Page 21 of Hurt Me Not
“This is what you’ve always wanted, isn’t it?” she asked, and I saw when she looked at my wrist, where the bracelet was hidden under my shirt cuff. “Why you followed me through school, pushing away everyone who showed even the tiniest bit of interest in me?”
The tone of her words cut me through the chest, but she wasn’t wrong. Every time anyone even came close to her, whether as a friend or—especially—something more, I would make it so they’d think twice about it.
I was impulsive then, obsessed with making her mine and only mine.
I still was. The contract was just a more formal, less unhinged, grown-up way of doing that.
Now that I was older, I was okay with her having friends or colleagues because I knew she would be mine. It would excite me to see her walking around this office knowing I was the only one who knew how much of a dirty slut she was.
For me, and only me.
“You know… I see you, Emerson. It might have taken me a long time, but I got it. I see you now, just like you see me. I was wrong. I may know a lot more about you than I realized.”
That's what she didn't understand. She had some good guesses. She was starting to see the tiniest portion of the puzzle.
But she would never truly see me. I would never let anyone see what was hiding behind the dark recesses of my mind.
While Pearl had been scared about what people would think about her when they found out about her needs, I didn't have to be. There was no point.
I already knew no one on this earth would accept me for who I was.
I was dirty and messed-up, and this contract was proof of it.
As much as I wanted her, her words made me start thinking that she had zero survival instinct. If she knew what was good for her, she would run far away from this office and even further away from me.
She didn't know how obsessed I always had been about her. How every single thing I ever did was because I wanted her beside me.
I had never wanted to be her bully. I had never wanted to hurt her with my words or actions. It was just my way of being around her. Of her noticing me.
I could have told her not to leave that night. I could have told her she hadmein our small town, so she didn’t have to leave.
But I didn’t.
“I don’t want to be seen,” I spat and pushed the pile of papers closer. “I want you to spread your legs for me. Now, what will it be?”
Pearl met me with a smile that had my stomach flipping.
“You’ll know my answer after I read through everything,” she said, grabbing the papers as she stood, but I shot up, my hand grasping her wrist.
“I never said you could take that out of here. Or that you would have time to think about it.”
She turned to me, her smile still in place.
“Scared I’ll say no after reading it all?”
Yes.
“No.”
Her smile widened.
Maybe she truly is starting to see right through me.
“See you soon, Emerson.”
With that, she strode out, leaving me alone, pissed off, and… incredibly horny.
Chapter 6
