by K. C. Lynn
“Fuck!” His fingers grip my hair with a delicious sting and he begins pumping his hips, fucking my mouth with quick strokes. I give him the control, letting him set the pace. “You like this, Soph? Like when I fuck this hot mouth of yours?”
I moan, conveying just how much.
I love it.
Love seeing him like this and knowing I’m the one doing it to him.
With each passing thrust, I feel him harden further. “Shit.” His pace slows, a tortured groan leaving him as he begins to withdraw.
I don’t let him. My hands move to his hips, my mouth continuing to stroke.
“Soph, I’m about to explode. Pull back.”
I moan again, letting him know how much I want it, and renew my efforts.
He comes on a roar of pleasure. It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. This man. This strong, powerful man falling apart above me. I swallow every drop of him, relishing in his release, soaking in it. My own need escalating.
With a heaving breath, he pulls from my mouth and bends down to gather me in his arms, lifting me to my feet. Then he spins me around. “Hands on the mirror.”
I obey quickly, pressing my hands to the cool glass, my own need and desire overriding everything else. He shoves down his shorts, stepping out of them, then shreds my panties from my body. The bite of the fabric across my sensitive skin only adds to the moment.
Intensifies it.
Injects something so raw and potent I feel drunk from it.
His hands move to the hem of my tank top, peeling it from my body and tossing it to the floor. My chest blooms with heat as he stands behind me, a wild fire burning in his gaze.
“Spread your legs.” The low husk of his voice has me moving without hesitation. Parting my legs shoulder width, my body is less than an arm’s length from the mirror. He hooks an arm under my left leg, lifting it up before entering me in one smooth thrust.
I cry out at the beautiful invasion. Loving the way he completes me—body and soul.
“Goddamn, Sophie,” he groans. “As much as I loved your mouth, baby, there is nothing like the feel of your hungry little pussy taking my cock.”
“So good,” I agree with a whimper, my gaze focused on our connection, watching him disappear in and out of me.
“That’s because I fucking own it. It’s mine,” he says, his possessive words fueling the flames claiming my body.
“Yes,” I moan.
“Just like you are, right?”
The change in his voice has me dragging my eyes up to find his, and what I discover there has my heart swelling in my chest. He looks unsure…scared. Something I’ve never seen in him before.
“Tell me, Soph,” he demands, his voice rough. “Tell me you’re mine.”
“I’m yours,” I say, not because he told me to but because it’s true. He owns every part of me, especially my heart.
“Because you want to be.”
“Yes. I want to be. More than anything in the world.”
He buries his face in my hair. “I’ll never let anyone take you from me.”
It all suddenly becomes clear. How I found him tonight in here. He’s more than angry.
He’s scared.
Not of Daniel but of losing me.
My arm lifts to wrap around his neck, my throat too clogged to speak because it’s my biggest fear, too. I’m not even afraid of dying anymore. My biggest fear is never feeling this again. Of not being with him.
Pulling out of me, he breaks our connection for only a second before spinning me around and lifting me off my feet. The moment my legs hug his lean hips, he drives up into me—shattering me for a second time.
“I want to look at you while I’m fucking you. To look in your eyes as you take all of me, and know that I have you the same way you do me.”
I rest my forehead gently against his, feeling his warm breath whisper across my lips. “You have me, Kolan. Never doubt that. You have every single part of me.”
My lips seal over his with the promise of forever, because I’m too afraid to say it out loud.
With a growl, he changes the angle of his thrust, my back kissing the cool surface as he buries himself deeper—harder. My head drops back on a moan as he takes me to the brink of destruction.
“Give me what I want, baby. Let me watch you fall apart for me.”
I give into it, letting my orgasm hurdle through me like a tidal wave. As Kolan gives into his own release, I hold him close through it all, burying my face into his shoulder and praying I’ll never know what it’s like to go without this man’s touch.
