Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 66217 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 331(@200wpm)___ 265(@250wpm)___ 221(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 66217 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 331(@200wpm)___ 265(@250wpm)___ 221(@300wpm)
He never actually touched me.
That shouldn’t matter . . . but it does. “Wolf,” I rasp. “You promised to have your cock inside me within five minutes.”
He slaps my pussy. Hard. “Next time, don’t give away what’s mine, Red.” He guides me to lean against the mirror, and then he moves back. He catches my hand and lifts it, the ring he gifted me glinting in the low light. “This marks you as mine, baby. Don’t forget it.” Before I can find the words to make him stay, he slips out the door.
In the distance, there’s a familiar voice roaring, “Ruby, where the fuck are you?”
Oh shit. That’s Uncle Hook. Michelle ratted me out.
I barely have enough time to yank my skirt into place before the door flies open and in walks the man who’s my uncle in every way but blood. He’s nearly as tall as Da, though he’s built a little leaner, his long dark hair pulled back in a messy bun and his medium-brown skin flushed with anger. “Ruby!”
He stops short at the sight of me. At the dead man at my feet. “What the fuck is going on here?”
“I can explain.” Except . . . can I? I’m still not sure I’ve processed what the fuck just happened. I had the wrong guy going down on me. Wolf killed him. And then I came all over his hand while he choked me.
Uncle Hook shakes his head. “Not another word. We’ll take care of this.”
True fear flickers to life for the first time. “You can’t tell Da. Or any of them. You can’t.”
His dark eyes are sympathetic, but he’s already shaking his head. “It’s too late, Ruby-girl. They’re already on their way to my place. They’ll beat us there.”
I’m going to kick Michelle’s ass for this. I am in so much trouble.
Uncle Hook holds out his hand, his expression devastatingly kind. “Come here. Don’t look down.”
At the dead man at my feet. The one he obviously thinks I killed.
Didn’t I?
Wasn’t there part of me that knew he couldn’t possibly be Wolf? The vibe had been off, and I didn’t question it. I didn’t want to question it. Maybe part of me wanted to punish Wolf for not being the first one to actually talk to me. Maybe part of me wanted to call his bluff.
Joke’s on me.
There’s no window to throw myself out of, and Uncle Hook takes up most of the doorway. There’s no escaping what comes next. I curse myself for my recklessness and put my hand in his. He easily urges me over the dead body and whisks me out of the bathroom. The bar itself is empty but for the bartender.
She holds up her hands when Uncle Hook cuts her a harsh look. “I saw nothing.”
“No, you didn’t.” His gaze gentles on me, but there’s no opportunity to escape here either as he hauls me through the bar and out into the waiting SUV. It’s only when we’re safely inside and driving away that he speaks to me again. “You don’t have to answer this, not to me, but if it’s easier to talk to me than your parents . . .”
Understanding dawns, bringing with it even more humiliation. He’s asking if I was assaulted. If it was a justified kill. It would be so easy to lie, but I can’t. I just can’t. Not about that. “That’s not what happened.” Yes, he kept going even after I had tried to get him to stop, but if he hadn’t been about to be murdered, I don’t know that I would have stopped him… And, sure, he wasn’t exactly honest about who he was, but I didn’t slow down enough to verify… Gods, my head hurts. Maybe it turned into an attempted assault, but that’s not the real reason he’s dead and it feels wrong to pretend he died for any other reason than the selfish impulsiveness that led me to that bar with the intent to fuck my stalker.
Uncle Hook’s shoulders dip the tiniest bit. “If you—”
He doesn’t believe me. “Jesus fuck, he didn’t do anything to me I didn’t want him to. I went back there of my own free will. Things got out of control, but not like that.”
His brows slam down, but he seems to rein himself in forcibly. Probably still wondering if I’m protesting too much. This man has been a fixture in my life since I was born. He won’t believe that I killed a man in cold blood any more than my parents will.
I didn’t kill the man in question, but that seems a small-enough detail considering the fact I’m responsible for his death. More unforgivable yet is the fact that my body still thrums from what Wolf did to me. I came harder with him than I’ve ever orgasmed with anyone else before. All with a dead man at my feet.