Page 91 of Set In Stone

Oh, hell no! Drunk or not, he’s out of his fuckingmind!

But I didn’t voice the words, as I didn’t want to provoke him further. His fury was of the likes that I had never seen before. I knew why he wanted me to undress. He wanted to fuck away his anger. I even briefly contemplated doing as he wanted, knowing that a quick roll might simmer his temper down a bit. However, as fast as it passed through my head, I quickly dismissed it. Sex wouldn’t fix our problems – not this time. Giving in would be amistake.

Instead, I tilted my chin up stubbornly to show my refusal. He was trying to prove a point by scaring me. It stung that he would stoop so low but, little did he know, I wasn’t afraid. I knew the man beyond the façade. He would not hurtme.

“No, Alex. If you want me shackled to a wall, I’ll be more than happy to oblige another day. I’ll even help you secure the goddamn chains. But it definitely won’t be happening today. Not likethis.”

He didn’t respond, but wrapped his hand around my ponytail and tugged. Hard. He brought his lips to the shell of my ear and whispered, his voice sounding broken andraspy.

“Why did you come here? You saw my mother’s scar. He did that. I am capable of doing the same. Why are you temptingme?”

All my anger fell away at his words. The man I had fallen in love with, this powerful, physical, and captivating man, was allowing himself to be made small by things he had no control over. I knew in my heart that he was wrong, but I just didn’t know how to convince him otherwise. All my efforts to try to be there for him, to be his safe place, seemed to be in vain. Tears rushed to my eyes, falling in hot streaks down mycheeks.

“Alexander. Please,” I sobbed. “This isn’t you. I know itisn’t.”

He pulled back and stared at me long and hard, before eventually releasing his hold on me completely. His arms dropped to his sides and he took a few stepsback.

“Go, Krystina. Get out of here. You don’t belong here. In this place. In my fucked-up world. Withme.”

“I’m not goinganywhere.”

He staggered and, for the first time, I realized exactly how drunk hewas.

“I said get out. Don’t make this harder than it has to be. This is never going to work. I was foolish to believe that I could have anything normal with you. Just go. Find another man to give you what youdeserve.”

Moving to the corner of the room, he collapsed down into a plush black velvet armchair. Bracing his elbows on his knees, he held his head between his hands. He looked defeated, but I refused to let him go down thiseasily.

I looked around the strange and foreign room, located in a place that was all too familiar. It was here, at Club O, that Alexander and I experienced the beginning of the end. While we eventually made our way back to each other, I had pushed him to his hard limit thatnight.

“Sapphire,” I saidquietly.

Alexander slowly raised his head to meet mygaze.

“What?”

“You heard me. I saidsapphire.”

“I know what you said. Why did you sayit?”

“Because being without you is my hard limit – my only hard limit. You don’t get to walk away from me, AlexanderStone.”

He shook his head, but didn’t speak. I moved toward him, squatted down in front of him, and took hold of his hand. Raising it to my chest, I pressed his palm against my breast so that he could feel the beat of myheart.

“Angel, what are youdoing?”

“I left you once before. Here. In this place. But you eventually came after me. I won’t leave you again, Alex. Not now, not ever. That day on the side of the road when my car broke down, we stood in the rain and you placed your hand over my heart. Do youremember?”

He blinked, as if trying to clear the fog in hisbrain.

“Yes.”

“You forced me to acknowledge my feelings for you. My heart beat for you then, but it beats even stronger for you now. Please, let me take youhome.”

He searched my face through glazed eyes. I wasn’t sure what he saw, but he eventually nodded. When he stood, he wobbled. I took his arm and put it over my shoulder, barely able to support his heavy weight. Reaching into my back pocket, I pulled out my cell and dialedHale.

“He’s here, but in rough shape. I need you to help me get himhome.”

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