Fractured Promises (Reapers Reign, #2)

by Maree, Aleisha

  “Smartass, aren’t we?” I question her as I bite down on her shoulder, sending the most luscious shiver through me as she backs onto my cock, slamming it into herself. “I like to punish smartasses.” I hiss into her ear as I sink my teeth into her neck, sucking the soft skin into my teeth. I ruin her flawless skin with my teeth until I can taste the blood coming to the surface and then hitting the tip of my tongue in small drops.

  “Lucky for you, I like to be punished. Pain doesn’t scare me, Knox.”

  God, this woman is going to be my undoing. Pulling out, I spin her around so I can look deep into the moss green eyes that haunt me, before bringing them down to her luscious lips, wanting so much to devour them, taste them, suck them and make them bleed. Instead, I let the wall stay firm. I leave the ice in my soul still frozen. I grit out with the most vicious tone I can find, deep down inside my soulless body.

  “I don’t do kissing. I don’t do touching. I don’t do nice. I can't do emotions, and I can't do feelings. I’m dark, evil, bloody messed up. I don’t possess a soul, and I have a dark-ass demon living in me that is chomping at the bit to be unleashed. He wants nothing more than to pull you down and drown you in the darkness that drowns me.” I frown down at her. I need to make sure we’re clear, “I couldn’t save her...” I say more to myself than anyone else, “and by no means can I save you. My demons are darker than you could ever handle.”

  Straightening her shoulders, she throws her head back exposing her neck. My dick twitches on the spot. Oh, sweet mother of fucking God.

  Bringing her eyes back down, she steps forward, gripping my hard, twitching dick in the palm of her hand. She snakes her fingers around the length of it. She looks deep – right into the depths of hell – into my eyes, biting down on her lip. She has a small smile on her lips, just at the edges of her mouth, almost hidden. Reaching up, I pop her lip out from the grip her teeth have on it. I suck air in deeply through my teeth as she pulls me into her.

  “That’s ok. I taught my demons how to swim.” She says matter-of-factly, as if it's nothing.

  With a squeeze of her hand and a flick of her tongue she has me pushed up against the wall. She takes my mouth like she has been lost and has finally found her way home. I let her. It’s fucked up, but I let her. I can’t not. I allow myself to mesh into her body, allowing her tongue in. Our tongues find each other and take us away to some place that isn’t here. I can taste coconut in her kiss. It mixes with the taste of the gum I chew.

  Our kiss deepens, and I can feel the delicious tremors of her body against mine. Bringing my hand up, I wrapped it around her hair pulling her head back. It breaks the intoxicating kiss. I look deep into her eyes before mouthing, “I don’t fucking do this.”

  “I can't do this!” I tell her angrily, biting down hard on her lip before spinning her around, sprawling her hands and legs open. I grab my cock, lifting it up to her wet pussy. Teasing the opening with the tip of my knob, I bite her shoulder as I rest my cock in the tip of her opening. I rake my hands over her breasts, tweaking her hard nipples as I go, teasing her and testing her control. Remember baby, don’t make a sound. She sucks in a breath; I feel her body fill up with air as I bring my hands down to her hips, pulling her back hard and fast as I thrust into her. A low growl from deep below vibrates out of me. I know what’s coming, the demon, he’s waking up to this sweet piece of ass.

  I start to move harder, faster, stronger. I can feel her walls contract around my cock. Her insides are trembling for me, for this. I love it. Wiggling her ass and hips, she spurs me on. Hearing her breathing hitch in her throat sends me into a crazed sex abyss.

  Pulling out of her, I push my fingers deep into her, stretching her as I go. One, two, three fingers. I twirl them around inside her as I rub her clit with my thumb. She arches back into me, into my touch. Her head lolls back on to my shoulder, eyes shut. Her cheeks have a pink blush, the combination of lust and steam. I run my free hand over her collarbone, tracing my fingers over the sharp bone, I slowly drag them down over the swell of her breast. She smells divine like coconut and vanilla. She looks so good, all hot and wet. I breathe in her sweet scent.

  Pulling my fingers out of her, I bring the tips to her bottom lip. I gently rub my fingers across it so she can taste how ready she is for me. “Reach down and grip hold of your ankles, so your ass is up high, will you, doll?” She does as she is told. I shudder at how hot she looks like this.

