Page 55 of Marked
Amidst the collared shirts, a few tag-less tees wait. I flip through them and pull down a threadbare black one with an obscene skull design. Shucking the strip of my skirt and the remnants of my destroyed underwear, I pull the fabric over my head. It bags to my knees, covering me, but the spicy scent from the candles seems to lace the collar. I inhale in long pulls and head to bed.
The mattress is soft, but not too soft, and the sheets are nice and cool. I lay back among the pillows, that same spicy fragrance filling my head in a cloud. It lulls over my senses, adding to the exhaustion and heaviness of the alcove with Ruin.
If he doesn’t want me, I could deal with it. Let it go. But his body said otherwise, and he can’t deny it.
I have no idea how to get him to admit it or how to cross that line. But I want him. Even if it’s only once. I want the power and fire he can give me.
And Raina is right. I just have to convince him he wants it too.
Chapter 25
Ruin
I close my door and stumble through the dark room. My eyes burn and every muscle aches. Every rep, every punch, given and received, screamed Lilah’s scent. Her heat. It was all I could do not to go find her. To finish what I started.
My body hardens all over again. No amount of weight lifting, fighting, or Black-Dream has taken away the need she sparked.
A need I thoroughly deserve after what I did.
I don’t know if it was the joint or just her, but there was no way to resist that almost languid cast to her features. How soft she looked in the chair, exactly where I left her. Her willingness to follow my command set me on fire. A fire that grew hotter as I stood above her. In slumber, she’s even more innocent. Beautiful.
My plan was to wake her gently. To guide her to a guest room, kiss her once, and leave. Before I did something stupid.
But that ship has damn sure fucking sailed.
I should’ve stopped at touching her cheek. Should’ve never pulled those deliciously full thighs apart. Her panties were almost see through, giving me tantalizing peeks of what I now crave like an addict.
Goddess she was scalding. Like wet fucking silk around my fingers. She responded in ways I did not expect. That I never hoped for. I clench my nails into my palms to keep from groaning. I wanted things from her ... things she can’t possibly want too. Not really.
And especially not from one of my kind.
Wincing, I toe off my boots and slip my shirt over my head. My jeans follow. As much as I hate leaving the mess, my big bed is calling. I need the oblivion of sleep. A dreamless void free of Lilah-fucking-Marks.
I pull back the blanket and climb between the cool sheets. A sigh leaves me. I settle down on the pillows, heart slowing to match the one beside me.
The ... one ... beside ... me?
Adrenaline courses through my body and I dive out of the bed, snaring my Glock from its holster before flipping the light switch to the bathroom.
A half-covered dark head is barely visible on the other side of the mattress. Gun pointed, I stalk around the thick frame and grab the blanket. I jerk it down.
Lilah grumbles in her sleep, one soft arm casting about for the bedspread. One of my old rock tees, from my rebellious years, is hiked up around her waist, leaving the curve of her thigh and bare ass visible. My mouth waters and my fangs drop.
Fuck.
She rolls, body curving in on herself. Like she’s cold.
I reach for her, already tucking my gun behind my back. “Lilah? Lilah! Why are you in my bed?”
“Hmmm...” Her eyes flutter open. She bolts upright, grabbing for the blanket. “Ruin? What the fuck are you doing in here?”
I stand up, gun pressed against the lower half of my spine. “What the fuck areyoudoing in here?” I ask, voice hard. “You’re inmybed.”
Heat flows up over her neck and into her cheeks, and the last ounce of sleep fades from her eyes. “Oh my god ... Oh my god.” She scoots all the way to the other side of the bed and climbs from the blankets to stand across from me. Her little hands tug at the hem of my shirt. “Raina told me to sleep in here.”
I stare at her. “What?”
She pulls at the hem again, holding it down over the full swell of her thighs. Her expression is worried and almost crestfallen. “I’m sorry, Ruin. I didn’t know.” She moves to go towards the closet. “Let me grab my stuff...” Her feet tangle in my discarded clothes, and she stumbles.
