Page 14 of The Depraved Prince
His dark brown hair is rustled in a mess—his blue eyes are hidden and focused on his watch. Being in my room makes me take in his height and frame. He’s tall, just around what seems like 6’4, with a muscular frame, but he isn’t overly muscular. He…
No, stop it, Millie. I won’t think about these things. No matter how undeniably attractive he is, I’ll fight against this magnetic pull to him.
“How do you know about my dad? Did you touch him? I swear to God if you touched h?—”
“Don’t get all riled up, Bambi. He took the dog out on a jog early this morning. He’s alive...for now.” His blue eyes pin to mine with tension around his jaw. He walks toward me, and I clench my blankets for useless protection.
Why is he still here? Why did he let me go home? Wait…how does he know where I live?
The closer he gets, the more my body stiffens. He grins wickedly as he stands over me. He leans on my headboard with one arm. I do everything I can not to look at him, as if he’ll get the message that he’s unwanted here and he’ll disappear.
Suddenly, I feel his hand grab my throat tight. With his other one, he grips my jaw and turns my head, forcing me to look up at him. It’s like he’s upset I’m not giving him the attention he craves. Our eyes lock together, and after he blinks once, his crimson eyes make a devastating return. He smirks as he leans forward so we’re face to face in dire proximity. His lips are close to touching mine, and his cold breath kisses my skin. A scent of whiskey, cigarettes, and mint surrounds me. I try to wiggle out of his grasp, but he tightens his grip like he’s punishing me for trying to get out of his hold.
“Again, you’re alive because I’m allowing it. Don’t. Forget. That.” His fingers and palm on my neck tighten.
The air in my lungs comes to a standstill. I can’t breathe as my circulation gets caught off, and my head wants to explode. He’s choking me. But I don’t panic this time. My eyes squeeze shut from the pain, and I let him choke me. He wants a reaction; he wants me to fight and struggle, but I refuse to give him anything.
Finally, I see stars and black clouds threatening to pull me away. Just as I think I’m going to dive into darkness, he lets me go. And like a moth to a flame, I’m gasping for air. I choke and cough from the soreness. I hold onto my throat as if it’ll help, even though I know damn well my neck is going to be severely bruised. While I struggle to breathe, Hayden turns his back to me and walks away with slow, indignant steps.
“And Bambi? Try to stay out of trouble. No one is going to be there to rescue you again.”
Is that what he calls what he did to me?
Rescuing?!
I swallow and bite my tongue, trying so hard not to call him every name in the book. I think of some very colorful words to use, but then I remember his threat when we were in the car.
“Watch your words...or I’ll shut you up with my cock.”
Slight heat throbs at my core as I remember how he makes threats feel like foreplay. What the hell is wrong with me? The exhilaration in my chest should not be present. It has to be a monster trick. I hate myself for this.
“If you tell anyone about what happened to you. You’re dead. Not by me. No, no, no,” he sing-songs. “But by those people that took you. For your safety,for your father’s safety, you won’t say anything. Will you, smart girl? If you do, they’ll know where to find you.” He sighs like he’s annoyed. I watch him move, and even in the way he steps and the way his back sways, it does something to me.
Hayden opens my door and takes one step out. He’s leaving me. He’s actually going to let me live tonight. I bite my lip as I watch him grip my doorknob.
“It’s Millie.” I don’t know why I felt the need to reveal my real name, but I did.
He turns his head over his shoulder, allowing me to see only half his face and strong jawline. His confusion is evident by how he knits his brows together and his eyes crease.
“My name is Millie, not Bambi,” I whisper low as I correct him.
I hate it when he calls me Bambi. But it only elicits a smirk, and his eyes return to a mesmerizing frozen ice-blue color.
“In this world where I exist, you’ll always be Bambi,” he says darkly.
There’s a short pause between us. I don't know what to do. Should I throw my beanie baby at him? It’s the closest thing to my reach. Then he continues, “This is the last time you’ll ever see me. Consider yourself lucky. You better start praying to God that you never do…you’re going to need him in your corner.”
For some reason, I unveil a glimpse of raw emotion when he tells me this. But it’s just that—aglimpse. I’m unsure of what I’m seeing, but before I can overthink it, Hayden closes the door behind him.
I expect to hear his footsteps follow after, but there’s nothing but an eerie silence with crickets singing outside my window. I hold my breath, concentrating on trying to hear a door close…anything. But it never comes.
I wait a few minutes before I fall apart.
He’s gone. He’s really gone this time. And finally, I can breathe without feeling like I need to hold it in. I exhale heavily and start to sob uncontrollably.
I can’t tell anyone about tonight. How am I going to live like this? How am I going to explain how I got a broken wrist? Howam I ever going to be okay knowing that what I just went through wasn’t a nightmare? It was fucking real.
All of me is terrified, horrified, thinking that men like the blonde man who took me would come back and search for me again. And another small part of me…a very small molecular partthat I hate, is disappointed I won’t see Hayden again.