  I turn her slightly, pulling her into me. I punish her tight pussy with the thickness of my cock again, slowly pulling in and out of her. She is rocking her hips, begging for it, and my erection grows larger and harder in response. I close my eyes as a strange feeling washes over me. Being in her this deep, it feels warm and cold at the same time. It’s trying to draw me in and at the same time press me out. As I push further into her, I feel the most intense sensation; it’s something that goes beyond simple sexual pleasure. It feels as if something inside her is slowly working its way through my cock and into me. It’s as if I have been here before. Closing my eyes, I breathe in deep, completely letting go. I thrust harder still. She’s slamming back into me, meeting my movements with as much force and desire as I’m throwing her way.

  I can feel her, smell her, taste her. Her very essence seems to be swirling around us on the wisps of steam, sucking me in. In that minute, she turns her head to look up at me. Her eyes are hooded with lust. It’s my undoing. “Don’t look at me,” I spit out, as a primal groan escapes me. I slam my cock so deep into her she lets out a knee-shaking scream of desire as she climaxes around me. I can feel her sweet wetness around my cock. It’s trickling down her thighs; the stickiness of our juices meeting together is visible even in the shower. She is still trembling against me. My cock responds to the movement. Snaking my arm around her stomach, I bring her up to her feet. I rest my head against her wet hair, breathing in deep. I try to calm myself, controlling my breathing. What was that? What is this? This feeling of need, the need to wrap her up in my arms... Need to claim her. Fuck! What is this feeling? I haven’t felt this desire to protect in a long time.

  Fuck this, whipping her around to face me I grab her throat. I squeeze hard, cutting off the supply of air that she needs. Her eyes bulge out as I slam my cock back into her and wiggle it around inside her. The shock in her eyes and the fight in her body feeds me as the demon rears his ugly head. I send my teeth deep down into her skin, biting until the blood flows. Her back slams against the wall. Pinning her on the rough wall, I just keep fucking her as though my life depends upon it. Letting go of all the built-up shit, I empty it into her. Dragging my eyes up from the many bite marks that are covering her shoulders and breasts, I see the tears in her eyes. The eyes that haunt my dreams... Her bottom lip is trembling, and my cock lets go, filling her again with a load of anger.

  She turns her face away from me as a small tear escapes. I watch as it falls down her cheek before reaching out to catch it. Her sweet lips are shaking, the pain ripples out over me; I am human after all.

  “Please, don’t,” I whisper, placing her body down under the stream of hot water. “I can’t. I just can’t.”

  Ripping open the curtain, I storm over to my clothes. I quickly throw them on over my wet body and still hard cock before turning to walk out. Before I can, I allow my eyes to glance back at her. I see her delicate body shaking, pulled tight into the fetal position as the sobs rake out over the sound of the falling water and my pounding heart.

  FUCK...

  Blue

  It takes me a while to pull myself up from the shower floor. I have never experienced anything as mind-blowing and intense in my whole life. I’m still reeling from it days later. I can still feel the burn from where his hands have been. I still throb where his cock sat teasing my opening. His eyes haunt me, pulling me deeper into a place I want to stay forever. It’s my type of dark down there. All I can think about is the way his muscles flexed and how his hips swayed into me as if they belonged there, and shit, his grip a
round my neck as it took the air and any reason I had. That had shocked the shit out of me, scared my soul into fucking hiding. I tell ya, holy hot damn was it a ride.

  Knox Ambrose. The Assassin. An MMA god built like a lean, mean, fighting machine covered in tatts. He has the most amazing eyes, ass to die for and a reputation to boot. He never lets anyone in, he devours women and spits them out.

  And now, I’m one of them, one of his ruined women.

  I know I shouldn’t have gone there. I shouldn’t have tried to play games and tame the beast. I now had a taste of Knox Ambrose, and I wanted more. I wanted him, wanted the sense of safety that he had flowing around him, despite everything he’d said. The danger – I’d wanted that too. I’d completely ignored the caution sign that hung above his head, lit up like a seedy back street bar fluorescent welcome sign. If I were to be honest with myself, I think I need him.

