“And anyway,” she continues before I can respond, feigning a lightness in her tone that I know she doesn’t feel. “I think Sylvester wants me to stay.”
“Because he’s a goddamn creep,” I snap heatedly.
“He is,” she agrees, nodding her head.
And that’s it. That’s all she has to say.
I shake my head, mind-blown that she isn’t scared of him like she should be.
That’s when her gaze finally flits to me. She forces a smile—a weak one—in an attempt to placate me.
“Don’t worry, I’m used to living with a creep. I know how to handle them.”
“That’s the problem, bella,” I say, giving in to my baser instincts and climbing onto the bed next to her. Her eyes round at the corners, but it only makes me want to crawl closer. I lie down next to her, and even though a large part of me is angry with her, there’s an even bigger part of me that can’t let her go.
“You should have never been put in that position, and you sure as fuck should never have to get used to someone so fucking vile.”
She blinks, her eyes glassy. Tipping her chin down, she mutters, “What do you expect me to do? I don’t have any other choice.”
I close my eyes, and even though I’m giving in to her, it doesn’t bother me as much as I thought it would.
“I’m going to protect you, Sawyer,” I promise her. Her eyes shoot back to mine, once more widening with surprise.
“I don’t agree with how you live your life, but that doesn’t mean I don’t understand. You’re not a fucking coward. You’ve been fighting your entire life and deserve rest.”
Her bottom lip trembles and she captures it between her pretty white teeth. Once more, I’m hit with the craving to taste them. It’s not just a want, it’s a need.
“You can’t let them find me,” she whispers.
“The only one who will ever find you is me, Sawyer. You can hide from everyone else, but you can’t hide from me.”
She stares up at me with bewilderment, struggling to accept what I’m saying. I’m struggling to accept it myself, but it feels right. Even when Sawyer did me wrong, nothing about her ever felt that way.
“Why would you help me?”
It’s dangerous to touch her, but I’m incapable of stopping myself. I brush a few curled strands from her face, tucking them behind her ear. She shivers beneath my touch, only encouraging the hunger coursing through my system. It’s not enough—it never is, but it’s all I can give right now.
“Because I feel so much for you, Sawyer.”
I allow myself one little taste and lean in until her scent envelops me. She smells of the salty ocean and something sweet. A tiny gasp feathers across my lips, and I know what she’s thinking.
Moving my hand to the back of her neck, I grip tight to hold her in place, though she has gone completely still anyway.
“Don’t move,” I warn her, a shaky exhale her only response.
My mouth brushes against hers, and I dart out my tongue to lick the bow of her upper lip, nearly groaning from the minty taste on her breath.
Moving to the side of her mouth, I place a gentle kiss on the corner and then another farther up her cheek.
“Is it hate?” she croaks, trembling beneath my touch.
“I don’t hate you,” I say. Another kiss.
“And you deserve to have a life. A real one.” Kiss.
“Come back with me, bella.” Kiss. This one is salty from the single tear that has slipped from her eye.
“Is that what you really want?” she asks, her voice hoarse. “What will I do then? I have no way to support myself wi—”
“You’ll work for me.”
She jerks back, staring at me with bugged eyes. “Absolutely not. I will not get in the water with those… those beasts.”
The laugh bursts from my throat before I can even think to stop it. It causes us both to freeze, but fuck, if I’m breaking the rules tonight, I might as well break all of them.
She lifts up, her fingers smoothing across my lips with wonder.
“Do that again.”
“Absolutely not,” I say, though the lingering grin refuses to disappear completely. There’s a glimmer in her eye, and it’s the first time I’ve seen it since I’ve met her. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say Sawyer is actually happy right now. And the way that collectively makes my chest tighten and want to laugh like a maniac just to see it brighten is concerning to say the fucking least.