Tingling sensations started in my fingertips and toes, my tongue going numb as tears flowed freely down my face. I couldn’t breathe past the hand that was crushing my lungs in a desperate attempt to turn me into pure ice. It was robbing me of all my oxygen.
My vision went blurry as Price tried to call out to me. I couldn’t hearhim over the sound of crashing waves in my ears. Hands crawled along my skin, burning me on their path. A dark, wicked grin, pointed teeth, and foul breath pushed into my face. The demons were extending their claws, holding me in their grip as I desperately tried to fight my way out. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t see. I was drowning. The hands crawled up my neck, tightening around my throat until the room started to spin.
And through it all, I felt warmth. A warmth so inviting, it reminded me of Mom without the smell of cheap booze and cigarettes.
I could hear a deep voice that didn’t echo. It was right by my ear.
“It’s okay, Pretty Boy. I’ve got you. You’re safe. You’re going to be okay. Nothing can hurt you here.”
Safe?
The crook of Price’s neck felt like hope as I cried into it. In his arms, I was invincible. The hands that selfishly took my innocence retreated quickly as Price guided me through breathing.
In through my nose, out through my mouth. Hold it before releasing. Focus on his touch.Histouch, not the demon’s touch.
Price’s arms felt like home. A home I’d never been to before, but I’d give anything to stay in.
It tookover an hour to calm Crew down enough to let me take him to bed last night. We had both dressed in loose pajama pants before slipping under his blankets, cuddling against each other until our fight for sleep took over.
Seeing him panic had done something to me. I could still feel the cracks in my heart as they desperately tried to mend themselves together. His reaction had confirmed my suspicions about the rough treatment he’d been enduring. When we first met, I saw his scars and wondered if they were done by others or by himself. Now that I knew it was the latter, the intense need to protect him and keep him safe was quickly becoming overwhelming. Showing him my scars was my attempt to ease his worries and give him a glimpse of myself. I knew if I’d continued to push, he’d eventually shut down, rendering any progress I’d made useless.
He was still asleep, most likely exhausted from the night we’d had. I basked in the ability to hold him close for even a little bit longer. His back was against my chest, and my arm was wrapped around his middle protectively.
Taking him out had been a gamble if I was honest. After taking a break from sex work, I was hoping he’d be able to see the environment from a different perspective. What Crew was doing was dangerous. It was lonely. He didn’t have many safety measures in place. It would’ve been different if he was an escort with a reputable company or a porn star with people who got tested regularly. Getting picked up by random men on the side of the street who had plans to return him beaten and bloody was a huge risk to his well-being, and I knew before he’d even confirmed it that he didn’t enjoy it. Not in the way he’d convinced himself.
Of course, my plan had the potential to backfire, possibly ending with him pushing me so far away I’d never reach him again. It seemed I’d pushed him at just the right time to open his eyes to what was truly going on around him. I was thankful he’d opened up to me, even if it wasn’t necessarily with words.
Hopefully, my plan for today didn’t ruin things for us.
Nudging Crew a bit, I started to whisper in his ear. “Wake up, sleepy head.”
It took a few more tries before he opened his eyes, the forest of ice within them hazy. Hopefully, he’d wake up more as time went on. He huffed a bit before turning towards me, pushing his face into my chest.
Cuddling was nicer now. Crew took to it more easily, though he still had moments of reservations about it here and there. “Come on, let’s get up.”
“Do I have to?” His voice was little more than a tired croak.
“Yep. You need to clean up your cuts while I get everything ready.”
He pulled his face away from my chest. “Ready?” I watched as his eyes widened, snapping his head behind his shoulder to look at the clock. “Oh, fuck—we’re late for work!”
I held him tight as he tried to jump out of the bed. “Hold on, hold on. I was up all night with a horrible fever.” I frowned, laying it on thick. “It was awful. I just cannot work today. And then, to make matters worse, you texted me saying you had a fever too. I think we may have gotten the flu since it’s going around. Brandt wasn’t too happy, but I haven’t taken a sick day in years, and we can’t work around food when we’re sick.”
Crew’s shoulders relaxed, his body slumping back into me. “If that’s the case, then why do we have to bother getting ready?”
My frown was replaced with a huge, knowing smile. “Because we’re going on a little day trip. Dress for warmth and comfort. I’ve already got a couple of small bags packed for us.”
Our destination wastwo and a half hours outside the city. Crew sat peacefully through it all, explaining that he was used to longdrives after growing up hours away from even the nearest major grocery stores.
I, on the other hand, was not used to such a long drive. I struggled through it, finding myself antsy around forty minutes in.
But seeing Crew’s face light up the moment he stepped out of the car made it all worth it. I froze in place, stuck as I watched the golden glow of the sun shining through the trees, dancing its way across his cheekbones. When he turned his head, swirls of blue—so bright, they were almost white—gleamed with the sun. Gone was the guarded cage in his eyes, freedom taking its place.
Crew looked ethereal.
Crew lookedhappy.
“What is this, Prince Charming? Are we even still, like—” He shook his head, chuckling. “Are we still in fucking New York?”
