Page 36 of Blood Vows
It wasn’t planned. It wasn’t even conscious. One moment I was flinching, the next, I was pressed against him, my fingers fisting the fabric of his damp jacket, my cheek against his chest. I could feel the hard rise and fall of his breath, the thunder still echoing faintly through it.
He went rigid, as if unsure whether to push me away or pull me closer. But when I tilted my head back and looked up at him, that hesitation fractured.
“I told you, you shouldn’t look at me like that,” he warned again, his voice deep, low, almost rough.
“Why?”I whispered, breathless. His eyes darkened, the faint glow behind them flickering like lightning caught in shadow.
“You know why.” I shook my head, though my heart was beating so hard I could barely hear the words. Which was when I decided enough was enough. It was time to try and break down those walls completely.
“But what if I don’t want to look at you any other way?”
That was all it took.
In one swift movement, he had me pinned against the wall, his hands braced on either side of my head, the air between us vanishing. His eyes searched mine, wild, hungry, tortured as though he was fighting every part of himself not to move, not to break.
“You play a dangerous game here,” he warned, his voice rough silk, his breath hot against my lips as he lowered them closer.
“Then why are you also playing?” I asked, making him grin before telling me,
“Because you can’t have a hero, without a villain.” I could feel the tremor that ran through him. The restraint and desire locked in a brutal battle, before one gave into the other when his hands slid to my waist, pulling me closer.
“So, you’re the villain?” I asked but then he scoffed lightly as if I had missed the most obvious part about us. A truth I never saw before. A truth he brought to light when he told me,
“No, Nessa…”
“…Your mine.”
15
SCREAMS THAT SHATTER
Ididn’t know what was more shocking, that he had just declared me as being his Villain or that he was about to kiss me. My mind was in utter turmoil as his words merged and blurred the lines of his actions. However, before he could finally cross that barrier between us,
A scream shattered the air.
And this time…it wasn’t mine.
No, it came from somewhere deep within the house, a distant, echoing sound that wasunmistakably human.
We broke apart, breathless at what had been about to happen, and both turned toward the sound. The silence that followed was suffocating, thick with dread and the fading ghost of what we’d just done.
“What was that?”I asked, my voice trembling.
He didn’t answer right away. His jaw was tight, his eyes shadowed. When he finally spoke, his tone was cold again, a wall snapping back into place.
“That, is the reason why I shouldn’t be doing this.” I sucked back a pained breath.
“Why?” I demanded, the word slipping out sharper than I intended. He hesitated, as if torn between leaving and telling me the truth. When he turned to go, I caught his arm, holding on.
“Tell me? I deserve to know,” I asked, my voice sounding more urgent. He looked down at where my hand gripped his sleeve, then back at me, his expression fractured. As if fury, guilt and longing were all warring in his eyes.
“You want to know why it’s wrong?” he said, his voice low.
“Because vengeance means more.” My breath caught as his words lanced through me. My hand dropped, and I stumbled back until my back hit my door.
“You…you don’t mean that.” I stammered, and the barest hint of guilt registered before his gaze hardened, but I could see the pain flickering beneath.
“Then you’re not just a villain…you’re also a fool.” After this, he turned abruptly and left, and with it, taking something with him.
