Rowan leans in, nostrils flaring as he inhales near my neck. “You smell like me now.”
His possessiveness should repel me, but my treacherous body responds with another pulse of heat. I stuff the handkerchief into my pocket and push off the wall, testing my wobbly legs.
I bend, still feeling shaky, and grab my backpack and hat off the ground. “We need to get out of here.”
The street beyond the alley remains empty, but the paranoia returns, prickling along my spine.
Rowan catches my chin between his thumb and forefinger, turning my face back to him. “Come home with me.”
He caresses my bottom lip, still sensitive from where his hand pressed too hard, and a needy whine escapes me.
“We’re not finished yet.” His thumb pushes into my mouth to massage my tongue before withdrawing to smear my lips with fluid. “Not even close.”
The residual pleasure clouding my judgment whispersyesbefore my brain can catch up. “Okay.”
With a satisfied rumble, he pulls me forward by the front of my jacket, crushing his mouth to mine ina bruising kiss. His teeth catch my lower lip, tugging hard enough to send another jolt of desire through me.
When he releases me, my lips throb, and my breath comes faster.
“Stay right here.” His hand slides down my arm to squeeze my wrist. “I’ll bring my car around. Two minutes.”
Before I can respond, he strides out of the alley, disappearing around the corner. The absence of his overwhelming presence leaves me cold in the narrow space between buildings.
The distant wail of sirens floats on the night air, and my heart rate spikes.
They’re not coming for us,I remind myself. No one has discovered what happened in that apartment. Not yet.
But they will.
The thought crashes into me with sudden, terrible clarity. I killed a man tonight, and then I fucked a stranger like an animal, high on adrenaline and violence.
Who am I?
My hands begin to shake in a delayed reaction as the chemical cocktail of sex and murder drains from my system. I stare at my palms in the dim light, half-expecting to see blood, but finding only brick dust and dirt.
What was I thinking? What am I still thinking? Going home with Rowan means extending this insanity, this complete loss of control.
Control is all I have. Control is what keeps Lena safe.
Lena.
My sister’s face flashes in my mind, pale but determined as she announced she’d return to school on Monday.
And here I am, considering going home with a stranger and leaving her to wake up alone?
Bile rises. What kind of brother am I? What kind of guardian?
I stagger to the mouth of the alley, peering around the corner. No sign of Rowan yet, but the street won’t stay empty forever.
The air stings my lungs as I inhale deeply, trying to clear my head. Two options stretch before me.
The first is to wait for Rowan and follow this strange, dangerous connection wherever it leads.
The second is to walk away now, returning to the life I’ve built and the responsibility I’ve accepted.
It’s not a choice at all.
I straighten my clothes, tuck in my shirt, and zipmy jacket to hide any evidence of what happened. But I can’t ignore the way my body aches with the aftereffects of Rowan inside me, or the proof of it dripping down my thighs.