  I haven’t been able to shake the look that had consumed his eyes in that shower. There was something dark in them, a pain that ran deep. You know what the shittiest bit was? He just kept me at arm’s length after the shower heist. I’m batshit mad too. It’s not like I sought his ass out. He jumped on in and fucked me into a bawling mess, leaving me on a dirty ass shower floor in my father’s gym. Wicked, Knox, thanks a bunch! You’re a damn winner. The sad part though is that I still ache for his touch. I act like it doesn’t affect me, but every time he’s near, he steals fragments of me, exposing me, revealing the worthless girl that I have been working so hard to leave behind. Could I ever be enough for him? Could I chip into the darkness of his eyes? Probably not. Could I be the light he needs to pull him back from whatever hell he’s made for himself in that brain of his? Or will my own darkness be more than even he can handle? My mind is a muddle. What if I just drown right alongside his demons?

  I want to punch something. He’s so damn frustrating. At that moment, I decided that I’m going to have to act. I want him. I’ll make him see me. I’ll fucking fight for him if I need to. I’m a strong woman; I can take what he throws at me. My shoulders are robust enough to stop me buckling under his demons. I escaped hell once already, what’s to say I can't do it again?

  Chapter Six

  Blue

  Sitting in the middle of the cage, I look around at the dimly lit gym. I breathe in the smell of home. This gym is a big part of who I am, or at the very least, it’s definitely made me who I am. I fight for this, for the rush it gives me, and the hope in my soul that maybe I can have it again – a normal life! Oh fuck, who am I kidding? They are coming, I know it, and my fucking demons know it. It’s not a matter of if, but when.

  I don’t know when they will come for me, but I know they will. I can’t predict it, so I’ve accepted it. Instead of living with the fear of the unknown, I drink away the shit scared feeling I have. You know it doesn’t matter how strong I seem on the outside, I’m just a fucked up, scared girl on the inside. I drink, trying to drown it all out, hoping that maybe I can kill it all... kill the thoughts and fears in my head. I don’t seem to be able to kill them any other way, I’ve tried killing the fucking demons. I tried drowning them, but all I managed to do was teach the fuckers to swim. This Jack Daniels though, it sure does an impressive job at numbing them.

  Lifting the bottle to my lips, I take a long pull before breathing in deep. The amber liquid hits the back of my throat, sending the most soul-shattering burn through my body. I fucking love the way a drink can make you feel warm. With a little help from Jack, I begin to feel lighter, no longer heavy and weighed downed by all this shit. With the bottle held between my fingertips, I just walk around. I feel caged in my mind and soul with nowhere to go, no one to see just how fucked up this is. I wish I could just float away on this buzz of Jack and watch from up there in the clouds. Placing the bottle down, I start to move out and work out my shoulders, rolling them, cracking my neck, clicking my fingers and knuckles as Adele’s Skyfall starts to sound out over the gym’s stereo system. Letting the soft sexy voice of Adele seep into my bones I move, mixing dancing with my kickboxing. It is like I’m a deadly dancer or at least that’s what my brother used to say. He would train me, combo after combo, roundhouse, and jab after roundhouse and jab. I feel the air fighting to get into the small space of my lungs. This song means so much to me, and at the same time, it breaks me all over again. ‘Stand tall, face it all, tighter, we will not fall’.

  Mmm, well, I’ve have fallen, and I’m no longer standing tall. I have crumbled under the weight of this massive fucked up mess I’ve created. I see his face, my brother, and standing next to him is the guy who took my control.

  Anger seeps through me and into my heart. It’s a blackened mess. I let out a double roundhouse and allow my body to fall, coming down to rest in the middle of the cage. I wrap my fingers around the cool glass of Jack, slightly rising onto my elbow so I can take a sip, well shit, more like a gulp.

  Falling back, I look up at the ceiling. I see the life I have led flick before my eyes. I take a long deep breath in to help shake out my soul. When I go to blow that breath out again, I end up holding it as I hear a noise at the back of the gym. Footsteps... I roll onto my tummy and scan the area, but I see nothing except darkness. Finally, I let out the breath I have been holding in so that I can breathe in again. In through my nose, out through my mouth.

