Page 38 of Obsession

“How do you know it won’t?” she asks.

I’d be lying if I said fucking Adrian hadn’t crossed my mind. I nearly begged for it the other night. Every time he gets close to me, I wonder what he’d be like in bed. Will he be good? Will he rush through it, or take his time with me? Based on his punishments alone, I think he’d take his time with me. Goosebumps creep up my arms at the thought.

I doubt he’d be the type of guy who finishes in two minutes. He seems like someone who likes to savor his moments.

“Sure.” I shake my head with a laugh. “I’ll give it a try and let you know how it goes.”

“Please do.”

When the door to the bar opens, I don’t even notice, thinking it’s just another person coming in. Gino’s is off the tourist path and less frequented, it’s not too busy at 8:00 p.m. on a Friday night, but still there are people here. I don’t notice as black dress shoes stomp a slow path to our booth in the back corner. It’s not until Adrian is standing directly in front of us that I finally see him.

Dressed impeccably in a fitted suit with his hair slicked back and the sides neatly trimmed, he looks down at the five of us with a heavy frown.

I realize I’m tucked between Elijah and Mathias, and from Adrian’s view, I’m sure we look too comfortable.

Before he even says a word, my heart is throbbing in my chest and my lungs contract, begging for air they can’t seem to breathe in. Fear blinds the edges of my vision, and my immediate reaction is to diffuse the situation.

“Adrian-”

“Adrian?” Elijah cuts me off. “This is your husband? Not bad.” He smirks, and I can’t help but think this is the worst time for him to be commenting on Adrian’s looks.

Adrian only smiles under Elijah’s gaze. “Madi,” he says coolly, even though I can see the tic in his jaw. “Care to introduce me to your friends?”

“Uhm-” I stumble. His demeanor isn’t threatening; he even looks interested in learning their names, but something about the situation sits uncomfortably in my gut. “This is Elijah, Mathias, Eric, and Sadie.” All four of them are looking at my husband, but his eyes stay glued to mine. “We’re just getting a drink.” I feel the need to say it, as if it’s an excuse for why I’m here.

Besides, Adrian never told me I couldn’t leave the house. He never gave me any rules, really. He can’t possibly be upset with me. I talk myself up in my head, preparing for whatever fight might happen once we’re behind closed doors.

“Nice to meet you,” he says, the corners of his lips lifting with a playful smile. “Unfortunately, I need to steal my wife from you. Madi.” He gestures with his hand, waiting for me to climb out of the booth and take it.

“See you next week?” I ask the guys.

“Always.” Elijah confirms our standing arrangement for drinks every Friday.

The soles of my white Keds have barely touched the sidewalk outside the bar before Adrian has me spun around, my back hitting the brick wall.

He cages me in with a hand on either side of my ribs, and my skin tingles at the heat of his nearness. As his head dips low, the scent of mint infiltrates my nostrils. Warm breath trails over my collarbone and up my neck, making me shiver, before his face settles in front of mine.

“Who are they?” he asks, his voice deep and throaty. He sounds different than he normally does, less in control. “To you?” he adds.

“Friends,” I breathe. “Just friends.”

One of his hands turns to a fist as he braces himself against the wall, his eyes closing for a brief moment.

“You don’t have to worry about them…” I mutter. For some reason, I want to reassure him. “I’m not going to fuck them or anything.”

Despite how many rules I broke or fights I picked with Marcus, the one thing I never did was bring other guys into it. Even with these three, I limited myself to Friday night drinks. Our friendship couldn’t exist outside the safety of the bar.

People around me die. It’s an undeniable fact.

“You don’t even get it, do you?”

“Get what?”

Dark eyes drill into me, and his parted lips hover above mine. My pulse pounds. I think he’s about to say or something…or kiss me.

And then he’s being pulled away. Dark-clothed arms wrap around him and someone drops a brown sack over his head.

I think I scream. My lips open, but I can’t hear past the sound of the blood rushing in my ears.

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