Page 6 of No Way Back
They aren’t in on this. The thought hadn’t even occurred to me until this very moment. Why would they be consenting participants when they’ve been stripped of every ounce of humanity here? Of course they’ve been displayed in their cells like animals at the zoo for gawking, entertainment, and cheap amusement.
My lip twitches involuntarily, my gaze still locked on the two eyes in the corner of the cell. Naya’s grip on me loosens, but before I can answer her question, I feel a hand cover my mouth.
An arm wraps around my waist, and suddenly, I’m being pulled from behind, feet in the air as I’m pressed to a hard body. I don’t struggle, don’t fight; I can smell Demetri’s cologne, the signature scent of amber resin and blood-orange-soaked cedar so familiar, all I can do is relax into his hold.
Then, we’re both inside a closet, pitch black. All I know is that there’s hardly room in here for me, let alone him. He’s panting hard, his breathing forcing his chest to move out of sync with mine, and it’s only when I’m focused on him that I’m able to notice how I’m breathing too.
Erratic.
“Where ya been?” I bite my lip even though he can’t see it.
“Planning a night you deserve.” His voice is low, confident, his growing white smile all I can see in the dark.
“Tell me more,” I whisper, pressing myself to him, disappointed when there’s no hard cock between his thighs. I palm him anyway, threatening to bring it to life.
I can feel his exhales on my skin, and it only drives me into his arms. I want to breathe his old air, drink his backwash, and fuck, if it didn’t require killing him, I’d say the only way to truly be as close to him as I want would be to zip myself up inside his meatsuit and wear him out to dinner.
And goddamn, some days, I come close.
“Not here. Not yet.” He grabs my wrist to stop me.
I whine impatiently. “What?”
Demetri turns his head away from me, like he’s talking to someone I can’t see. “You know how the readers get when there’s too much smut and not enough plot.”
His breath is visible in the air, and he stays frozen, unmoving, just breathing.
I snap my fingers in front of his face, attempting to direct his attention back to me. “Are you possessed right now? Harkins.” I snap until his chin turns my way again, a glossed over look on his eyes. “Did you just break the fourth wall?”
He just clears his throat, shaking his head, as if he’s somehow more confused than I am.
Demetri shuffles between us, pulling his phone out of his pocket and turning the flashlight on, exposing a much bigger utility closet behind him.
I finally look around and notice why we’re so crammed. The gasp flies out of my mouth before the uncontrollable laughter starts. Demetri’s hand flies over my mouth again, silencing me as best as he can. “Shh.”
When I’m finally able to reign it in, I take a big sip of air before I look up at the man I love with all my heart. “You’re such a fucking romantic.”
“It’s Halloween. Let’s have some fun, right?” His grin reminds me of a Jhonen Vasquez comic, specifically the one with the homicidal maniac.
I lower my eyes to each of his hands, where he pulls up from the ground two haunt workers by their collars. They both wear glow masks—one a girl with pink LED Xs where the eyes should be and a frown for lips, the other a guy about his size with the same neon mask in blue, a large smile on that one instead.
They’re both unresponsive.
“Are they?” It doesn’t really matter if they’re dead, but I’m curious.
Demetri shrugs before dropping them to the ground. “Once the power went out, I smashed their heads together pretty hard, so if they aren’t dead, they might want to be after this.”
It’s too much, all of it. He’s everything, and it’s nearly suffocating to feel loved in such a capacity. “Please don’t make me beg for it,” I say in a hushed tone, slowly lowering to my knees.
“Don’t start something you can’t finish, Darkling. We only have so much time,” he warns me.
I palm him through the fabric of his jeans, feeling him quickly grow under my strokes. “I can finish you.”
By the time I pull him free from his pants, he’s fully hard, his cock veiny and throbbing for me. I lick my bottom lip, my mouth watering at just the sight.
It’s always like that.
For both of us.