Once we’ve caught our breath, he carries us to the shower. His touch is soft and gentle as he washes me, a complete contradiction to how he was minutes before.
I love both sides of him.
When he kneels before me, his forehead rests on my stomach, lips catching the rivulets of water as steam fills the enclosed space. I thread my fingers through his wet hair, holding him close. Silence hangs between us, thick and heavy, but no words are needed in this moment.
Afterward, he holds me in bed; his arms like a protective shell that I want to live in forever.
My fingers trace the scars on his chest. “What are these?” I ask, breaking the silence.
“Cigarette burns.”
I stiffen, pain slicing through my heart like a ruthless blade. His voice is hollow. No emotion. No pain. Nothing.
“Your father?”
“Yeah.”
Tears blur my eyes, no matter how hard I try to hold back. How could anyone hurt him? Now or as a child. It’s something I just can’t fathom. It only proves just how many cruel people walk this earth.
“I hate him,” I whisper.
We both know I’m not only talking about his father.
“Me too, baby,” he says on a heavy breath. “Me, too.”
I burrow my head closer to his heart, resting my lips against one of the puckered scars, vowing to always watch over him, just like he does me.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Kolan
Things have been quiet.
Too quiet.
It’s like the motherfucker just vanished into thin air and it has me even more on edge. It’s been days since finding out the old lady is dead. A statewide APB is out on this bastard and yet no one can find him.
It makes me fucking nervous. I haven’t let Sophie out of my sight, and I won’t until he’s caught. But then what? What happens next?
That question has been plaguing me and it’s something I don’t like to think about. Will she go back to her old life? Go back to school and dance? She should, she deserves to reclaim everything she’s lost but then…I lose. The thought has a sharp pain piercing my chest.
I push the thought aside and continue sorting through the moving boxes in my garage when I hear Sophie scream, terror thick in her voice. “Kolan!”
Dropping what’s in my hand, I charge through the door and run into the living room to find her on her ass, frantically scooting back from the window.
I kneel behind her, grabbing her waist. “Soph! Hey, what’s wrong?”
“Someone’s out there.”
“What?”
“Someone was looking at me through the window.”
Standing, I go look through the glass but can’t see a goddamn thing with it being so dark out.
“He’s out there. I know it,” she says, voice trembling.
I quickly head into the kitchen and open my laptop, pulling up the surveillance cameras. Sure enough, there on camera four, I catch a flash of movement, headed down the beach.
Son of a bitch.
“Call Cooper now,” I order before rushing out the back door.
“Kolan, wait!”
Her voice is faint, barely penetrating the humid air as my bare feet leave the patio and hit sand. I refuse to turn back. It could be our only chance at catching him, and I’m done waiting. He came onto my fucking property so that makes him mine.
I head in the d
irection of where I saw him, fury fueling my speed. A solid minute passes before I have him in my sights. He’s a good distance away but lacks agility. With my heart pounding and blood roaring, I push myself harder but don’t catch up to him until the public beach.
There’s a party going on, groups of people sporadically spread out that are either sitting by fires or dancing. He tries to weave into the crowd but doesn’t make it far. Reaching out, my fingers catch his hood. A few girls jump out of the way with a scream as I tackle him, dropping him to his back with a sharp yank. I straddle him, ready to deliver the beating of a lifetime but my fist stops midair when I realize it’s a kid.
“Don’t hit me. Don’t hit me,” he pleads, his hands out protectively in front of his face.
“Who the fuck are you and why were you looking in my window?” He remains silent, trying to catch his breath. Gripping the front of his sweatshirt, I yank him up to my face. “Start talking or I’ll knock your fucking teeth into the back of your head.”
His eyes bulge out in fear. “No, please. I wasn’t going to do anything to her. I swear,” he says through labored breaths. “Some dude paid me a hundred bucks to look in your window at her. That’s it.”
Every muscle in my body freezes, ice forming in my veins.
