Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 83520 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83520 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
After twenty minutes of searching, there’s still no sign of Austin. Either we keep missing each other or he’s not here. That alone isn’t enough to cause concern, except…Aubrey is MIA as well.
My mind tumbles back to all the ways I allowed him to play with my body. I was practically panting for him.
Begging him to use me.
Well…I’m done.
I have no idea if he’s fucking with me or not, but I can’t continue riding this emotional rollercoaster any longer.
It’s over.
If it was ever really anything to begin with.
Which I’m starting to doubt.
Maybe the reason he thinks I’m playing games is because that’s what he’s doing.
It’s a disconcerting thought.
And the one that echoes the loudest through my head as the soles of my shoes pound against the weathered wooden stairs to the backdoor. It’s a relief to find the house empty as I race through the first floor, up to the second and beeline straight to the bedroom we’re sharing. Once there, I twist the lock and lean against the door before squeezing my eyelids tightly closed.
DELILAH
The way I’m ripped from sleep is jarring. One second, I’m submerged in a dream and the next, my eyelids are flying open and Austin is hovering over me, his solid weight pressed against my chest, pinning me to the mattress.
“Did you really think a flimsy lock was going to keep me out?”
That snapped out question is all it takes for a rush of memories to crash back into my consciousness, and I stiffen beneath him.
“Yes,” I growl. As soon as I shift, attempting to buck him off, his fingers lock around my wrists before dragging them over my head.
His eyes narrow as his jaw locks. “What the hell has gotten into you?”
Even though I hate myself for the jealousy that whips through my body, it’s there, eating me alive. I couldn’t keep the words trapped inside if I tried.
“Good question. Maybe you should go find Aubrey.”
When I jerk my knee, attempting to knock it into him, he flinches. His lips peel back into a snarl as he stretches out on top of me, making movement impossible. He holds himself up on his elbows so that I’m not completely crushed by his weight.
“Aubrey?”
Even in the darkness, I’m able to glimpse the confusion that swirls through his green depths.
“I woke up a couple of hours ago and you were gone. When I went outside, I couldn’t find you.” A beat of silence passes before I accuse, “Duke said he saw you with Aubrey.”
There’s a moment of silence and I feel every beat of my pulse as I wait for an explanation.
“Just because I was talking to another girl, that somehow means we had sex? Is that how it works now?”
I grit my teeth. “She’s been hanging all over you since I slid into your SUV. Are you really going to deny it?”
His expression softens as he blinks. “Are you actually jealous?”
My eyes widen as I renew my struggles. “Of course not.”
A slow smirk curves his lips. “Hmmm. I think you might be lying.”
A dull heat creeps into my cheeks because he’s right, and I hate it. “I don’t care what you think.” I gather all my strength, trying to twist and dislodge him. “Now get off me.”
He doesn’t budge an inch. My guess is that Austin outweighs me by a solid fifty pounds. The reality is that he isn’t going anywhere unless he makes that decision.
And right now…
He’s staying put.
“Nope. Not gonna happen.” With a shake of his head, he lowers his face until I can feel the warmth of his breath drift across my lips. “I told you before that you belong to me, to do with whatever I choose. And what I want right now is to be inside that sweet little cunt of yours.”
Just as I’m about to tell him to go to hell, his lips crash onto mine and his tongue plunges inside my mouth. There’s a strange mix of coaxing and forcefulness in the caress. As if he wants me to capitulate but will take what he wants—needs—by any means necessary. His fingers tighten around my wrists, holding me captive until I’m completely at his mercy.
My resistance can only last so long against his relentless onslaught. He knows precisely how to touch me and what will make my walls crumble. Even though I try to keep a firm grasp on my anger, it’s a losing battle. I’m swept away by the taste and feel of him.
It’s only when I reluctantly give myself over to him, returning the kiss, that he draws away, leaving me to pant with the need he stoked to life. When my eyelids feather open, I find him staring with a sober expression. Gone is the smugness of minutes ago.
“If you want me to blindly believe what you tell me, then maybe you need to return the favor and have a little bit more faith. It goes both ways.”