Page 11 of Torqued Off

I line up the gauze over the four-inch slash and start adding pieces of medical tape. “I loved him, but I hated him, too. He said that he didn’t have a choice. His life wasn’t truly his. He was government property. And in the end, I ran away, and I’ve been running ever since.”

“I know that feeling.”

“You’re running?”

“No, the feeling of having no choice in your life. Being told what to do, even if you’re not sure it’s the right thing to do. Having to sacrifice your own happiness for the sake of others.”

I stand up and walk to the sink to wash my hands. “But my father sacrificed our family’s happiness for his own.”

I turn my back. This conversation is bringing back the pain of my youth. Those memories aren’t that long ago.

I can hear the chair scuffle across the floor and his boots click on the black and white squared linoleum. His hand brushes over my back and instead of flinching away, I move into the motion.

“I’m sorry, Bree. I shouldn’t compare my pain to yours. We all hurt in different ways and no one’s pain should shadow another’s”

His shadow rolls over me and instead of feeling in the dark, I feel protected. I turn and a stream of tears cools my cheek.

“Thanks, Thane.”

His hand wipes away the tears. “Oh Bree, life isn’t fair.”

He slows as his thumb nears my lips. It caresses the top lip before pulling the bottom lip just enough to make me inhale quickly. His touch is like adding a nitro boost to my body.

His head lowers, but he stops as he hovers over my lips, waiting, torturing me. If I don’t close the difference, I’m going to regret it. I pop to my tip toes and fuse our lips.

And from that moment, we’re not in hell anymore.

We’re in heaven.

6HADES/THANE

I shouldn’t do this.It’s only going to cause more issues. And if she hadn’t closed the space between us, I would have turned and walked away.

Keep telling yourself that.

I reach down and lift her up. She wraps those meaty thighs around my waist and I set her bulbous ass on the counter. If you only saw her from the chest up, you’d think she was a petite woman, but from the hips down she’s got the massive assets that I crave. They’re more than a handful and the more to enjoy.

Her hands dig into my mohawk, holding my lips to hers. Tangling tongues. Pulling hair. Moaning loud. Breathing hard. Every moment is burned into my brain. My fingers dig into the back pockets of her jeans.

Stop this now.

I pull her to the edge of the counter and grind her leather covered crotch against my painfully hard cock.

Don’t do it…she’ll never forgive you.

I slip a hand up her ribcage and cup her breast.

“Thane…yes. Oh, God, I need you inside me. Now.” She reaches toward my belt buckle.

I can’t…

I push back from her. “Fuck…” I run a hand over my hair.

“I agree…” Bree hops off the counter. “Come on, let’s do it in the bedroom. That counter is not soft.” She grabs my hand and yanks, but I don’t move.

She looks back, her eyebrows furrow. “Thane?”

“I…I have to tell you something.”

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