My body starts to shiver. Immense darkness engulfs me. The air is crisp and disappearing fast, as water is quick to take its place. I coerce my eyes to open, my vision blurry as blood streams down the bridge of my nose. I try to scream or move, but my body is non-responsive. Plunged into darkness again as my eyes are forced shut by fatigue, I find myself gasping.
Once I can reclaim my sight, it's the same thing all over again—there’s that voice. This time, the thought of it being my father brings a sense of peace. Then, I wake up, with sweat beading on my forehead, and my skin is clammy. If only we had waited a little longer, if only I had given Evelyn more time, I wouldn’t be on a bus to Maryland to save her.
When I get off the bus, I start the standard walk to the next stop. A few paces in, I notice the echoing of footsteps mirroring that of my own. I pick up my stride to see if the phantom steps will match. They do. I turn quickly to face what or who it is. The only thing I see is the fog swirling with the cool winter breeze. My walk becomes more of a sprint, with only another block to go.
Just then, a man steps out from beside a building a few feet in front of me, his silhouette ominous but familiar. He lifts his hand just enough, and the streetlamp highlights his leather glove. His palm face up, stops at waist level. Two fingers beckon me to come closer. My heart quickens, like Russian racehorses at their first derby, the beating of their hooves galloping toward my nether regions.
I should not be turned on by this.
This man before me, who is he?
His stature matched that of the man who left the letter in my mailbox. Now that I am closer, he seems too young to be my father.
Is this the man from the bus?
Has he been following me the whole time?
Does he work for my dad?
I heard him release a small, low chuckle, then realized I was biting my lip. He is giving mad dark romance vibes—the red flags are at DEFCON 4, signaling me to run away. Instead, I do the opposite—I walk forward.
Chapter 4
Oliver
"Desire, when left unchecked, can become both a sanctuaryand a prison."
Hm, oh, little dove, you should not look at me that way. I feel a profound tremor from her stare, her eyes round and doe-like. Why does she do this to me?
Imust force restraint on myself. I cannot act on these feelings, but damn, what I wouldn’t give to force her to her knees right here in this alley, is an extremely compact list. To fill her luscious mouth with every inch the gods have blessed me with.
Clenched shut in protest, my teeth go cold as I suck air through them while the intrusive, but true, thoughts stampede through my mind.
Her face glistening with tears, as her lips stretch wide to take me.
Shit, my mind is running away from me.
Ugh, but joy of ‘getting off’ to her screams, as they ricochet from
every brick, is riveting.
A small laugh escapes my mouth when I notice she is gnawing at her bottom lip.What are you thinking, little dove?I grant her a few steps toward me before I vanish into the darkness of the alley.
The pitter-patter of her feet makes me smile.That’s it, chase me. I release a laugh so maniacal that it even givesmechills, as the shadows morph into my fun house. “You are no match for me in the darkness. I. Am. A shadow.” My voice drops to a baritone.
“Wait!” She calls out.
“Run, run, run as fast as you can.” I pause for a spell.
Am I taunting her with a nursery rhyme?Yes, I guess I am.
The air was thick and eerie, so her voice rang out crisp and clear, “What do you want?” She belts out more of her interrogation, and my body shudders. My inner fiend is drooling at the mouth—growing more excited with her persistent mewling.
I dart behind her, into another blackened corridor, whispering against her neck as I pass. “You. I.Fucking.Want. You!” There’s a detectable hitch in her breathing—shown by the vapor of smoke her hot breath makes as it clashes with the frosty winter air.
Her ongoing hunt captures my interest, “Why... me?” She persists, making it that much more difficult to fight my urges. “How do you know me? Did my father send you?” So brazenly, she questions me.
Is she even the slightest bit afraid that she is alone in an empty alley with a strange man?