  My breathing is setting into a deep place in my chest and my heart rate spikes as I feel the sweet intoxicating buzz start to leave my body. Waiting, I feel every hair on my body stand on end as goosebumps start to ripple out over my liquor laced body. I’m used to late night visitors in the dark. My body is tuned into the sound of footsteps and I know just how many it takes to reach me. This time I’ll be more than ready; this is on my turf. Looking to my right, I see a shadow coming towards the cage. I place the bottle down, crouching up on my hind legs. I’m ready to spring at the fucker, I’ll latch my arms around his neck and choke him the fuck into next week if I have to.

  Watching his movements, footstep after footstep, I see him come into the light. I let out a breath, pure relief running through me. It's only fucking Knox.

  “What the fuck, Knox?” I spit at him. “What are you doing here?” I snap, not even giving him an opening to answer before I bounce to my feet. “I was just about to pounce on your ass and choke you the fuck out!”

  “Ooooh damn, baby girl. Don’t threaten me with a good time.” He says to me, winking at me... Fucking winking! Walking up to the cage steps, he invades my space. I watch his movements; he is all I can see.

  “Anyway, babes... What the fuck are you doing here at this time of night?” He questions like it’s not my father’s gym and like I have to answer to him.

  Leaning down, I wrap my fingers. They’re shaking, holding up the bottle of sweet JD.

  “Trying to drown the fucking demons I taught to swim.” I raise my eyebrow. “You?” I ask like I really want to know. I don’t know why I'm even polite, he fucked with my head and played me at my game. I’m stilled pissed about that too, may I just add.

  “The dire need to sweat out some pent-up tension,” He tells me, he pushes that lean sexy as fuck body off the cage and struts over towards me.

  “Wanna drink?” I offer, lifting up the bottle. As he looks down on me, I can see the hard line of his jaw. The way he has his mouth set in a hard line, it could break stone. Raking my eyes over his body, I land them low on his torso. The way his sweats sit on his hips has my mouth watering, knowing the tool that he is working with under them has my breath hitching in my lungs.

  Knox

  “Done checking me out, Miss James?” Lowering down, I look into her eyes that hold a darkness that seems to mirror mine.

  “Checking you out? Never,” she says like she doesn’t love what she sees.

  “Pass that bottle, will you? What got under your skin for you to be here so late?” I ask, enjoying the way we dance around each other.

  “Oh, you know... The dire need to expel some pent-up energy.” She copies
me before laughing into the bottle. Tsking, I bring my eyes up to meet hers.

  “Mocking me, are we?”

  “No, Mr. Serious. I am not. Just that it’s my dad’s gym, isn’t it?”

  “That it is, but, why are you sitting in the dark with a bottle in your hand?” I ask her, even though I know I probably shouldn’t.

  “Told you, numbing the demons.” She tells me. “Knox, I’m sure you have been there before.”

  “I have, sweetheart.” I don’t know why it’s so easy to talk to her, “still there, with no intention to enter this bitter world without them firmly in place on my back.” I take a second before continuing, “a pretty wee thing like you shouldn’t have demons needing to be numbed, though.” Should she? “Look around you; you seem to have all you could want. A daddy that loves you, a career that you love, a gym to play in, train at, fight out of... A family name that would scare the darkest devil off.”

  She almost seems to choke on the warm amber liquid as it slides down her throat as she looks at me. “That’s just what it seems like from the outside, isn’t it? Knox, you think that I have it all... a home, a gym, a career as the Brawler’s baby girl who fights just as hardcore as her daddy. I’m just sitting here on the castle's grounds, being kept safe by guarded walls and everyone’s fear of my Dad.” Her eyes are raw with emotion, “You know what Knox? What lies beneath all that, that no one sees, not even the great Jimmy the Brawler James... is a pain, hurt, and fear that runs so deep – a life I lost. I had to flee a place I loved, lost a brother who was taken far too soon. I’m running from an evil that would put the shits up even the Brawler, so baby cakes, drinking the pain away is all I’m up to right now. I’m just hoping that tomorrow won’t be the day that they come and rain bullets down on me.”

  Her face is pure rage, she clearly didn’t like having to explain herself, and I’m left feeling like a cock ass son of a bitch. “Fuck babe, I thought I was fucked up and had problems,” I tell her as I stretch back onto the cage floor. I look over at her as she settles against the cage wall. I can’t get the image of her before she even knew I was here from my mind – the combos flowing from her body like she was dancing on air – it was intoxicating to watch.