“And I don’t want you working anymore.” He leaned forward as his eyes locked on mine.
I stared at him, overwhelmed. “Mythic, I appreciate you wanting to take care of me, but I like working. I want to be independent.”
He leaned back, his gaze softening just a little. “I’m not saying you can’t be independent. What I’m saying is, I want you to have the time to go after your real dream—nursing school. I’m gonna pay for it. You focus on that, and let me take care of the rest.”
My heart bloomed with pure bliss. “I love you,” I professed, grinning. “You already have me. You don’t have to buy me.”
He smiled, pulling me close as his hands rested on my waist. “I know you do. But this ain’t about buying you, baby. I knowyou’re already mine. But now that I’ve got you, I’m gonna spoil the hell out of you, so get used to it.”
I wrapped my arms around Mythic’s neck, letting myself sink into him.
“I got you,” he whispered against my ear, like a promise he would never break.
And I believed him. I held him tighter, letting go of all the fears and doubts that used to cloud my mind. With Mythic, I didn’t have to wonder if I was making the right choice, nor did I have to question where we stood.I knew.
As we sat there, wrapped up in each other, I realized that I was living in the fantasy I’d had for years. This was the kind of ease and passion I’d yearned for. This was the kind of love that didn’t leave me guessing, that didn’t tear me apart.
He was different from anything I’d ever felt before. With him, it wasn’t complicated, it wasn’t filled with doubt or second-guessing. It was right. Loving Mythic felt like breathing, like something I was always meant to do.
EPILOGUE
DAMAR SCOTT
AS SOON ASI opened my eyes, I felt the dread. The cold metal bunk pressed against my spine, sending sharp pains through my bruised bones. Staring up at the cracked concrete ceiling, my heart began to pound with terror because I’d woken up another morning in this living hell.
“You awake yet, princess?” Bear’s taunting chilled me to the bone.
I struggled upright, ribs aching from yesterday’s beating. Bear leaned against the wall with his large arms crossed. His eyes were dark with sadistic amusement.
“Yeah,” I croaked. “Can I get up now, sir?”
Bear smirked. “Look at you, askin’ permission like a well-trained dog. Yeah. You can get up. We got work to do today.”
I lowered my head, swallowing the lump in my throat. “What do you want me to do?”
Bear stepped closer. He was so tall that, though I was on the top bunk, we were damn near eye to eye. He reached for a tiny, filthy rag on the shelf, tore a corner of it off, and tossed it to me. “Get on your hands and knees. I want that floor spotless.”
I stared at the pathetic scrap of cloth, then around at the grimy cell. The concrete was filthy, stained with my blood, old and new; urine; and God knows what else.
When I hesitated, Bear’s eyes narrowed dangerously. He grabbed me by my throat, squeezing so hard I gasped and clawed weakly at his iron grip.
“Did I stutter, motherfucker?” he growled into my ear. “You want another lesson? Maybe I should break a few more ribs, huh?”
“Nah—” I choked out desperately. “I’ll do it!”
He pulled me out of the bunk and threw me to the floor, slamming my head painfully against the concrete wall. Dizzy, I rested on my knees, grabbed the rag, and started scrubbing. My knuckles scraped against gritty concrete. Because the rag was so flimsy, my nails broke and my skin tore. Blood slowly seeped into the cloth as I scrubbed harder.
Bear watched with sick satisfaction.
It only took a few weeks for Bear to find out what I was in jail for. Ever since, he had been torturing me both physically and mentally. If it wasn’t the endless beatings, it was waking up to his piss dripping on my face or being forced to eat from the floor like a dog while he kicked me in the ribs. Bear turned the cell into a cage, making me his personal punching bag whenever he got bored. Sometimes he starved me, letting me watch while he ate my meals slowly in front of me. Sometimes, at night, he’d keep me awake, whispering threats of what he’d do to me the next day, describing in sickening detail how he planned to break every bone in my body.
He’d made me his slave, forcing me to wash his filthy underwear by hand, scrubbing until my fingers bled. If I missed even one stain, he’d shove my face into the sink until I nearly drowned. Bear had stripped me of every ounce of dignity I hadleft. The worst nights were when he forced me to stand naked in the corner for hours, shivering and humiliated, while he laughed at my bruised body. Every second I lived was another second closer to wishing I was dead.
I couldn’t tell anyone. No one would listen because Bear had most of the correctional officers on his payroll. I had tried to kill myself a few times, but I just couldn’t go through with it.
“Matter of fact…” Bear stopped abruptly, grabbing my chin and forcing my head up. “Maybe you’d do better lickin’ it clean.”
I froze. “Bear, please—”
