Page 43 of Ink Deep Devotion

The scent of inks and paints has my nostrils flaring. Mom’s studio used to have a similar scent; she painted with oils, causing the scent of linseed to be a keynote in my childhood memories. I turn the hall, almost reaching the corner I need to turn, but then, as the scent intensifies, I hesitate. My feet feel too heavy to move.

If Mom saw me now…

I’m a copy and paste of my father before he met my mother.

My head hangs; there’s no fight, no begging, as I imagine King Louis XVI would have cried out for a second chance; he would have fought when his head was pressed down on the stained wooden block.

I accept my fate and my actions. Nature and nurture were both deadly wombs I festered in.

Unlike old King Louis XVI, I don’t want Mila to suffer a fate like Marie Antoinette did. No matter how much I hate her for her selfish actions, I don’t want her dead. I’m about to turn around when I hear a door open and shut; then whispers begin to reach my ears.

I lean closer to the corner when I hear,“Please,” a soft, gentle begging that belongs to Mila. Now, my feet are as light as a feather as I float them down the hall and turn the corner. There she is, my little fox, escaping her class. It’s naughty of her to run wild on this campus.

Everything stops when I see she isn’t alone. My veins calcify; with one touch, I’ll crack into a million sharp shards.

Dom, the man she fucked, is grasping her forearms in what looks like an attempted embrace. Their proximity is so intimate that his breath is pushed into her throat with each exhale.

Nausea rolls up my throat, and I see red, but also black and white as they look into each other’s eyes.

As I come to a sudden halt, they both pivot to face me. I snort in disgust just as Dom stands tall with a wicked grin. I look at her and see her shock.

“Dash, this isn’t,”

“This isn’t you running into his arms because I hurt you.” I spew. She’s so predictable, always running to the next thing that numbs her.

Mila looks at Dom for defense, but he just grins wider,“Dom!” She shakes her head and comes forward,“Dash, please. We’re just talking. It’s not,”

Turning, I swiftly force down my mistake. That would be the last time I begged her for answers. Now she’s just got my bleak, buried fury.“You’re nothing to me. Always were. Have fun with her, Dom. She likes to shower together. You should try it.”

The crack of her cry is the last thing I hear, and it pierces my heart more painfully than the bullets ever felt.

Chapter 16

Mila

I whirl around, more furious than I have ever felt. Seething, I glare at Dom.“Youpulledmeout of class, begging me to talk!” I shout so loudly that the door to the art studio swings open, and Blaze steps out. I knew he was close by.

Blaze had warned me not to go with Dom when he interrupted class. Dom looked so angry that even the teacher stepped aside. But I felt like I owed Dom answers, so I stepped outside—only to find him begging me for another chance.

That’s when Dash showed up.

I know what he saw: Dom’s hands on me, looking like we were running into each other’s arms.

“Are you okay, Mila?” Blaze’s warm face and faint freckles greet me, but his eyes are not friendly. He’s the man every male at this school secretly is—a predator. He might be smiling and fun-loving, but Blaze attends this university for a reason. He’s from a ruthless family that expects wicked deeds from him.

“She’s fine.”

“I askedher.” Blaze crosses his arms.

“How could you?” I cry towards Dom. The hallway seems to stretch out around us, and I know that no matter how fast I run, Dash would have disappeared by now.

“I could ask you the same.” Dom snickers.“It hurts when you play with someone’s heart, doesn’t it?” He speaks in such a wicked tone that I question how I ever befriended a man like him. All those times he helped me escape were just traps.

“You were never my friend. You were a monster, tricking me as you purred and led me into your clutches. I can’t believe I slept with you!”

“You came so dutifully,”His smirk is sadistic.“Screaming my name as I made you come on my cock.”

Sting! My palm flares with a spark as it lands on his cheek.

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