Page 76 of Then Came You

“Throw him on the ground, he’s getting in the way of me sucking your tits.”

Bye Hopsy.

Chapter 33

Blade

"Want to go on an adventure, Tink?" I do that manly thing men often do when we can't be bothered to walk around and sit on the couch – we hop over it instead.

I can see she's curiously giddy, wondering what sort of adventure I have planned for her.

"Don’t you have plans with Xan?" As she moves off the lounge, she starts to pack away the various toys and items that have somehow made their way everywhere across the floor.

Why is Haven’s toothbrush out here?

My eyes twinkle with light and playfulness. I swat her ass. "Nope. I’m having lunch with him tomorrow."

"Then I would love to go anywhere with you." I relish the thought of spending an entire evening with her alone. "Do I need to go home and get changed?" I look down at her ratty lounge wear. The top has lint balls on it for Christ's sake.

"Do you have jeans?" I ask. She squints, trying to remember if she wore them yesterday. I see the moment reflected in her eyes when she realises she did.

"Actually, I do. They're in my car from hanging out with Xan yesterday, but the shirt got dirty when I spilled soy sauce on it from sushi."

"Just wear mine," I shrug, getting on my hands and knees to help her with the hurricane of a mess Haven made.

Not even half an hour later, Row bounds out from the bathroom where she’d been getting ready. She steals the breath from my lungs whenever she is in a room.

She strides toward me in her signature denim jeans and my white button-up, which is open just enough that I can see her deep v and navy satin bra. "You look beautiful," I lick at her mouth, wanting to taste the sweetness straight from the source.

"Do more of that, and we’re never leaving this house."

"Okay." I go in to kiss her again, but she pushes me away.

"No. I want my surprise." She bounces on the spot as if Christmas has come early.

Minutes later, we exit the gates in my Porsche. I've noticed that whenever we're in the car, unless she falls asleep, she usually doesn't move an inch.

"Loosen up, Tink. Why are you so stiff?" I attempt a joke, massaging her thigh.

She snaps out of her trance, glancing at me. "What? Sorry. Huh?"

"What's up, buttercup?"

She fidgets with her hands, darting her eyes to mine and back down again, as if she's trying to work out what to say. "Honestly? I don't want to wreck your car. It's so flashy; I'm afraid that even breathing will fog up the pristine windows." She screws her face up and throws her hands up in the air out of embarrassment, but little does she know it only makes her more endearing.

I tangle my fingers with hers. "You never have to worry about anything like that with me, okay? Tell me where this is coming from."

I knew she had residual scars from her childhood. Heck, she’s got trauma from her adult years, but she’s made leaps and bounds since she started therapy.

Inhaling through her nose, she tilts her head back on the headrest and collects her thoughts. I don't miss the way she grips my hand much tighter as she tries to articulate what's in that beautiful head of hers.

"We used to get belted, starved, or banished outside in the winter's cold if we touched or ruined anything of Mum’s. It didn’t matter how small. Like one time, I accidentally broke a plate, and I was bleeding for days." She stops, shifting her head away to stare out the window. "Everyone thought I started my period, but it was just from the lashing. Then there was a time I borrowed her scarf because I was cold, and she tried to choke me with it."

Fuck. Me. Dead.

How was someone like Row's Mum even allowed to have children? What sort of fucked up government did we have that no one had stepped in?

I clasp her hand tighter, trying to tamp down the rage. I know this is a pivotal moment for her to open up about her past. "I know what I went through wasn't normal. It was abuse…but being around this level of wealth," she waves one of her hands around the car, "is still unsettling because I shudder to think what would have actually happened to me if I wrecked something of value…" She trails off, visibly shuddering at the thought.

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