Page 65 of Redeeming the Villain

“Hmm.” He takes another step, leaving only a foot or so between us. “What if I have issues with both options?”

“What are they?” I counter, all the nerves in my body starting to come alive at his nearness.

He drifts forward, stopping between my knees, forcing me to look straight up. “I don’t think forgetting each other is possible.”

My mouth dries. “W-what do you mean?”

“I’ve tried to forget you.” Reaching out, he lifts a strand of my hair and twirls it between his fingers. “Over and over, I have tried. Endlessly. And I’ve failed everysingletime.”

My brain is empty, like he hit a reset button. I’m speechless.

Inching forward, he pushes my legs further apart as his voice changes, angrier and rough. “Do you know how aggravating it is to me that I can’t get you out of my head?”

“I do.” I sit further forward, our faces only inches apart. “Morethan you could ever know.”

“You hate me, Bug?” He smirks. “Talk dirty to me again. I like it.”

Rolling my eyes, I push at his chest, but he catches my wrists, pulling me forward and into him, my legs stretching as wide as they can go.

“Do you know how hard it is to hate the only person you want?” The words hiss through his teeth. “You torture me with every glance and every breath you take.”

Tilting my head further back, I look straight into those haunted purple eyes. “Then why bother with this? Why come into my room and almost kiss me? Why do any of this at all?”

His stare drops to my lips and back up as a war brews behind his eyes, a myriad of emotions contorting his face. “You’re my curse, Alora. I can’t escape you if I try.”

Searching his eyes, I wet my lips. “Your curse?”

Reaching up, he cups my cheek in his hand, brushing his thumb along my bottom lip. “My curse. My tragedy. They’re all the same.” He glances down to my now-parted lips. “The worst part is that no matter how much I hate you and how much I wish I could forget all about you, Ican’t. That’s my destiny … to live in a never-ending loop of loathing you and wanting you.”

My breaths are fast and ragged. The same as his next words.

“Do you know what it’s like? Wondering how every inch of your body will writhe beneath my touch. How I picture you spread out, helpless and begging me for more?”

His lips brush against mine as his other hand drops to my waist, and I arch my back.

“I want to ruin you. Corrupt you. Make you suffer the same way I do. Make you hate me for the rest of your life. At least if you did, I would be free from the torment of choosing or losing you.”

He steps back and walks away without another word. He unlocks the door and strides through, leaving me breathless and warm as my thoughts spiral out of control.

I’m so fucked.

Lying in bed, I hit play on one of the songs I recorded while outside of her practice room. From one of the times I followed her, waiting for her to get lost in her music before I emerged from the shadows.

She’sincredible.

Once her song comes to an end, I open Instagram and search her name—something I’ve done a thousand times over the years. The most recent photo she uploaded is one of her and Sunny.

She looks so happy, so cheerful, posing with her girl. A pang of jealousy shoots through me that I’ve never made her smile like that. I mean, I’ve seen her happy like that before, but never by my own intention.

I shouldn’t be surprised, given the fact that my goal has always been to take that very thing away from her. But now, everything is getting muddled and confusing, and I don’t know how to navigate the growing urge to make her smile rather than frown.

Scrolling through her page, I find one posted from this past summer. Location set in Italy. It’s of her and some guy posing for the camera in front of a pool the size of my childhood home.

She’s wearing a ruffled pink bikini set that I’m hoping she still has because it looks fucking incredible on her.

The blond guy’s hand is wrapped around her hip as they smile for the photo.

My blood pressure spikes.Who the hell is this guy?

---