Page 85 of Monster

It was just me and the little wildcat, and for the first time in my thirty-eight years of life, I didn’t know what the next step would be.

As terrified of me as she was, she was also fascinated.

She couldn’t hide her response to my touch, no matter how much she wished to, and I wasn’t above using that to my advantage.

But everything else…

I didn’t know.

I made my way up the stairs. The door to my room was open slightly, and I caught sight of her sitting on the recliner and looking out the window. I paused for a moment, trying to regain control over myself, and pushed the door open.

She turned toward me but didn’t react.

We stared at each other for a beat, neither one of us in a hurry to ruin the silence with words.

There was an open book on her lap. I didn’t know where she had gotten the book from, but I was sure Lucy might have something to do with it.

She was still in the same dress I had put her in this morning, and something akin to satisfaction settled lightly on my chest at the sight of her.

Fuck, but what did I think I would do with this girl once I found the men responsible for hunting Braxton and trashing her apartment?

Let her go?

Like hell.

She frowned at me. “Why are you scowling at me? I didn’t do anything today.”

My face relaxed, fighting off a grin at the surliness in her voice. I hadn’t realized I was scowling until she said it. I stepped into the room and kept going until I stood in front of her. She tilted her head back to look at me.

Leaning down, I reached for the book on her lap and turned it around to see the cover, taking in the picture of a man standing on the balcony, his back toward the camera.

She said nothing as I set the book down on the nightstand before reaching for her.

She didn’t fight me when I helped her up, her hands running down the fabric of the dress and smoothing away any wrinkles that might have formed.

She was aware of my eyes on her.

She kept her gaze downcast, and I took a moment to savor her scent and the way her dark brown hair fell in waves and ended near the bottom of her perky tits.

The image of her on my bed, naked, her hair spreading over the pillow, had fucking haunted me all day, and I had to stop myself several times from coming back home—coming back to her.

Jesus, but since when was I without self-restraint? Since when did I let someone get to me this way?

Slowly, she looked up at me, her hazel eyes lighter this evening than they had been in the morning.

More green than brown, and just as fucking beautiful.

My heart constricted, and I reacted without thinking.

I picked her up in my arms. She let out a surprised squeak and wrapped herself around me, her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist. Clinging to me like a baby monkey to its mother.

I cupped her ass cheeks with my hands and carried her out of the room and down to the kitchen.

“What are you doing?” she asked, sounding breathless.

“Feeding you.”

She didn’t say anything for a moment, and since she was facing over my shoulder, I couldn’t tell what she was thinking.

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