Page 28 of Wicked Scorn
She doesn’t even give me time to say anything. My mind is going faster than I fathom, trying to piece it all together.
“Go on.” I’m pacing now, my hands clenched into fists.
“I was walking back to my dorm freshman year after having gone to one of those dumb freshman mixers. I was on campus and walking right by the library.” Her words fracture, broken shards of memories cutting the air between us. “That’s when he...he grabbed my hair, pulling me into the alley and pushed me against the wall. His hands...everywhere. Tearing at my clothes. I tried to scream, but he covered my mouth.”
“Fuck.” The venomous word slips out before I can stop it. I want to smash something, anything. To unleash this beast raging inside me.
“Jeremiah.” Oakley’s hand shoots out, grabbing my arm. “I fought him—I did. But he was so strong, and when he…” she chokes on her tears, her body trembling like a leaf in a hurricane.
I wipe her cheek and plead with her to continue.
“It was so dark, and he—he was just too strong. He forced himself into my mouth.” Her words are jarring as she spits out the poison of her trauma. “He didn’t care that I couldn’t breathe, or that I was fucking terrified. Someone spooked him before he could do anything else to me.”
“Oakley…” My voice cracks, but she doesn’t let me finish.
“So, now you know, and you don’t get to judge me for anything I do to reclaim some of my power back.” She says it so calmly, so matter of fact that I’m forced to look at her, really look at her. She’s right, I know that, but she’s mine and I’m not okay with others lusting after her.
“Fuck.” I rake a hand over my hair, envisioning the faceless fiend who dared hurt her. “I swear, when I find him?—”
“Jeremiah, stop!” Her plea slices through my thoughts. “You can’t just...it’s not that simple. You can’t kill a ghost.”
“Like hell it isn’t and like hell I can’t. Nobody stays a ghost when it comes to a Blackwood.” I’m a caged animal pacing back and forth, every muscle coiled tight. “No one touches what’s mine and gets away with it. I’ll tear this city and the next apart if I have to.”
“Yours?” There’s a spark in her gaze now, a flash of that sass I know so well. “Since when do I belong to anyone?”
“Since always, bunny.” My words are hot and possessive. “And don’t try to distract me. I’m not playing around.”
Oakley’s breath hitches and she gets off the bed standing before me, all five-two of her. “You think you can just march in here, all high and mighty, and fix everything?”
“Damn right I do.” I step closer, close enough to catch the scent of strawberries in her hair. “Because I’m not letting you go through this shit alone. Not now, not ever.”
She looks up at me then, those crystal eyes searing into my soul. And in that moment, I know. I’ll burn the world to ashes for her if I must.
“Stop,” she says, her voice gaining strength as she pulls herself together. “Just stop.”
“Why?” I demand, frustration boiling inside me. “Why won’t you let me help you?”
“Because it’s too late!” Her words cut through the air like a knife. “You can’t fix this, Jeremiah. You can’t fix me.”
“Who says I can’t?” I snap, my fists clenching at my sides. “I can fix anything, damn it!”
“Try all you want,” she retorts, her eyes blazing with something between anger and sorrow. “But I’ve already started rebuilding my life.” She looks around the room. “I don’t need your help anymore.”
“Like hell you don’t.” The words are out before I can stop them. “Goddammit, Oakley! You think you can just do this alone? After everything?”
“Yes,” she snaps back, not missing a beat. “That’s exactly what I’m doing.”
“Why?” My voice softens, a desperate edge creeping in. “Why won’t you let me in?”
“Because letting you in means risking getting hurt again,” she replies, her voice breaking slightly. “And I can’t handle any more pain, Jeremiah. Not from you.”
“I don’t accept that and while we’re at it, you’re not safe here, Oakley. You’re coming back to my place—now.”
She recoils, her blue eyes wild as cornered prey. “Jeremiah, you can’t just barge in and?—”
“Can’t I?” I cut her off, my heart thrashing like a caged beast. “After what that bastard did? Hell no. I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
Her lips tremble, and she’s this beautiful, broken thing that I’m desperate to piece back together. “Your house isn’t my home. It’ll be a prison.”
