Page 49 of The Villain

“Because if you knew me, you’d know I don’t deserve you.”

Chapter Nine

Athena

“You’re perfect.”

The words were too sweet to seem real—so sweet that with every passing minute of the morning, it got easier and easier to believe they were a dream.

But while his deep voice and the pleasure erupting from my body were things I could—and had—dreamed about, there was one piece of last night that promised reality.Okay, two.The pain in my hip where I’d fallen on it.

And the sound and feel of him pleasuring himself. His low grunts tucked between my moans. The undeniable sound of a fist tugging on hard flesh. The fevered bounce of his shoulder under my hand.

To have seen it would be one thing…but to have the memory built from every other sense, that was what made it indestructible.

And the memory was just as perfect as it was painful at theend. The way he’d left. My throat tightened when I tried to swallow.

I should apologize again. Dare wasn’t in his right mind to refuse it last night, and I’d been in the wrong. To beg him when he was trying to keep things professional and not take advantage of the situation.

I was sorry for begging him, but I wasn’t sorry for wanting him.

I adjusted the eye mask on my face, finding one more reason to wish I was healing faster.Because when this was all over, there wouldn’t be any reason to regret the way he wanted me, too.

I turned, hearing the handle of the door.

“Dare?” My heart leaped into my throat.

“Athena?” Rob’s calm voice oozed through the room.

Not Dare.Even though he said we’d talk in the morning.

“Hey.” I smiled like I wasn’t wishing she was someone else.

“I brought you a strawberry smoothie for breakfast. How does that sound?” Her footsteps got louder, her voice closer.

“Great.”I moved the sketch paper back to the nightstand, following the same path I always did, to make sure I could find it easily next time.

“Here you go.” She put her hand on my shoulder first, revealing her position, before that same hand took my wrist so she could hand me the smoothie.

“Thank you.” I felt up the cup to the thick straw, holding it steady to my lips.

“How are you doing?” she asked after I’d taken a good couple of sips,and I swore I heard the slight rustle of paper next to me as though she were looking at my sketch.

“Fine.” I swallowed and licked my lips, adjusting the mask on my face. “I mean, no change.”

No sight. No memory. If I asked to see Dr. Nilsen again,they’d bring him here, but it wasn’t fair to him or me. He’d already given me an answer about my condition—that these things would return in time when my brain healed. To ask again was a pointless sprinkle of salt in the wound.

“I meant after last night,” she said as I took another sip.

Last—I choked on the smoothie, coughing and sputtering as Rob took the cup from my hand. “Sorry,” I croaked, catching my breath.

“It’s okay. I just wanted to see how you were doing after Dare last night.”

No…she couldn’t be talking about that.I swallowed over the ball in my throat and wished she’d given me back the smoothie so I could hold the cup to my cheeks and try to cool down my face.

“After Dare…”

“After he told you about Brandon. And Richard.” She paused. “What did you think I was talking about?”

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