Page 50 of Echo
It was hard to do soul searching while a soul snatching monster was perusing through my brain with just his eyes, but I managed to get a handle on the source. “
“Because you’re mad at me,” I whispered. “I think.”
He tilted his head in consideration. “You believe I’ll harm you out of anger.”
I nodded, unsure of what else to say.
“I will not touch you without explicit permission, if I am angry,” he declared in that matter of fact tone he used sometimes.
“But you believe you own me, why would you concede to that?”
“I do own you,” he said. “But I respect what you are asking of me. Now that I understand the root need, I can fulfill it better.”
“You’re a weird monster.” The smell of seasoning on the verge of burn caught my attention, so I turned to flip the meat over.
He resettled on my shoulder again. His hands clutching me as if I might escape.
“Doesn’t it hurt your back to lean like that?”
“No.” He sighed as if there was nowhere else he’d rather be. Before me, when was the last time he touched someone he wasn’t hunting?
Even though working around him was a pain in my ass, I didn’t tell him to move.
Stop that, Madison. A monster doesn't need you to baby him. He wants to feed off your fear.
I could fix him. He wasn’t that bad. He was sweet and broken.
I set up my portion on the table, and when I went to sit down, I found him already sitting in my chair. I opened my mouth to scold him, and he pulled me down into his lap.
His warmth surrounded me and swaddled me in his protective embrace.Was there anywhere safer in this world?An insane thought.
“I’ve been hurt by a lot of angry men,” I confessed. Even the ones I adored. The ones who still had my heart in their meaty hands. As much as I loved my dad, there was a reason I fled home as soon as I graduated.
Violent means have violent ends.
I’d ended up locked in this world of danger that I never escaped. All that changed was the breed of hate. Because I loved men with a tragic, dark past, and they loved me.
He pressed his snout against the crown of my head. “I understand.”
Tension that lived deep inside me eased away.
“I want you as you are. Whatever that may be. Never again will a mortal try to make you less.” His arms tightened around me. “Please, eat.”
The moment was serene and yet unbearable at the same time. The monster was worming his way into my soul, and making himself home there. I couldn’t let that happen or I really would never escape.
“If I wear the chicken cutlets and you scare me would that count?” I asked to lift the intensity in the room. Sex was one thing, mental intimacy was another beast.
He froze as if I’d surprised him, before a deep chuckle vibrated my back. “No, but I like how you think. The thing I’m eating has to have the fear in their system.”
“Grandma used to say that tainted the meat. That’s why you never let the animal see your blade.” I remembered her talking about going to the coop to get fresh chicken for the day. She always said it was important that the animal never knew you were coming.
“She was right.”
I ate in silent companionship. His fingers moving over my body distracted me, especially when a hand slid between my thighs. When I was done, he whispered in my ear. “The hunting has started. Don’t leave the house.”
A shiver went through me. “What does that mean?”
“That means I’m not the only monster in the woods,” he warned.
