He…”

“I don’t wanna hear about it. Any of it. Ever.”

Maybe coming here today was a mistake. I was so focused on needing to get back into fighting. Pushing myself to prove that I’m ready to train, that I didn’t think of what Wolfe would say if he saw the bruises. I guess I thought he wouldn’t say anything.

There are so many things I haven’t said. That I should have said, especially since he’s been there for me all this time. He saved me from the coffin, but it’s not some hero worship thing. I’ve been drawn to Wolfe since the moment I saw him in the bar.

“I think about the night we met, and how things might have been different for us if I would have dropped your Physical Enhancement class.”

“I’m not that difficult to work with.”

“You are. You know you are. And you like it that way.”

He studies me and asks, “Why didn’t you drop the class? You know, when you quit after your accident, I thought… well, it doesn’t matter what I thought, because you’re ready to train again. That is why you’re here, right?”

“I like training. You’ve worked with the best.” Do I dare say the rest of it, knowing nothing will change? I need to tell him. I need him to know it’s not just the fighting. “And because some sick, twisted part of me can’t stand the idea of not seeing you.” I step closer. “I think about that night, Wolfe. I think about all the nights in Palisade Shores, the phone calls we’ve had. The nights we stole on campus. What I did last night doesn’t change that. It doesn’t change how much I wish I could have another night with you, which is ridiculous because you’ve made it perfectly clear that you don’t want me. But if you did, I’d want you too. I know I’ve never said it. But I do.”

“What are you saying, exactly, Thea? That you want me to lay you out in the middle of the octagon and fuck you into the mats?”

I nod my head, and smirk, “Yes.”

He steps closer, crowding me until my back is against the wall. “Think about what you’re risking for a few moments of pleasure. What if The Trium decides to tell people I went down on you at a frat party? What if someone finds out that I just spent an entire semester in class struggling not to touch you? What if your grades get called into question, or they toss you out of school?”

Our lips are inches apart. I brush my mouth against his as I whisper, “I. Don’t. Care.”

He growls and jerks me closer, pressing his lips to mine in a feverish kiss. I groan into his mouth as he slips his hand under the waistband of my yoga pants. His rough fingers gather up the moisture already pooling between my legs and, swipes it across my clit. It’s so similar to what Holden did to me, and yet so different. How does my body react to two different people? I push that thought away, and lower the front of his shorts enough to free him, stroking him to match the pace of his fingers on my clit.

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