Page 42 of Sin

“Go to sleep, Merri,” he growled.

“I don’t want to.”

“That’s unfortunate.”

“Why?”

He closed the distance between us until we were nearly nose to nose. “Because you don’t have a choice.”

Then, with a brush of his lips over my forehead, a wave of fatigue hit me so hard my knees buckled.

I had the brief sensation of weightlessness as I was carried to my bed, and then nothing but darkness followed in its wake.

The warm pulseof lust permeated the air as I stepped out of my room and into the familiar halls ofIniquity.It was so good to be back. This was my home—or had been for the last few years. My safe place. Auntie Lilith took care to make sure I had what I needed and loved me in her own way. She was the closest thing I had to a mother.

I moved through the club, noting the writhing bodies on the dance floor, their faces all cast in shadow. Red lights moved over them, painting them in a warm, sensual glow. I kept walking, not sure yet where I was heading, but knowing whatever I needed wasn’t waiting for me out there.

A tugging sensation began in my middle, like someone had a rope tied to me and was reining me in. Pulling me to them. But who was it? Anticipation bloomed deep in my belly at the thrill of not knowing, and the feeling only grew as I was led to the bottom floor.

Lilith never allowed me down here. Too dangerous.

Not for me, of course. But for all the couples hidden in the secret alcoves acting out their most depraved fantasies. For them, it was a haven. For me, it would be a hunting ground.

A fleeting thought that I wasn’t hungry for once came to the surface, then was gone as quickly as it had arrived. I moved pastall the shadow figures, letting their energy wash over me, careful not to sip any of it. I wasn’t here for them.

I didn’t know where the certainty came from. Only that it was true.

I continued past the main room, down a long hall flanked on either side by a row of closed doors. My pace was steady, focused, and confident. I knew none of these doors would take me where I was supposed to end up. The truth of it sat in my bones, growing stronger with each step until my breath caught and the door to my right swung open, the energy within beckoning me over the threshold.

A thrill danced down my spine as I stood, transfixed, beside the open door. I couldn’t make out what awaited me inside, but it was like my body already knew. My pulse quickened. My thighs clenched. My lower belly warmed with liquid desire.

I’d only ever heard of Lilith’s special rooms, but what I knew made this even more thrilling. Her magic gave the occupant of this small nondescript box carte blanche and transformed it into their ultimate fantasy or their heart’s greatest desire.

As I finally stepped into the room, I learned what that was for me. Freedom.

Everywhere I looked, glittering white sand and turquoise water met the eye. A bit in the distance, I could make out a short pier with a hut on the end. Paradise.

The sun was low in the sky, but the air was still warm as it washed over my mostly naked skin. A quick glance down showed that I was now in a black string bikini with a sarong knotted around my waist. Closing my eyes, I lifted my face toward the sky and let the peaceful environment sink in.

“Can I just stay here forever?” I whispered as I returned my gaze to the crystal-blue water and began a slow stroll down the beach.

Curious about the door, I peeked over my shoulder, finding only more white sandy beach stretching indefinitely behind me. I wasn’t worried about the disappearing door or that I was, for all intents and purposes, stranded in some deserted tropical paradise. Nothing here would harm me. This was a gift from Lilith’s magic room. All I would find here was happiness.

The warm grains of sand tickled my feet as I walked along the beach, letting water lap at my toes now and then on my way to the pier. I wanted to see what was in the structure. What I’d assumed to be a hut seemed much larger now, and it reminded me of pictures of a resort I’d seen in Bora Bora. Rooms over the water, private, beautiful, and romantic.

That had to be for me. This was my ultimate heart’s desire, after all.

Letting out a little squeal of pleasure, I began running toward the dock. I had a soaking tub with my name on it waiting. The sound of splashing water brought me up short when I was within touching distance of the wood.

My breath caught as a figure of pure perfection walked out of the waves. Whether he was my fantasy man brought to life, dreams made flesh, or just my subconscious pulling from years of reading romance novels, I didn’t care. He was giving merman meets Baywatch as he ran his hand through his wet hair, drops of water glinting in the fading sun as they dragged down his gloriously sculpted body.

My mouth ran dry as my gaze followed one of those droplets through the chiseled line between his abs and further until it met the trail of golden hair that led to his dangerously low-slung swim... What were those? Not trunks. Not a Speedo. We’ll call them shorts. Skintight swim shorts.

I was incapable of speech—and grateful for it, certain I’d have embarrassed myself—when a whimper left me.

Gray-blue eyes snapped open and locked on me. Instead of surprise, or annoyance, an intrigued smile curled those full, fuckable lips.

“Hand me that towel, would you, love?” he murmured, gesturing with a nod of his head to the white towel on the sand at my feet.

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