Page 49 of Backstroke

“You,” I whimper, needing his touch like I need air.

“Oh, I’m the only one you’re getting, but I want to know what you want me to do.” The wicked gleam in his eyes excites me.

“I need your mouth on me.” I look away, suddenly not sure I have what it takes to voice what I really want. He pulls my chin back, forcing my eyes on his.

“Where? I want to hear you say it.”

I bite my bottom lip to keep from screaming at him. He knows what I want, but he’s pushing me. Forcing me to voice my wants.

“I hate you,” I lie.

“Liar,” he smirks as his hand trails down my neck, between the valley of my breasts. He leans over, kissing the same path his hand just took. He’s slow and deliberate, then he stops at my scar. I try to turn away, but he presses me further into the mattress as he licks along the jagged edges of skin. The realization of what he’s doing is both terrifying and soothing. He continues further down my belly, nipping and licking the whole way.

“You’re unlike anyone I’ve ever met,” he admits against my hip bone.

“What? Fat?” I know as soon as the words leave my lips that I fucked up.

“What did you just say?” he growls, pinning my hands above my head. His heated gaze bores into mine, and I’m speechless.

“Remy, I didn’t mean—“ I start, but he cuts me off.

“Don’t you ever say that about yourself,” he snaps, his voice low and intense. “You’re not fat. You’re beautiful, sexy, and it kills me that you don’t see that.”

I swallow hard, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes. “I’m sorry. It’s just… it’s hard to believe sometimes. Plus, I’ve seen the girls that you’re normal–”

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence, Fallon.” I hear the warning in his tone, but I don’t understand why.

“What the hell is your problem? I’m just your stepsister. Once you get tired of me, you’ll cast me off like all the rest.” My heart is pounding in my ears and my breaths are coming out in pants. I’m so confused that I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“Let me make myself perfectly clear.You. Are. Mine.Not just today, tomorrow or the next. Mine, Fallon,“ he snaps.

“Stop trying to control me!” I shout. I know I’m starting a fight, but maybe that’s what we need to start thinking clearly.

“Control you? Is that what you think this is about?”

I try to pull my hands free, but Remy’s hold is firm. “What else could it be? You think you can just order me around and I’ll follow like some obedient pet?”

Remy’s jaw clenches, a muscle ticking in his cheek. “It’s not about control, Fallon. It’s about us. About what we could be if you’d just stop fighting me.”

My heart pounds in my chest. “And what if I don’t want to be whatever it is you think we should be?”

He moves closer, his voice dropping low. “Then you’re lying to yourself. Because I see the way you look at me, the way you react when I’m near. You want this just as much as I do.”

I can feel my resolve wavering, the intensity of his gaze making it hard to think clearly. “Remy, this is wrong. We can’t just ignore everything and everyone else.”

Remy’s eyes soften slightly, his thumb still gently caressing my lips. “Maybe it’s not about ignoring them. Maybe it’s about finding a way to make this work despite everything else.”

I close my eyes, taking a deep breath. He releases my hands and cups my face, his thumbs brushing away the tears that started to fall.

My eyes open to see a vulnerability that I’ve never seen before. A softer side of Remy that I didn’t know existed. I’m getting sucked into Remy’s treacherous currents, and I know I’m alreadyin too deep.

“Push me away all you want, but I’m not going anywhere.” His promise hangs in the air, wrapping around me like a soft embrace. He lays down beside me, pulling me back against his hard chest. He tucks us under the blanket, then wraps his arm around my middle, like he’s afraid I’ll run at my first chance.He’s probably right. I need to run, but I find myself melting into his tight hold.

Maybe this is going to backfire in my face, but at the moment I can’t seem to care.

They always say to look before you leap, but I dove head first into Remington Frampton, and I’m not coming up for air anytime soon.

Eighteen

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