Page 41 of Unwell
Warmth surrounded me. Lips against my neck and fingers trailing up my spine. Hungry kisses etched over my shoulder and across my throat. Pleasure spiralled through me. Proof that he was real. That he loved me despite his harsh words. His hand slid over the curve of my belly in a hold that was firm and possessive. Elijah cradled my bump like it belonged to him. Because itdid. He had forced this life inside me. Told me to nurture it so he could finally be a daddy.
‘My Elijah,’ I breathed, luxuriating in his touch like a cat in heat.
‘You’re mine. My girl. My perfect one. You’re doing so well. We’re so close now. And this time I can be here to watch you.’The words were buttery smooth, and filled with devotion.
Like he used to be. Before I made him so mad.
I melted into a pool of need. The tension and fear bled out of me. For a while he was gentle, the way he had been before bad Elijah came. Before Mama’s shouting. Before the first one. Before I got locked in Wellard.
Safe.
The world narrowed to just the two of us. The one bed. The way he ran his fingers under my nightdress and stole my breath.
But then…The kisses changed.
They grew harder. Hungrier. His teeth caught my skin and scraped until I cried. His lips bruised me.
‘Elijah, you’re hurting me.’
The hand beneath my sheets bit into my thigh until I gasped. His other hand clamped around my wrists, pinning them above my pillow. Any gentleness had fled.
The herby spiciness of his scent thickened as he leaned over me, pressing three fingers roughly inside me. Not just spice, but something sharper and more chemical. It made my eyes water.
A tremor shook me. Something didn’t feel right.
Elijah’s voice distorted. Too fast. Too harsh. His words slipped past me, quick as shiny minnows, impossible to catch long enough to figure out what was wrong with them.
‘Elijah?’ I questioned.
I turned my face to his, but I couldn’tseehim. No features. No eyes. Nothing of my Elijah.
The weight on my chest grew heavier as he turned me fully onto my back and opened my legs. My ribs ached with each shallow breath as I fought his advance.
‘Stop,’ I gasped, pushing weakly at him. ‘Please. Not like this.’
He didn’t stop.
My nightdress tore, the sound echoing in the dark. Cold air wrapped my skin before his weight covered me again.
Smothered me.
His breath filled my face, hot and sour and nothing like the boy I knew.
And just for a moment realisation hit.
Thiswasn’tElijah.
‘Elijah,’ I begged, hoping it might halt him from thrusting inside of me. If I said his name, it would make him turn back into himself.
It had to.
But his grip on my arms tightened as he crushed me into the mattress.
‘The baby,’ I panted as he filled me to bursting. ‘Watch the baby.’
‘Gonna fuck it right out of you so I can take it homethis time.’ Not-Elijah grunted as each thrust made me want to vomit.
Each breath only pulled more of his scent into me. Pressure filled my chest until I felt like I was suffocating.
