My eyes shutter as his hot breath fans down the expanse of my chest. Goosebumps rise and a shiver crawls down my spine.
His fingers pinch my nipple through the fabric of my shirt and bra, tugging hard and wringing a pained cry from my throat.
Yet, my body reacts without permission. I grind back into him, feeling the hard expanse of him pressing into my back.
The hand around my throat pulses, tightening almost to unbearable levels. I rise on the tips of my toes to decrease the pressure, but he doesn’t let up.
“Does it scare you?” he whispers, his breath tickling my ear. “Or does it make your pussy wet knowing that I hold your life in my hands, and I allow you to breathe?”
Blood rushes to my head, and fear begins to pump through my veins. Just when I think he’s not going to stop, his hand loosens, and I greedily suck in precious air.
But he doesn’t let me breathe for much longer. He twists my body around and backs me towards the wall beside the T.V., smiling viciously as I stumble away from him and towards exactly where he wants me to be. When I’m a foot away, he grabs me and slams me into the wall, pressing the entire length of his body against mine. Before I can take another breath, his hand is once more encircling my throat, and his mouth is on mine.
Just like he said, I let him consume me. Tears burn the back of my eyes as his mouth tears my lips apart, feasting on my tongue without permission.
I can’t do this.
I can’t fucking let him do this to me.
Ripping my mouth away, I push him back, but he doesn’t move a fucking inch.
“Stop!” I snap, struggling against him. “I’m not letting you do this. You just murdered dangerous people, Zade—which means they have dangerous friends. It's like Max all over again. You’re a monster.”
The hand still wrapped around my throat tightens before he thumps my head against the wall, ceasing my struggles.
“And you’re the sweet little angel that I’m going to drag down to hell with me,” he rasps, his voice deep and husky as he whispers his omen into my ear.
“I hate you,” I spit, glaring with all the disgust I can muster in my body. He just won't fucking listen.
He only smiles, the gesture mocking. “And I will never let you fuck me again, Zade.” I’m not ashamed by the way my voice wobbles. Let him hear how serious I am. It’s not fear making my tone erratic, it’s the animosity bleeding out from my soul.
He presses deeper into me, a snarl forming on his face. He looks vicious and enticing all in the same breath, like the handsome devil sitting on a throne of bones.
“Are you willing to bet your life?” he asks, his smooth voice a stark contrast to mine. He grinds his pelvis against me, the hard, thick length of him digging into my stomach.
When I don’t answer, he smiles. “I think my little mouse is a liar,” he growls the last word into my ear, sending violent tremors throughout my body.
His mouth caresses my cheek, the soft flesh of his lips skating lightly towards my lips. His mouth skims against mine, eliciting electric shivers from every spot that our skin clashes.
I suck in a sharp breath, the ever-present fear and adrenaline still steadily pumping into my bloodstream, nearly drugging me with the potency and making me delirious.
“Yes,” I whisper, answering his question before I snap my leg up and knee him right between the legs. He manages to dodge the brunt of the hit, but it gives me enough room to slip from his grasp and run.
A loud, cruel laugh rings out as I nearly rip the door off its hinges before taking off into the night air.
Cold, wet droplets of rain splash onto my skin, soaking me immediately, but I don’t let the downpour deter me.
Terror pushes me forward, my legs kicking as I bolt off into the woods. My feet slip from the slickness on the porch, and it’s then that I remember I’m fucking barefoot.
Too late now. I forge on, gritting my teeth against the bite of rocks in my feet as I bolt across the driveway.
As a child, I had always wanted to explore these woods. They’re deep and incredibly easy to get lost in. My mother and Nana never let me step foot inside them as a kid. Somehow, that restriction carried into my adult life.
The warnings I received as a child subconsciously kept me from ever going into the woods and exploring. And now, I wish I had.
It doesn’t even take a minute before I’m completely turned around. The only light offered is from the moon, and even that is weak due to the canopies of trees clouding the sky.
I keep pumping my legs, harder and faster. Too scared to stop. Too frightened of the devil nipping at my heels.