“You shouldn’t make me get used to something I’ll have to go back to living without.”
“I’ve changed my mind,” he said after a moment.
My nose wrinkled. “What?” How was I supposed to follow his train of thought? I had a headache. I was tired. Emotional.
“You said I could have whatever I want. I decided I don’t want to watch over you tonight.”
He changed his mind.He got an orgasm, and now he’s done with me.“And you said you wanted to watch over me tonight. That’s why I’m here. And I t-tried t-to leave. Y-you wouldn’t let me.”
“You aren’t leaving. This is where you belong.”
“W-what?” I asked.
“I’m keeping you.”
I didn’t understand. My brain was too jumbled to make sense of his words.
He must have seen the confusion and distress in my expression because gentle soapy hands cupped my face. “You’re mine now, Hazard. Not just for tonight. For always.”
My stomach dipped, leaving room for intense yearning to take its place. I’d always wanted to have someone. To be someone’s.
“We just met,” I protested, being rational as an adult should.
“So?”
“What if I’m a killer?”
Something flashed in his eyes. “What if I am?”
The tone of his voice and the heavy implication in the air whispered a warning.
“Would you kill me?” I couldn’t even convince myself I was joking because the look in his eyes was so intense. Because everything about this man suggested he was capable.
“Kill you?” he echoed quietly, making me feel like prey. “No,” he whispered, swiping his thumb across my cheek. “It seems I’d rather keep you alive.”
That rational adult I mentioned before? He was lonely. And maybe not so rational after all.
“Maybe I am a hazard,” I muttered, chasing the path of my thoughts. Trying to talk myself out of what Ireallywanted to do.
“I’ll keep you safe.”
“What if you change your mind?” I asked.
“I won’t.”
“Okay.”
“Okay?” He repeated it as if he couldn’t believe I’d just agreed.
I nodded once.
Water rippled around us when he sat forward and claimed my lips. It was soft and quick but still made my heart flutter.
CHAPTER
EIGHT
Kieran
