Page 76 of Selling Innocence

She was flexible and had amazing leg strength. She wasn’t vicious, which meant her punches were all of useless, but she managed throws and take-downs with ease.

I avoided the leg, then moved my knees to outside her thighs, trapping her biggest weapons. Afterward, I grasped both her wrists and pinned them to the mats, rendering her helpless.

I smirked down at her, knowing I enjoyed this far too much. It had been for her, to cheer her up and ease her burdens, but somewhere along the way, I’d ended up having a great time myself.

Except, when I stared at her face, my breath caught.

She panted hard, sweat on her forehead, a few strands of her hair that had escaped from her braid sticking to her skin. We were so close. When we hadn’t been face-to-face, it had felt more like sparing, but like this?

It felt like lovers.

I waited for her to snap at me, to tell me to get off her, to lecture me for taking things too far.

I deserved that. I’d do it, moving away, offering an awkward apology for losing focus.

Except…she didn’t.

Her pupils grew wider and her pink tongue darted out, running across her bottom lip. She shifted her legs, her thighs rubbing against each other, the action impossible to see as anything other than what it was.

She’s turned on…

Two sides of me warred in that moment.

The smart part of me, the civilized and thoughtful part wanted to shove away from Kenz. It screamed that I should put distance between us, that this was just a reaction to stress and the difficult place she was in. She’d been forced into relying on four men without fully understanding just how dangerous we were, how terrible.

Of course she’d cling to us, would see the best in us. She had no other choice. It was a basic survival skill, to grow close to those who control our fates.

Except, the other part of me wanted to push more. The sight of her tongue and her damp lips drew me in, made me crave a taste of her. I wanted to spread her thighs around my hips and grind against her, to hear her moan and gasp for me.

I wanted to see her experience pleasure, to have her fall apart beneath me, to witness her first time having a man take her to the depths and heights of what she could feel.

And I knew I could do just that. She was so honest that I had zero doubts I could get her there, that I could please her.

Don’t you dare!

I was a monster, but even after all the terrible things I’d done, I didn’t think I could bring myself to look in a mirror if I took advantage of her here.

Kenz leaned up, her lips nearing mine, her eyes drifting closed. All I had to do was not move and it wouldn’t even be my fault, right?

Red covered my vision, as though the blood of all those people I’d killed rolled through my mind.

I flattened my hands against the mats and shoved myself upright, moving away before she made contact. I hopped to my feet, catching a glimpse of hurt on her face as she opened her eyes.

She should realize how lucky she was that I thought clearly enough for the both of us. I had to trust time would show that.

I went to turn, to wrap up for the day, when my gaze landed on her stomach.

The hem of her crop top had ridden up, but it wasn’t lust that hit me. Instead, the sight of damaged skin struck me, a gnarled scar there that I easily recognized.

Live the life I had, kill as many people as I had, and certain wounds were impossible to forget. The biggest among them? The telltale mark from a bullet wound.

The scarring there on her side said Kenz had gotten shot, and that the bullet could have easily taken her life.

Just what the hell had she been up to?

Chapter Sixteen

Kenz

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