Page 124 of Redeemed

“And how’d that work out for you?” I ask dryly.

“It…” She drops her head. “It didn’t. I’ve tried to get past it so many times, but I can’t. Not with men, not with women. I just… I’m too scared.”

We sit there in silence as I process what she’s telling me. Back when we were eighteen, she trusted me, but obviously not to the fullest extent. She didn’t think I was safe. God, I wasn’t. I’m still not. My impatience has followed me through the years. But… Haven wanted me. Goddammit, she wanted everything with me. She just couldn’t get past her trauma.

Still, that’s not the only thing on my mind. I stare down at her tear-stained face, needing more answers. “How many people have you tried to fuck?”

“I—I don’t know.”

Seventeen.I may not know what happened once they disappeared behind closed doors, but I’ve always kept track. What I didn’t realize was that she never actually slept with any of them.

“And how many of them gave you the patience and gentleness you needed?”

She takes a second to reply, probably tallying them in her mind. The silence irritates me, though, so I slap her ass.

“Colton!”

“Fucking answer me.”

“Seven,” she forces out.

Just as I thought.Haven has been fighting a losing battle against her own mind for years. Patience gives her an escape route, and it looks like she’s taken it every time it was offered.

“But you still couldn’t let them in.” Not a question since I already know the answer.

Haven nods, her gaze lowering in shame. “The girls always understood. Some of the guys did, but I usually had to placate them with a blow job or something.”

“Sounds like it was all for nothing.”

She goes stiff at my hard tone.

“And I think, deep down…” I let my gaze rove down her body. “You know that a gentle touch isn’t what you need.”

“That’s not—”

“You tried things your way. It didn’t work. So now, we’re going to try it my way.”

Her fear is so potent I can almost taste it. “W-what are you talking about?”

For a brief moment, I let her sit like that, her imagination running wild with the possibilities. Her anxiety was one of the first things I noticed about her, and it’s so easy to weaponize against her.

“Colton.What are you—”

“I’m going to destroy you. When I’m finished, there won’t be a single part of you that’s unbroken.”

A new wave of tears floods her eyes, and she shakes her head in desperation. “No.”

“Oh, yes.” I kiss her gently, letting my expression soften. “And then I’m going to put you together again, piece by piece, until you’re thoroughly and undeniably mine.”

Her breath hitches with panic, and when she tries to move away, I hold her still.

“But the best part,” I whisper directly in her ear, “will be the way you thank me for it when I’m done.”

Haven

Colton’sarmslooparoundme, lifting me up and tossing me onto the bed. Pain radiates from my ass, the soft sheets turning to sandpaper under my abused skin. He manhandles me until I’m on my back with my head dangling precariously off the edge of the mattress.

I don’t even try to get up. He’s wrung the fight out of me, so I stare at the purple lights lining the ceiling like a lifeless doll.

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