“Who?” I shove out, despite the fear lodged in my throat.
“I don’t know. I only met him tonight.”
“Fuck!” Dropping him from my grasp, I start back to the house, my feet pounding the packed wet sand, running faster than I thought myself possible.
*
Sohpie
“Kolan, wait!” I call out to him, my heart pounding in fear. Running to the open back door with my cell phone in hand, I watch as he jumps from the patio and hits the beach, his determined feet moving swiftly across the soft sand.
“Oh god.”
Lifting my trembling hand, I swipe the screen to call Cooper when the wind is suddenly knocked out of me. I hit the kitchen floor and land on my back, the hard impact pushing the air from my lungs. The phone skitters across the room as I try to take in a breath, but I’m not able to with the crushing weight on top of me.
“We meet again, my love.”
Terror settles over me with heavy force as I come face-to-face with my worst nightmare. Daniel’s hand covers my mouth, the pressure of his clammy palm muffling my scream as I thrash beneath him.
“Oh, Sophie, I’ve missed you so much,” he says softly, his pale blue eyes hooded and vacant as he assesses my face.
Desperation latches onto me and my instincts kick in, penetrating the terror this man instills in me. My mind scrambles as I try to think of all the things I’ve learned from Kolan these past few weeks. He’s bigger. Stronger. There’s no way I can maneuver from beneath him at this angle. His body is cradled between my open legs, his erection pressing into me. Saliva pools in my mouth as bile inches up my throat. I buck my hips, giving myself enough room to wrap both legs tightly around his waist. I squeeze, using every ounce of strength I possess.
Daniel shoots up on a horrid gasp, the air in his lungs restricted by my tight hold. His hands move to my knees in an effort to pry them loose and that’s when I thrust my palm up, connecting with the base of his nose. Blood sprays, the tiny bones shattering. When he howls in pain, I release my legs and flip to my stomach.
“Kolan!” I scream, praying he can hear me before he’s too far away. I kick myself out from beneath Daniel, my foot connecting with his face, adding to the injury I’ve already inflicted.
Just as I make it to my feet, my ankle is snagged. “You fucking bitch!” With a swift pull I’m jerked back down, landing on my belly with a painful thud.
“Kolan!” His name breaches my lips once more as I feel Daniel crawl up my back.
There’s a sharp sting to my scalp as he grabs a fistful of my hair and yanks my head back, bringing his mouth to my ear. “He cannot save you. No one can. By the time anyone finds us, we’ll be at the bottom of the ocean, fulfilling our destiny.”
Oh god.
“It’s time, Sophie. Time for us to be together forever. Just like we were always meant to be.”
“Never,” I grind out. “I will never be yours.”
Pain explodes through my head when my face collides with the ceramic tile. Warm blood trickles down my forehead as black spots dance in my vision. A moan of agony escapes me as I’m flipped to my back, his sinister face blurring before my eyes.
“You’ve always been mine.”
I’m completely helpless when he gathers me in his arms, my body as limp as a rag doll. Darkness hovers, threatening to pull me down into its black abyss as he carries me out of the house.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Kolan
My lungs are on fire by the time I make it back to my section of the beach, a fear I’ve never known raging deep inside my chest. It only escalates when I see the back door wide open.
“Sophie!” I jump onto the patio, my swift feet faltering as I enter my house. “Jesus!” Panic constricts my throat from the amount of blood staining my floor, her cell phone lying only feet away.
“Motherfucker!” In a fit of rage I flip over my kitchen table, the glass top shattering into a million pieces. “I’m going to fucking kill you.”
My rage echoes through the empty house as I grab the flashlight from the kitchen drawer. Hitting the panic button on my alarm, I bolt back outside and head in the opposite direction I came from, her name tearing from my throat.
She has to be close. I wasn’t gone that long.
Long enough.
I shove aside my guilt and concentrate on finding her, my flashlight moving wildly over the dark beach.
