Every time we argue and push, every time we get in each other's faces. It’s been there. His eyes are molten, blown out, filled with so much fucking need, it makes me choke.
“Fuck yes.” I groan, my eyes rolling back in my head as he sucks me deeper, swallows me harder. “Just like that, Rockstar. Suck my cock like a good boy and I’ll reward you. Do you want that?”
“Oh my God.” Ella pants and strips her shirt off. “Get naked, Hunt. I want to see you guys together.”
And as he pops off my cock, all I can think isfinally.
My body jolts so hard, I slam my head against the wall. Again.
I blink rapidly, taking in the dark room. My eyes flick down toward my lap, finding nothing but a pool of blood and a surprisingly kind of hard cock. I run a shaking hand through my hair and tug on the greasy strands.
What the fuck was that?
I’m losing it. I can feel it, the darkness closing in, the fever taking hold. I try to push it back, to focus on the memories, but they’re slipping through my fingers like sand. I’m losing her, losing the only thing keeping me anchored to this world.
The pain flares again, sharper this time, and I gasp, my hand tightening around the torn fabric of my shirt. I’m shaking now, my whole body trembling as I try to fight off the blackness threatening to swallow me whole.
“Ella,” I whisper again, but it’s fainter this time, the sound barely more than a breath.
I see her one last time, standing on the balcony, the sun setting over the Golden Gate behind her, casting her in a warm glow. She’s smiling at me, that soft, sweet smile that melts my heart every time. I reach out, desperate to touch her, to hold onto her, but she’s already fading, slipping away into the darkness.
“No. No, baby girl,” I whisper, my voice cracking. “Please, don’t go.”
But she’s gone, and I’m left alone in the cold, dark cell, the pain and fever finally dragging me under.
“Isabella,” I grunt, trying to shove off the floor as panic claws at my aching chest. “Baby girl!”
“Not quite,” a deep voice rumbles. He clicks his tongue. “I’ve been called a lot of things, but baby girl is a first.” My head snaps up and my world spins as I see a dark figure rush toward me. “Fucking hell, don’t hurt yourself. Christ, sit down before you die.”
“Who…the f-fuck—” My words trail off as darkness creeps in at the edges of my vision.
He sighs and helps me against the wall. I tense, expecting the same harsh treatment I get from my father’s men. But it never comes. His hands are kind, his voice oddly soothing.
“I see I should have arrived sooner,” he murmurs. “I didn’t realize one of you had been shot.”
“You d-didn’t answer me…” My words slur as I do my best to shoot him a pissed off glare. I know I failed when I see his many lips curve.
“I don’t have many lips,” he says blandly. “You, however, are about to have none if you don’t shut the fuck up.”
I bat him away when he starts prodding at my wound. “Terrible joke.”
“Not a joke, Maddox,” he mutters. How the fuck does this dude know my name? “You may not know me, but I know you and your brothers. I know your woman. Her family. And I know that if I don’t get you healed quickly, you’re going to die, and all of this will have been for nothing.”
I want to ask what the fuck he’s talking about, but when I open my mouth, a hacking cough comes out instead of words. He lets out a long, annoyed sound and whacks me on the back a few times.
“I’ll have clean food and water delivered to your room shortly,” he says, shifting me to my back as the cough eases. “First, I need to clean and tend to this wound. I don’t have much in the way of antibiotics, so do us both a favor, and try to keep this clean.”
“It’s not a room,” I wheeze, shoving his annoying hands away. “It’s a casket, and I’m going to die in it.”
He shoots me an amused look. “Shall I contact Ella, then? Tell her to prepare for a funeral instead of a homecoming?”
“Don’t say her name!” I hiss. “She’s mine!”
The man rolls his eyes and clicks his tongue as he moves back to my gunshot wound. “Yes, yes. I know. She’s yours. Go on,caveman. Beat your chest a little louder. They haven’t heard you downstairs yet.”
My mouth snaps shut and he hums a sound of approval. It pisses me off. But all my anger leaves me in a rush as he peels my bandage away. Pain, red-hot and icy, steals my breath. Holy shit. That can’t be good.
“No, it’s most certainly not good.” Out of the corner of my eye, I vaguely see him pull something from a small pack. I want to fight him off. Want to tell him to leave me alone. But as out of it as I am, I’m not stupid enough to deny help. Even if it’s coming from a random stranger.
