Page 89 of Unholy Bonds

“I understand, Doctor, but if you receive another message…”

“I’ll report it to the authorities immediately.”

With a goodbye to Anna, I walked out of the Cybercrime unit. I was leaving the DPD when I saw Ryden walking out of the elevator, looking angry and agitated. When he saw me, he stopped.

His breath hitched, his pupils dilated, and then his lips pulled up in a smile that stopped my breath.

“Doctor West,” he said as he ambled toward me. Nervousness pinged inside me like multiple ping-pong balls when he reached me. I had no idea why the fuck I was nervous. “You look magnificent. You always look magnificent.”

“Thank you, Ryden.”

“Ah, so polite. You weren’t polite when you ordered me to my knees.”

The wickedness shining in his eyes made me want to drag him to some place private and then take him. He took another step closer until we were almost touching nose to nose.

“I wish we were alone.” His eyes twinkled as he grabbed my hand and pulled me behind a wall. “We’re alone now.”

“And? What are you going to do?”

“This,” he breathed out before he softly pressed his hand against my throat, and every ounce of worry and all my thoughts were replaced by only one thing now—hunger. I didn’t understand this unexplainable hold he had on me, and it unsettled me, but here it was.

My breath hitched, and his heart raced. His eyes were on mine, seeking permission, and when he knew I would always say yes to him, he slammed his lips against mine in a kiss that was searing, sending shock waves straight to my pussy.

“I wanted to do this for hours, Yara.”

“You could have. You knew where to find me,” I said.

“I was busy with a story, but I wanted to—I wanted to come and take you. I wanted to touch you and taste you again, just to make myself believe you did taste heavenly.”

“I do taste heavenly,” I teased, and he shook his head before bending toward my lips again and his kiss this time was wilder, harder, almost painful.

I moaned as his hands found my breast, softer, completely in contrast to his lips.

I touched him over his pants, and he grunted. “Yara. If you touch me here, we’ll both spend some time in jail for indecent exposure and public lewdness. To be honest, I don’t mind, but I don’t want you to be in a jail cell.”

I laughed, pulling away from him. “Yes, another day,” I said as we walked out of the building, both of us wearing a satisfied smile on our faces.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, looking up at him, and it didn’t take long for the smile on his face to fall. “If you don’t want to tell…”

“Detective Rosario said that he’ll arrest me for harassment if I go near him again,” Ryden said with a forced smile, shaking his head.

“Why are you harassing him? Is this about Victor again?” Frowning, I looked at him, trying to understand his unreasonable obsession with Victor.

I had run background checks on him and did a thorough investigation before I killed him. I didn’t find anything that would remotely connect Victor with Ryden.

“No,” Ryden said with a frown. “This is about another case.” His eyes were pensive as he stared into the distance, and I saw the darkness thickening around him like a veil. He was very much the man I saw that first night when he was killing Phil.

“Tell me,” I whispered, caressing the back of his hand with a finger.

“Nikki Singh,” he said in a voice broken by pain, and at that moment, it hit me like a bucket full of rocks.

The pain was real. The anguish in his eyes spoke volumes. He wasn’t another psychopath looking to feed his demons; he wasn’t like me. There was genuine concern in him. I, on the other hand, rarely felt that connection. Sure, the senseless loss of life angered me, and the absolute cruelty of some people infuriated me, but truly caring? Like him?

I don’t know.

Katelyn’s death was the last thing that affected me. Everything else was just another body, just another puzzle to solve.

The monsters I killed were just a means to an end. They were offerings and sacrifices to satisfy my demons. It was clear that Ryden didn’t think of it the same way. I understood why this—whatever the hell this was between us—was a wrong idea. Yet, I was already too far gone to turn back now.

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