Page 72 of Regret

“My, my, Little Red. What a big mouth you have.”

And then he slapped her right across the face. But she was too damn scared to feel anything, so she started to fight back, slamming her fists against any part of his body she could manage.

She kicked. She screamed. She cried. Yet his hands were all over her, all at once. She thrashed and punched and scratched—anything to get free.

“Stop! Leave me alone! Don’t touch me! Stop!”

“Scarlet?”

“Please! You’re hurting me…”

“Scarlet, wake up.”

Hard hands jerked her shoulders and she threw a punch, trying to get away.

“Jesus fucking Christ. Goddammit. Scarlet, wake the fuck up!”

Scarlet opened her eyes, her heart pounding against her ribs like a jackhammer. Sweat and tears ran down her face, fear pulsing like a disease through her veins while her lungs burned for air.

When she looked up, Hunter was on top of her, straddling her while pinning her hands to the mattress.

“What the fuck, Scar?”

“Get off me!” she yelled, bucking and thrashing beneath him. She couldn’t breathe. She needed air.

“Not until you calm the fuck down.”

“Get off me, Hunter! Please. I can’t breathe.”

He loosened his hold on her hands and got off. Scarlet turned on her side and hung off the side of the bed when she started to vomit. Violent jerks wracked through her body, her stomach and heart both fighting for a way up her throat. It was like her body tried to get rid of the pain, the fear, the image ofhim, trying to expel the evil mark he left on her soul.

“Scarlet, are you okay?”

“I can’t go back to him.” She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “I can’t go back to him. I just can’t.” She cried, her tears falling on the laminated floor, the wood darkening with her sorrow.

“Scarlet.” He crouched down in front of her and she looked up at him. The thought ofhimfinding her, touching her, beingthatscared again was just too much for her to handle.

“Please don’t let him find me, Hunter” she whispered, tasting the saltiness of her tears. “Please.”

With both his hands Hunter wiped her hair out of her face and clutched her head behind her ears. “I promise you that I will not let him get near you, okay? I will keep you safe.”

She believed him. The way his eyes darkened, determination swirling in his green irises, she knew. Somehow she knew he would keep her safe. Whether it was her desperation that made her want to believe Hunter’s promise, or just plain wishful thinking, she didn’t care. All she cared about was that for the first time in years she had hope because of a promise Hunter had made.

The relief that flowed through her was so intense that she lunged forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tight as she continued to sob into his neck. Halfway off the bed, she felt his arms wrap around her and pull her onto his lap.

She had no idea how long they remained there, how long he held her in his arms, how long she cried. But for the first time in years she allowed herself to embrace the pain, and to purge. Being held, being in his arms helped. It calmed her. It tamed the panic, and for the second time since she had met him, he managed to help her get a grip over her fear.

“You okay there?” he whispered while he stroked his fingers through her hair.

“Yeah.” She sniffed and sat up, feeling the way her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. This was what she was afraid of the whole time. Showing her vulnerable side. Showing Hunter how scared and weak she really was. “I’m fine.”

She pushed herself off the floor and grabbed her robe to cover up. That was when she realized that she had been naked the entire time she was glued to Hunter’s lap.Nice.

Hunter watched her with worried eyes. “Nightmare?”

“Yeah.”

He got off the ground, and she noticed he cringed while clutching his rib.

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