Hesitation is clear in his body. From the slow roll of his throat to the way his eyes bounce between the knife and my face. Still he moves inside me, making my labored breaths do nothing to bring me down from the high of adrenaline and power.
“Do it,” I tell him. “Fucking do it.”
His jaw flexes and then he pushes the knife into my scar. He makes it a point to continue moving in me, trying to tread that line of pleasure and pain.
And somehow, I love the pain. I love it so much that I find myself chasing that release again. Fire licks through my veins, filling every part of my body as it engulfs me. The world explodes and I’m met with a night sky clashing with a fiery sunset. I can feel the warm blood trickle down my neck and wet the sheets below us.
Our now matching scars are bleeding together.
We bleed together.
Because his pain is my pain. And my pain is his.
Finally, what was once a brand of abuse is now a brand of love. This scar is filled with begging for more, not begging for less. This is no one else’s but mine and his.
Ichosethis scar.
“Mine, Sunny,” he murmurs, taking a tongue to the stinging cut on my neck. “Your pain will always be my own,” he says, using his bloody hand to grab my face, making me look at him.
Despite our labored breathing, he presses a gentle kiss to my lips where I can taste my own blood on his tongue.
And somehow, I feel a little more free.
CHAPTER SEVENTY-SEVEN
SUNNY
I walkthrough my door ready to strip my clothes off. The grime of the work day makes me very ready for a shower. I’m stopped in my trek by a large white box with a single sunflower placed on it. Picking it up, I see a note accompanied with the present.
Can’t wait to see you in this. Thank my sister. See you tonight. Love, Tyler.
I sigh, because the idea of backing out of being Tyler’s date at the campaign sounds more and more appealing. But he wants to make a statement by bringing me as his date. For some reason, I agreed. I like the idea of him showing me off. Especially in front of Shelby and Mitchell. It’s the only thing that’s kept me from backing out entirely.
Glancing at my watch, I see I’m in a time crunch since he’ll be picking me up soon. He spent last night in another city on a business trip. A quick turnaround but he said he’d be coming straight from it to pick me up.
He’s been doing a lot of those lately, and I can see the exhaustion prevalent on his face, even when he tries to hide it. Every week seems like he is in a different city.
To cut my shower short, I decide to salvage my hair that I have and refresh my curls as best I can. Tyler likes it messy anyways. It’s his favorite look on me.
I pull the dress out of the box, the black satin material pooling on the floor. Different than what I’d choose to wear, but appropriate for the night. Sam not only knows how to dress well, but she knows how to do it comfortably, too.
When I put the dress on, I notice the slits on the sides that go too far up for me to even wear panties without them being exposed.Only Sam would. The v line plunge down my torso does nothing but reveal more skin, and I wonder if Tyler even has a clue on how his sister decided to dress me tonight.
I fumble with the strappy black heels that go with it, tripping over the dress while the straps hang loose since I’ll need Tyler’s help to fix it. I toss the shoes aside and continue my makeup at the mirror with my spot on the floor while I wait for his arrival.
It’s going to be a big night. And while it’s one thing for his friends to make appearances at his events, it’s another for someone to show up as his date.
It’s been a week since my phone call with Ryan. I hadn’t even thought about my phone until Tyler gave it back to me the next day to give to the local PD to try and trace the call. But unfortunately, the whole thing was too broken to recover.
With much deliberation, I decided to commit myself to my remaining time here. It’s not much longer anyways. And Tyler and I will just have to enjoy the time we are given. It’s all we can do. I just haven’t toldhimyet.
A knock sounds on my door, rising me from my spot on the floor and seeing Tyler standing casually through the peephole.
But nothing about him is casual.
He’s devastating in his tuxedo that’s tailored to him. That lethal body packed full of muscles easily seen through the layers of material. His face is clean shaved and his hair is groomed back neatly, showing off all the sharp lines of his jaw and nose.He holds a sunflower in his hand, twisting it around and staring at it while he patiently waits for me to answer.
I open the door and his eyes flick up to me. His full lips part, and his face softens as he drinks me up. Those damn eyes roll over me, taking in every inch. He takes a fist to his mouth and bites it as if he has to hold back any urges he feels right now.
