I stepped forward, my hand trembling as I lifted the knife. “Leave her alone. I mean it. Iwillkill you.”
He moved faster than expected for someone passed out drunk a few moments ago, grabbing my shirt and yanking me forward.
“I don’t take orders from anyone, especially spoiled little brats.” His breath reeked, making me gag, and the knife slippedfrom my sweaty hand. “Since you think you’re so big and bad, let’s see how you do in a real fight. Think you’ll win?”
My eyes snapped open, my chest heaving and heart slamming against my ribs. It took a minute for the cream and gold interior of Stan’s jet to register. I breathed deeply, trying to rid myself of the horrific childhood memories.
That night, Jonathan let me land a punch to his face, and then he proceeded to beat the piss out of me. When my mother woke up in the morning—completely exhausted from working the nightshift—and saw the black and blue bruises all over me, she hit him on the head with his empty liquor bottle.
He retaliated a few days later and broke her arm.
A few days after that, he died.
Stan had never so much as looked at my mother in anger. They occasionally argued, but it was always calm, and no one even raised their voice. They always made up, and she’d laugh at some stupid joke he told.
I couldn’t let anyone take that happiness away from my mother. We’d both been powerless back then, and after living a nightmare for so long, she deserved a fairytale.
Lexi stirred beside me, her blue eyes slowly opening. The longer she stared up at me, the more her brow furrowed. “You still have nightmares?”
Of course she’d remember my nightmares, just like I remembered her claustrophobia. I’d dosed her champagne with a sleeping pill while she wasn’t looking so she could spend most of the flight blissfully asleep instead of in a ball of nerves and fear.
Her little hand stroked my arm, right over my serpent and dagger tattoo, sending tingles through my body. “Want to talk about it? That always made you feel better.”
Talking about it never made me feel better. That was only a ruse to get her to run her fingers through my hair or rub my back while I dropped a few details of the nightmares.
What I wouldn’t give to have Lexi do the same right now. It had been years since anyone had comforted me afterward. But if I fell back into my old ways with her, the pain would kill me when she inevitably betrayed me again.
“Don’t pretend like you care about me, Lexi.” I shot to my feet and dragged a trembling hand through my hair. “Maybe you never did. You just wanted someone to share your misery.”
Her mouth dropped open. “You know that’s not true.”
“Close your mouth, Red, unless you want me to put something in it.”
This whole thing started with me tormenting her. I wanted Lexi to crave me as badly as I used to crave her. And then I’d destroy her when I tossed her away like trash.
A dark voice—maybe my inner beast’s—laughed. He knew I was full of lies.
I shook him off and leaned over her. “You’re not dealing with that pathetic little kid anymore. You’re dealing with a monster now.”
She shivered, not all of it from fear. Part of her liked this version of me.
I lifted the armrests on my chair, grabbed her legs, and swung them so they stretched over my seat. Lexi’s gasp had my dick throbbing.
“What the hell are you doing?” she screeched.
A devilish smile curved my lips. “You’ve been a relatively good girl, probably because you were unconscious most of the time, but still, I’m a man of my word.” I gripped the back of her knees and yanked her down until her ass neared the seat’s edge. “I’m going to let you come in my mouth.”
Her breath hitched, and her gaze snapped to the door where the flight attendant had disappeared through earlier. “Don’t, Killian! Someone could just walk in and see?—”
“Let them.” I lowered over her, wrapping my fingers around her throat. “I will fucking tie you up if I have to, Red. Don’t think I didn’t bring an assortment of toys.”
Fire flared in her irises. “You wouldn’t.”
“I would.” I nibbled her bottom lip. “Something tells me you’d enjoy that.”
She sputtered a few times but shut up when I dragged her shorts and underwear to her ankles and then tossed them aside. A deep flush spread up her chest and into her face as I explored her bare cunt, glistening with arousal.
My cock strained against my jeans at the sight of her, and my mouth watered. I needed to taste her like I needed my next breath.
