Page 46 of Done Waiting

I pull off the road onto the overgrown road that hasn’t been used in years, heading into the dark woods. Maddie’s eyes widen from fright as she stares at the window, her body tensing. Blinking rapidly, she leans forward, her hand digging into my leg. Slowly, her head drops to my leg, and she yanks her hand back, as though she’s scared to touch me.

Whoa. What is going on with her?

I stop the truck, throw it in park, and turn to her. Cupping her chin, I tilt her head to mine. “Maddie.” My tone is low andgentle, coaxing her to reveal what is going on. “What’s wrong? Why are you scared?”

Swallowing hard, she stares into my eyes. “Are you… A-Are you g-going to h-hurt me?”

My brow furrows, my head tilting as I study her intently.Where is this coming from? Did Ben hurt her?

Confusion turns into rage as my body overheats at the mere thought of him harmingmygirl. “I’m not going to hurt you. I promise.” Leaning forward, I press my lips gently against hers.

Though I desperately want her pants off, my fingers and tongue inside her, I’ll take her back to her friend’s apartment right now to prove that I don’t mean her any harm.

My monster flips out, shaking my insides like an animal rattling a cage. I glower at him.Shut the fuck up.

When she speaks, her voice is timid, causing my monster to retreat. “Do you mean that?”

Removing one hand from her face, I grab her hand, wrapping my fingers around it. “I promise you, baby girl. You’re safe with me.”Safer than you could imagine since I’m a cold-blooded killer.“You call the shots here, okay?’ I raise our interlocked hands to my mouth, kissing her hand.

The fear disappears from her face, her expression soft from the relief coursing through her. “I believe you, Jagger.”

I can’t help the groan that leaves my lips. “The way my name sounds coming from your lips is so fucking decadent it’s almost immoral.”

Her laughter fills the cab of my truck, making me feel a hell of a lot better.

“Jagger?”

“Yeah, baby girl.”

“Kiss me.”

She’s barely finished speaking before I lunge for her, grabbing her face and pulling her against my mouth for akiss that leaves us breathless. She squeaks from surprise but I swallow the sound, desperate to taste her again. Her skin is like satin beneath my rough palms.God, this woman is everything. She’s so responsive, her mouth moving against mine, her hands reaching up and wrapping behind my neck, tugging me closer.

When I pull away, I’m breathless. My gaze drops to her slightly parted, swollen lips, watching as she greedily sucks in oxygen.

“You never answered my question,” I finally say.

Her brows draw in, her face puzzled. “What question?”

“When was the last time you had sex?”

“Oh, that one.” She pauses, studying me intently. “I’m going to be really honest with you. A couple of weeks ago, when I finally returned to my apartment, I… um….” Her cheeks are so red beneath my dashboard lights. “Well, I had sex with Ben.”

Jealousy courses through me like a raging inferno. My hands clench into fists, images of me beating the shit out of him filling my head.

Her hand moves to my cheek, drawing my attention back to her. “I had to think of you to… Get through it.”

My thoughts are a funnel cloud, spinning inside my head. “What do you mean, to get through it?”

She drops her eyes, fidgeting in the seat. “He wanted to try something new. He wanted me to act like I didn’t want him and fight him. Only, he started really scaring me and I was no longer pretending to try to get away. But he didn’t let me.”

That sick son of a bitch. I’m going to kill him.

She darts a peek at me, biting her lip. I nod encouragingly, needing to hear what the hell that bastard did to her.

“Ben… Well, it seemed to excite him. It was like he was getting off on my fear. But then he realized I wasn’t pretending. He became gentler but soon, he became rough again. I couldn’t fight him off and well, I had agreed—”

“No,” I roar, so pissed I can barely contain my rage. “Anytime you say no, it’s a no. A woman has the right to change her mind and no man should make her do anything she doesn’t want to do.”

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