Page 64 of Love in Unexpected Places

A whimper leaves my lips as he pulls me up and pushes me into the back seat of the car.

I send the same prayer up to the universe that I’ve been repeating for the past few days, a prayer I’ve come to lean on, since I don’t know how much more of this I can take.Please, if anyone can hear me, save me from this life. I won’t make it much longer.

Before I can scramble off my back, the man lays his large body on me, pinning me down. His rancid breath wafts across my face, and I can’t help but gag, turning my head to the side to try to get fresh air.

He grips my chin and turns my face back to his, smiling down at me evilly. I’m so glad I took this client from Tara. She’s too innocent to handle this bullshit. Me? I’ve been through it more times than I’d like to count in the three years I’ve been working.

I attempt to shake him off, but he’s too strong, so I glare at him instead.

He laughs darkly, slapping me once more. “Don’t eyeball me. Matter of fact…”

I’m not sure how, but he lifts enough to grab my hip and flips me over quickly. I don’t have time to think or stop him. Hell, I probably wouldn’t be able to anyway.

One of his hands drifts down to my ass, squeezing hard. I whimper but clamp my lips shut. He won’t get that from me. “This ass is nice. I haven’t fucked a guy, butyou’re pretty. Real fucking pretty.” He nips at my ear, and I suppress the shudder of disgust that flows through me.

I turn my head and look out of the window. Usually, I dissociate when I’m with someone, taking myself out of my body and living deep in my brain. I can’t see much, but the blinking of the Christmas lights drift into the car, illuminating my shame.

Something inside me snaps, and I can’t deal with it anymore. I can’t do it another night. I’ll fucking die if I do.

“Get off,” I whisper as the man reaches around to undo my zipper. “No! Get off!”

His manic laugh fills the interior of the car. “You’re one of those whores that likes to fight? I’m into that.”

“No!” My voice is sharp, slicing across the air with my fury. “Get off. I don’t want you! Get off me! Help! Someone, help!”

He grabs the back of my neck and shakes me hard enough to scramble my brain. “Shut the fuck up. I will fuck you, and you’ll shut the fuck up about it.”

The sweaty man manages to get my pants down. I don’t have on underwear, the fishnet stockings my only barrier. He places a sharp slap to my ass. I yelp and cry, tears dripping down my face. I can’t … I can’t do this. I have to go. Someone, please. Someone, please …

chapter three

VERNIMER

Ispirit myself across the plane of Xendail to Earth, landing in a dark alley filled with trash cans and used needles. This is not a good place for humans to be. So why did my consciousness send me here when I heard that voice in my mind again? No humans are here, let alone my mate. There are?—

“Help!’ the voice cries, and it’s in both my head and my ears. “Please, someone!”

“Shut the fuck up!” Another voice mingles with my mate’s, the threat heavy in his tone.

A growl escapes my throat, and I’m moving before I give my body the command. The car the voices are coming from is rocking, a mighty struggle taking place inside. I can sense the emotions of my mate, and he is frightened.

I snatch the door open and pull the rotund man out, his bulk not registering as I toss him against the wall. He loses consciousness, so I don’t have to pay attention to him as I lean into the car, holding my hand out for my mate. He flips over, eyes peeled wide as he pulls his jacket down over his exposed body.

When I landed on this plane, my body shifted from demon to human, so all he sees is a tanned man with gray eyes and blond hair pulled back into a bun. I’m not sure he can handle me in my demon form—seven feet tall, curling horns and dark but blazing gray eyes. He’d run for the hills.

He still looks like he may bolt, but I put him at ease by saying, “I heard your plea. Let me help you.”

The man I tossed out of the car comes to and tries to get to his feet, but I turn around and kick him in the gut. He wheezes, bending over and holding his belly. Again, I turn back to the car, where my mate is putting on a pair of tiny shorts. I frown. It’s far too cold for this to be his only attire. His embarrassed gaze meets mine, and my hearts go out to him. No one should be made to feel bad about how they dress.

“It’s okay, little one. I’m here to help.”

Nodding, he places a shaky hand in mine. “I just wanna go home.”

“I’ll take you there.”

He slides out of the car and stands beside me. With a gasp, he yells, “Watch out!” just as the man I kicked in the gut comes at me with a sharp knife. I raise my arm to block the blow, and the knife embeds itself into my now-human flesh.

With a roar, I grab the man by the throat and say a string of words in Xendailish, willing my demon hands and claws to make an appearance. My demon hand encircles the whole of his meaty throat. He beats at my arm with wide, scared eyes, but that doesn’t sway me. He tried to hurt my mate, and if I were a real human, he would have hurt me as well. Now, he dies.

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