Page 42 of Done Waiting

Rolling my eyes, I turn off the alarm and step inside my cabin. Locking the door and setting the alarm behind me, I say, “You sleep too much anyway, asshole.”

He immediately protests and I cut him off. “Listen. I need you to do something.”

“I’m all ears.”

“Maddie and her boyfriend, Ben. Seems there’s trouble in paradise. She’s staying at her friend’s house.”

There’s a tense silence as he says nothing. I’m aware of his feelings about my plans for Maddie. He’d much rather I end her than play games with her.

“I need you to see what you can find out.”

He heaves out a long, irritated sigh. “Fine. I’ll see what I can dig up.”

“Thanks, brother.”

“Always, brother.”

The next day, Maddie doesn’t leave Ashlynn’s house. I watch her from the shadows again, my thirst for her growing. Especially since she seems to be avoiding Ben.

Ever since our conversation inside the coffee shop, she’s impressed me with her wit and intelligence. The banter andsassiness she exhibited made me hard. Her vanilla and honey scent is deeply entrenched inside of me.

I beat off to the fantasies of her inside my head every damn night. Especially after her comment about screaming out my name while she was touching herself.Fuck.I’m hard again.

It’s been hard to focus on my “work.” She plagues my thoughts, popping up at the most inopportune times.She’s a distraction. An obsession.

I keep telling myself it’s part of my plan, but the monster inside me starts screaming that I’m taking this too far. Grabbing my hair, I scream at him to shut the fuck up.

I know what I’m doing.

Sure, my monster says, red eyes glowing.Don’t fuck this up, Jagger.

Maddie heads to her car, eyes darting around nervously as she hurries across the parking lot of the bookstore. I watch her, my hands trembling, aching to touch her. I don’t give a fuck about Ben anymore. She’smine!

She holds the keyless entry in her hand, pressing the button to unlock her doors, as I quietly creep up behind her. When her hand closes around the handle, I grab her, spinning her around. Her eyes are wide and her mouth opens, but I stop her scream by clamping my hand over her mouth.

“Hello, my beautiful baby girl.” Closing my eyes, I lean in, inhaling her scent, her fear mixing in with it, making the sensation headier. “I’ve missed you.”

Her wide eyes stare fearfully back to me, every muscle in her body tense.

Why is she so terrified of me?

We stand beneath the lights, and I can’t take the risk of someone spotting us.

Hoisting her over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes, Maddie’s small fists pound against my back. She shrieks as she flails and kicks, trying to get free, but the sounds she makes are weak from all the effort she’s expending as she fruitlessly fights against me.

“Put me down,” she seethes.

Reaching my truck, I lower her feet to the ground, before pushing her against it. I cage her in with my body, her chest heaving against mine. She opens her mouth to scream, but I cover her mouth.

“Shhh, baby girl. It’s alright.” Reaching up, I gently caress her face, taking in her wide-eyed, scared prey look. “I’m not going to harm you.”

Her eyes dart between mine, seeking reassurance.

“I’m going to remove my hand now. Promise you won’t scream?”

She gives me a subtle nod. Slowly, I move my hand away from her mouth.

“W-what d-do you want?” Her voice quivers, her face pale beneath the dark shadows, the lights in the parking lot providing a dim view of her. I know I scared her as I dragged her into the darkness with me. But after watching her the past few days, I couldn’t resist her allure any longer.

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