She tsks, “My point is women must fall all over themselves to be with you.”
They do—it irritates me—but I keep that to myself. “I never noticed.”
“Why me?”
I think because we’re bonded. She’s my true mate—more than that, my soulmate. I could tell her so many things. My reasons are endless. But I’m afraid to scare her away, and we have time. “Why not?” I ask her instead.
She refuses to meet my eye. “Look at me. I’m the ugliest girl you have probably ever seen,” she mutters so low I can barely hear.
What the hell? Can she not see how beautiful she is? Girls—women—would kill to have her body, her face. They spend hours trying to mimic her natural beauty. I palm both sides of her face. “The fuck you are.” She pulls away, so I release her. “Don’t ever say that to me again.”
She shakes her head. “I’ve seen the girls at the college. They’re beautiful. I also see the way they stare at you as we walk by.”
I pull on the strings of her hoodie to draw her back close to me. “Did you see those fucking pricks, staring at you with their little hard-ons poking through their pants at the college, at the museum, and especially at the concert? I nearly ripped off a few fuckers’ heads. If not for the twins, sticking you in the middle and giving fuck-off vibes, I would have.”
She shifts to get off me, but I wrap my arm around her waist, holding her in place. I lower my forehead to hers and try to rein in my anger. She caresses my face, calming the fury building inside of me.
“I don’t want anyone else. I know that I have to be careful—this will have to be a secret for now—but all I want is you. You’re the light to my dark. You make me feel alive. I would do anything to make you happy and keep you safe. I promise you there is no one else, and there never will be anyone else but you. Don’t question it. Just live it with me.”
She leans in closer and places her beautiful lips over mine.
Chapter 27
He Kisses My Scars
JESSICA
Seven Years Ago
He kisses my scars and burns away my self-doubt. I hold onto him as if I will lose him. This can’t be real. This must be a dream—the way he touches me, kisses me. This can’t be his first time. It just can’t.
He murmurs against my lips, “Five more minutes. I just want to kiss you for five more minutes.”
I nod and emit a breathy moan as his hand slides under my hoodie, trailing along the skin on my lower back. My spine stiffens when he grazes my bare skin because he touches my scars. Sliding his tongue against my own, my protests melt away.
We kiss for more than five minutes. I don’t want to stop. I love the way his hands feel against my skin, the way his silky, midnight-black hair moves between my fingers. I want to feel his skin against my palms. I slide my hands over his chest and yank his jacket over his shoulders.
“Take this off,” I whisper. He leans forward, biting down on my neck, licking and sucking the sting away. “Shadow, don’t. You’ll leave a mark.”
He chuckles. “It will fade in an hour.”
This feels too good to stop now, but I need him to. Anders will kill him. My parents will kill him.
“Not on me. It will stay for days.”
He pulls at my skin with his teeth and groans. “You taste so good. I want to taste every inch of you, Princess.” He licks my jaw.
I cover his mouth with my hands.
He pinches my side. I jump at first, gasping. His eyes fill with wanton desire. He bites my palm. Moving his way down my wrist, he kisses more of my scars.
I can’t even remember what I meant to say. “Shadow…”
“Princess…”
I groan as he pushes my sleeves back and continues.
“Take this off.” I don’t even have a chance to answer him before he pulls the hoodie over my head and throws it next to his jacket. His lips travel back to mine, while I undo the buttons of his shirt and slide my hands over his muscular chest. Our kisses become more frantic, more urgent. It’s not enough. I want more.
