Page 105 of Quiet Obsession
She plays with my hair, her nails scraping my scalp, drawing small, soothing circles. Every inch of my body tingles under her touch and for a while, it grounds me...
But reality seeps in, poisoning the moment.
Her bare thighs are locked around me, chest pressed to mine, skin sticky and burning hot. My cock’s still inside her, softening slowly, and her head rests on my shoulder, body mellow like she’s not far off falling asleep.
My throat tightens.
Here she is, comfortable, sweet, and mellow, acting like I haven’t just fucked her hard enough to leave her sore for days. I know this is what she wants. I fuckingknow, but...
But that’snow, while she’s clawing her way back to herself.
When she’s whole again, she won’t need the monster, and she won’t reach for me. I’ll be a chapter she outgrew. Something she needed to survive on her way to something better.
She’ll want soft and safe, and what I’m giving her now is exactly why that won’t be me.
I exhale a shaky, uneven breath, forcing myself to let go.
She’s tired, her eyes closed. I can’t feel her lashes ghosting my skin. Her feet hit the floor, and she sways a little as if she fell asleep in that short moment and doesn’t know where she is.
Her eyes are glazed, lips swollen, bliss painting her gorgeous face. I rake my fingers through my hair, tugging hard at the roots.
“You shouldn’t have let me in, baby. You should’ve kept me out, but youopened the door.” I press my forehead to hers, one arm braced against the wall over her head. “I’m not good for you, but you’re the one thing I can’t seem to quit.”
“Then don’t.”
“I couldn’t if I tried. Trust me,I checked.”
She smiles, her dainty fingers twirling the hair at the back of my skull. For a second, I consider staying, but she places her hand against my sternum, looking up with sleepy eyes.
“Goodnight, Eli.”
I don’t reply, too afraid something other than goodnight will come out.
I hate you for making me want you so badly that it’ll kill me when you no longer need this.
31
Creed
Hyde hangs his head low over the cafeteria table, massaging his temples in slow circles like he’s trying to squeeze the pain out. He skipped morning classes and, by the look of him, he crawled out of bed no longer than fifteen minutes ago.
His hair’s a mess, sticking up in every direction, and his skin has that pale, sickly tone that betrays he spent last night drinking himself into oblivion.
Dash sits beside him, signature shit-eating grin plastered across his face. Hyde’s suffering is the highlight of his day.
Balancing a tray on one palm, I sling my bag off my shoulder and drop into the chair opposite, sliding his lunch and a glass of electrolytes across the table.
“Eat,” I tell him.
He groans, lifting his head and narrowing his bloodshot eyes. “You’re an asshole, Elias. Why did you let medrink that much?”
“Don’t first-name me just because you can’t handle your liquor, Ward. I told you to slow down.”
He scrunches his nose at the burger and pushes the tray away with one finger. “I’m not hungry.”
I push it right back. “Don’t make me feed you.”Because I’ll accidentally-on-purpose fucking choke you for sending Noah to Millie.
Dash barks out a laugh, spearing a few of Hyde’s fries onto his fork and pointing it between us. “I see your roles have reversed.” He stuffs his mouth with the fries, chewing slowly. “You rarely drink this much during the week, Hyde. What happened?”
