Page 66 of Shred of Darkness
Bracing my hand against the wall for support, I rise on shaky legs and wrap my arms securely around my middle. A few breaths through my nose, and I manage a rough, “I know. I know it was a slip of the tongue, but I just... I need a minute.”
Stone slaps a hand over Raiden’s mouth before he can launch into another flurry of apologies. “Of course.”
Kodi looks both furious, and fucking terrified. “Why don’t you go take a hot bath, and I’ll pull some snacks together to help settle your stomach?”
I offer a jerky nod, and the tension in his shoulders visibly eases with the assurance I’m not going to run. Or worse, do something stupid like insist on going for a walk alone to clear my head and wind up kidnapped. But while I’m a hot mess, I’m not so stubbornly stupid to insist on playing right into the villain’s hands. My smutty romance novels are good for more than getting off, and have taught me a thing or two over the years.
Stone clenches and unclenches his fist like he’s fighting the urge to reach for me again before shoving it in his pocket. “If you don’t want to be alone with your thoughts, we can watch a movie or continue our game. No talking required.”
“Noted. Thanks.” Taking a deep breath, I force myself to meet Raiden’s eyes so he can see the sincerity in mine. “Iknowit was an accident, okay? You’re not going to lose me over it, so try not to kill yourself with anxiety. I don’t want to have to worry about you falling apart while I’m trying to get my head on straight again. Just plan on me extorting foot massages from you for the next year.”
With a rough swallow, he struggles to come up with a response, but I save us both the need by walking away at a fast clip toward the stairs. Nothing more needs to be said right now. He can apologize until he’s blue in the face, but hearing the same line fifty times won’t change anything.
I’m not upset at anyone but myself. Iknowit was an accident, a slip of the tongue. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t fucking hurt.
There are too many parallels giving my deep-seated doubts ample opportunity to mess with my head. I was desperate to be loved, and the world gave me someone that’s so obsessed with me, it nearly killed me. I wished for someone to save me from my shitty life on the run, and history repeated itself three times over.
Maybe that’s my purpose in life, to become the next cautionary tale parents use to teach their children to be careful what they wish for.The Girl so Desperate to be Loved, She Became the Dragons’ Pet.
A hand claps over my mouth, muffling my startled cry. An arm bands around my stomach, pulling me back flush against a hard chest as Malcolm’s lips brush the shell of my ear. “Shh, it’s only me, love. You did so good, buying us some time before they come looking for you.”
The sound of something tapping against the scanner and a door unlocking behind me has my heart kicking into overdrive, and I start pulling on every bit of energy from the walls that I can. But I can’t focus, can barely breathe, and it takes far too long to build up a charge big enough it’ll do anything more than piss him off.
I can play into his delusions long enough to find a way to escape, or I can scream and trust one of the guys will make it in time before Malcolm takes my betrayal to heart and punishes me for it.
Pushing through the ache in my throat, I take a deep breath, but before I can utter a sound, a shiver wracks my body as warm air rolls across my skin, distorting my vision of the hallway like I'm viewing it through the blistering heat above a mirage, trapping the two of us in an air pocket.
Our own little bubble, distorting scents, sounds, and visibility, letting someone hide in plain sight.
Malcolm removes his hand from my mouth, speaking at a normal volume while tugging me through the door to Avery's tower. "You're safe now, darling. They’ll never touch you again."
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To be continued in Scales of Destruction...
(Link coming soon)
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