Page 40 of Ravaged By Lust

Man, I’m really having to fight for her trust, aren’t I?

And there’s no guarantee I’m going to get it.

“Closure sounds a lot like you having sex with me.”

“It’s much more than that, Chloe.”

“You’re disgusting. I’m not yours anymore. Not since what happened.”

I really want to answer her. I want to lay everything out for her. I’m doing what I told Drake back in the car I never do. Begging.

I’m trying to erase the past. I’m trying to show the woman I once fell in love with that I’ve changed.

But before I can say another word, some large guy jumps in between Chloe and me.

Who the fuck’s this fuck?

“What’s going on, Chloe?” the man asks her, ignoring me.

“Who the hell is this guy?” I ask the girl over the big guy’s shoulder. “Your new fling? The secret boyfriend you’re hiding?”

I’m not jealous if she does have some guy.

Okay… maybe I’m a little bit jealous. I am human, after all.

But hopefully, this guy isn’t hers. Please God, I hope he isn’t her man.

“This is the guy I was talking about,” Chloe says to maybe-new-boyfriend, disregarding my questions. “My ex.”

His head swivels around from her to me and then back to her, acknowledging my presence for the first time with his eyes.

“Not the guy from your past?”

Chloe crosses her arms. “Yep.”

“You were talking about me?” I ask.

Oh, this is a development. A boost to my crusade.

The guy waves at me. “Back off from Chloe.”

Wait… is he threatening me?

I’m not having that. I’m twice his size in height and muscles.

This is funny. Real fucking funny.

“Who the fuck is this guy, Chloe? Answer me before I knock him out. I swear to God.”

“Come home with me,” the guy says to Chloe. “Leave him.”

“Hang on,” she replies. “I want to say one more thing to Bishop.”

I would really love to give this random dude a good beating, but I would rather hear what Chloe has to say. “What is it?”

She squeezes past the guy and takes a step right up to my face. We’re nose to nose, and not in a good way. “Everything difficult in my life is due to what you did to me all those years ago,” she says.

“Maybe I’m not completely to blame,” I say. “You were also involved.”