“I’m here.” Knox yanks me even tighter to him, then uses one of his hands to work the rope loose. My arms fall around his neck, and our eyes lock. “You’re mine. I’ve got you.”
My mouth tingles as I try so hard to tell himYes, I’m yours.
Impossible. The words are trapped in my throat. The adrenaline that kept me going dissolves, leaving me hollow and shaking.
I’m crashing. Hard.
My lips won’t work. My voice is gone. Shock steals it from me, steals everything but the trembling.
My knees buckle, but Knox holds me upright while my body caves in, silent sobs choking me.
All the fear, these emotions, they burst all at once.
I’m unraveling, coming apart at the seams.
Gone, gone, gone.
“Skylar.”
Through blurred vision, my heart latches onto Knox’s voice. I can’t speak.
“Trouble.” His movements turn frantic as he lowers me onto the blankets. His hands are everywhere, desperate to anchor me. “Talk to me.”
Wish I could. But the crying won’t stop. Ugly, jagged sobs pour out of me.
Knox straddles me, shielding me. His lips brush over my cheeks, my mouth, my temples.
Nothing works. Nothing stops my soul from free-falling.
“Talk to me. Please.” His voice is low, frantic.
I hate seeing him like this, so tense because of me.
That’s why I try to explain, murmuring, “N-No. Just…need time. It’ll pass.”
“You think I’m going to wait it out?” His eyebrows shoot down.
One second, he’s there, and the next, he’s gone, stalking off to the table. Even in my current state, I appreciate his lean legs. It shouldn’t happen, my crying harder because I think his toned muscles are hot.
He empties a bottle of water over his cock, over his open wounds. Once finished, he throws it aside, grabs another, and comes back to me.
“A blanket,” I whisper. Complete sentences like,I need it to ground me, to calm me, are beyond me. “Tea.”
“Fuck that. I’ll fix you.” He lowers himself beside me. “I’ll make it better.”
“Tea,” I whisper again, blinking up at him when he kneels next to me. “Blanket.”
“I said no.” His refusal crashes over me.
My tears spill faster, soaking my temples, my cheeks, my hair. Panic coils tight.
What’s he going to do to me?
Knox doesn’t leave me wondering for long. He splashes water over his hands, swiping sweat from my face. Cleaning my cuts, being gentle as he twists my body.
Then, he flips me onto my stomach, sliding me between his legs. I clutch his thighs, lifting myself an inch off the ground.
Staring up at him.