The distant sound of a motor trying to turn over catches my attention. Stopping in my tracks, I listen more carefully and try to calm the blood pounding in my ears.
After a few seconds, I hear it again.
Urgency propels me forward, the sound becoming more distinct the closer I get. I cast the light toward one of the docks in the distance and spot movement.
“Sophie!” I dig deeper, my quick feet destroying the sand beneath them.
“Shit!” I hear the heated curse just as I reach the dock and see the boat floating away while he continues to try and ignite the motor.
Vengeance boils in my blood, spinning into a black spool of rage, burning me from the inside out. I tear down the wooden plank and hurdle through the air to land in the aluminum fishing boat. It teeters on its edge, rocking wildly beneath us as I find balance.
“Stay back! Don’t come any closer.” He stands behind Sophie with an arm banded across her chest, the moonlight reflecting off the silver blade he has pointed toward her throat.
Violence pumps ruthlessly through my veins at the sight of her bound and gagged, tears mixing with the blood staining her face.
“I must admit you’re quick,” he says, his breathing more winded than mine. “I was hoping to be gone by now, but it was a struggle to get this rope around her. My sweet Sophie has turned into quite the fighter. You’ve taught her well. She even broke my nose.”
Pride fills my chest, mixing with the deep-seated anger I have locked inside. “Good. It leaves less for me to destroy, because I’m going to do a hell of a lot worse to you than what she did.” My voice is calm, contradicting the rage pounding through me.
He chuckles, the maniacal sound floating through the salty air. “Sorry, I’m going to have to take a rain check. My love and I have big plans. We have a destiny to fill.”
“You’re not taking her anywhere.”
“Yes, I am,” he snaps, his blue eyes holding an edge of darkness. “You have no say. She’s mine and she will die as mine.”
“She’s not yours. She never has been.”
“Yes, she is!” he screams back, his cool façade shredding. “She’s always been mine, and you’re going to pay for tainting her with your touch.”
I spread my arms wide, praying he takes the bait. It’s my only hope at the
moment. “I’m ready, asshole. Give me your best shot.”
All I need is an opening. For him to move that knife, then I can steal my chance.
He hesitates like the coward he is.
My attention moves to Sophie, her terrified sobs penetrating the moment. “Sophie, baby, look at me.”
“Don’t you fucking do it.” He gathers a fistful of her hair, forcing her head down. “Don’t you look at him, bitch. You are mine!”
Her cry of pain shatters my control. “I swear to God, I’m going to fucking kill you. Let her go!”
“No! You are going to watch her die as mine and know we are spending eternity together.”
“It will never happen. As long as I’m still breathing, she will always be mine. She—belongs—to—me.”
“Never!” His roar tears through the night.
I wait for him to make his move, knowing it pushed him over the edge, but Sophie ends up striking first. She throws her head back, smashing it into his face.
At the sound of his enraged roar, I lunge for her but don’t make it in time. Horror seizes my chest as he knocks her over the edge. My fingers swipe the air between us, her muffled screams vanishing as she hits the water.
“Fuck!”
As my knees bend to jump in after her, he charges at me, his lanky body slamming into mine. I grab his wrist, stopping the knife inches from my face and trip over one of the seats, landing on my back.
“You’re going to die,” he snarls above me, the blade pointing down at my forehead. “You will never touch what’s mine again!”
Sending a blow to his temple that dazes him, I twist the knife in his hand then pierce it through the side of his skull, relishing in the feel of his fucking blood splattering across my face.
His eyes widen in alarm for the briefest second.
“She will never be yours, you sick fuck.” With a lift of my legs, I send him over the opposite side of the boat.
Without a moment of pause, I dive into the cold ocean, the freezing water a shock to the system, but it does nothing to penetrate the panic rushing through my veins.
I’m unable to see a goddamn thing, my hands reaching in every direction for her. I stay under for as long as I can manage, the depths of hell raging in my lungs.