The corners of Dorran’s mouth twitch as he looks at me in silent amusement. “It’s far more than that, Little Swan,” he tells me. “It’s an extension of me, I suppose, so it feels innately stimulating.” He pushes some of the fallen strands of my hair behind my ear. “I gotta admit, though: I was overwhelmed at first. I thought I’d dipped my toes into something that was too incomprehensible for my mind to grasp, but it quickly became second-nature. The excitement was –is– constant, and with every corrupt asshole I killed, I became addicted to it – to the process and its outcome. After a while, I couldn’t even bring myself tothinkabout walking away from it. And then, of course, Varsha and Alex came along, and the five of us turned into a fucked-up little…”
“Family,” I complete for him, and my throat tightens at the way the word tastes in my mouth.
“Yeah,” Dorran agrees, and something passes over his features as he searches my face.
“You’re lucky to have them in your life,” I tell him honestly.
He slowly wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me closer to him. “I’m feeling pretty fucking lucky being here with you right now,” he says, then tugs my bottom lip between his teeth.
“The infamous Dorran Ledger being romantic? Riverside willfall,” I muse.
He grins. “A small price to pay for the spark that just lit up those beautifully haunting eyes of yours.”
A flush rakes up my chest at his words. I lean in and press my lips to his, ignoring the pain that ignites in my cheeks.
Dorran parts his lips and kisses me back, then tilts his head and places feather-light pecks on the side of my neck. When he moves back, he stares at my throat with an unreadable expression, and I know he’s looking at the finger imprints on my skin.
“Hey.” I cup his jaw and lift his face so that our eyes meet. “It’ll be okay,” I tell him.
His nostrils flare. “I’m going to end her,” he vows with conviction. “I’m going to fucking make her pay for what she’s been doing to you for all these years.”
Please, I wanna beg him.Please,doit. But something tells me that if I do that, he’ll rush up to Mom’s room in a heartbeat and live up to his word without hesitation. And I can’t have that, especially because I know it won’t end well for either of us.
I push aside the thoughts in my head and smile up at him. “You remember what you promised me during our video call the other day?”
His brows crease for a moment, but then rise just as fast when he recalls our previous conversation.
“The thought of your lips tainted with my blood – it makes me so fucking wild, Dorran.”
“Then ask me for it the next time you and I see each other, and I swear I’ll give it to you.”
“Only if I get a taste of you in return.”
He shakes his head. “Not tonight.”
“But you said I could ask you for it the next time I saw you,” I argue. “You’re here now, so why not?”
Dorran’s stare turns hard. “I said:nottonight.”
I glare at him. “Why?”
“Because you’re hurt, damn you!”
“And?” I scoff. “Trust me, out of all the scars I have on my body right now, the one you give me will actually be a welcoming one.”
He frowns. “Cignette…”
I lean in and brush my lips over his. “I need this,” I whisper. “Please, Dorran.”
Distract me, I wanna tell him.Take my mind off things before you see my bruises again and decide to do something impulsive.
I don’t say any of that out loud, even though I want to. I just hope he sees my desperation, and gives into it without reluctance.
He lets go of a breath, then places a quick yet rough kiss on my lips. “Fuck you for saying please,” he mutters, making me chuckle.
ThankGod.
He shifts a little and retrieves his switchblade from the back pocket of his jeans. The moment he flicks it open, my breathing turns erratic.
