I STARE UP AT THE night sky while taking a bite of my Snickers bar and replaying tonight’s dinner in my head. I’m still so heated over our conversation and the way he handled me.
The thought of me ever seeing something in Colton makes me angry with myself. It’s embarrassing that I dealt with him for as long as I did and makes me feel like an idiot.
He was full of himself and always did well at making me feel as if I wasn’t good enough. I just looked past it for too long.
Well I’m done now . . .
I look down at my phone when it buzzes in my hand. Yes, I’ve been holding it, waiting for a response from Royal. My heart does a little happy dance, but then drops to my stomach when I see that it’s Madison and not Royal like I was hoping it’d be.
Holding the candy bar with my mouth to free both hands, I open her text and read it.
Madison: Please tell me you didn’t change your mind and you’re still with that douche face. Please!
Avalon: Colton is long gone . . . I’m sitting outside of Royal’s house, waiting for him to get home. If he’s not back soon, then I’m coming home. You there?
Madison: Oh damn! If you’re outside of Royal’s house . . . I better not see your ass for a long time. That man is . . . I don’t even need to say it. You’re not blind. Not anymore at least. If you leave before he gets home I will dropkick you.
Avalon: Ha! Ha! Funny . . . I would love to see you try, short ass. BUT you’re right. I had to have been blind to deal with Colton’s shit for as long as I did.
Madison: Fuck yes! And STUPID . . . so tell me . . . Did he pee his pants or at least cry this time? *crosses fingers*
Avalon: Unfortunately . . . no. But yours truly did knee him in the balls. So . . . you’re WELCOME!
Madison: YES! My life is complete now.
Smiling from Madison’s last message, I look up from my phone when I hear a truck coming down the long driveway. My heart begins racing.
“Please be Royal. Please be Royal,” I chant softly, while standing up to get a better look.
My heart about leaps out of my chest with excitement when I see that it’s Royal’s black truck, but then quickly sinks at the realization that he may not even want me here.
I sent him a message over an hour ago and he never responded. He may not even be expecting me to be here.
Grabbing my candy bar from my mouth, I wrap it back up the best I can and watch as he exits his truck, slamming the door behind him.
He stands on the other side of the truck for a few minutes, before his feet start moving.
The first thing that I notice as he steps around his truck is that he’s wearing a black hoodie and his hands are stained in what looks like dried blood. The second thing I notice as the blue lighting hits his face is that the area underneath both of his eyes is bruised and slightly swollen.
I toss my Snickers aside and rush down the porch in a panic, my whole body screaming to take care of him and pull him into my arms in comfort.
Instead, I stop in front of him and gently run my fingers over his beautiful face as he stands there breathing heavily.
“Holy shit, Royal. What happened to you? Are you okay?”
He looks at me, his eyes tearing into my soul, paralyzing me. All I feel in this moment is his pain and suffering, and it feels like my heart is being ripped from my chest. Only Royal has the power to make me feel so damn much from one single look.
“My hell is what happened. Nothing that you should be concerned with.”
Swallowing, I pull my hands away from his face and drop them to my sides. I’m afraid to know this next part, but ask it anyways. “Did you hurt someone?”
My heart beats wildly against my ribcage, waiting for an answer. “Not as much as he deserved.”
Seeing the pain in his eyes is enough for me to understand, and I find my words coming out without me thinking. “You shouldn’t have stopped then.”
His eyes widen a bit as if he wasn’t expecting my response, and he slowly starts walking at me. Unable to pull my eyes away from his, I walk backwards, stepping back every time he steps forward, until I’m pressed against the door.
He brings his bloodied hands up to press against the door, pinning me in. Then he leans in until his lips are hovering above mine, only a small breath away. His voice is thick with emotion as he stares into my eyes and speaks. “You think I should have kept going?”
I nod my head and grab both of his arms, squeezing them through the thick fabric. “If he hurt you, then yes.”
He breathes against my lips, causing me to tilt my head and brush my lips against his, wanting to taste him.
“What did you need me for? Did someone hurt you?” He questions in a tensed voice.
I shake my head. “I just had dinner with Colton and broke it off for good. The only thing I could think of as I was rushing out of there was coming here.”
He moves his body closer to mine, bringing his arms against the side of my head. His smell is so damn hypnotic, bringing me to close my eyes. “Yeah . . . and how did he take it?”
Doesn’t he realize how hard it is to talk with him this close? He looks and smells too good to be true.
“He wasn’t happy,” I admit. “He wanted me to stay with him, but when I refused he grabbed my wrists and kept trying to force me against him.”
Royal’s jaw tenses and his gray eyes darken as he scans my face. “So he did fucking hurt you?”
I smile small to show him that I’m okay. “When he wouldn’t let go I kneed him in the balls. The fucker got my message loud and clear. He was holding his junk and whining when I left.”
Royal’s lips turn up into a half smile, making my insides melt from the beauty. “Good.”
He finally backs away from me and digs in his pocket, pulling out a set of keys. After he unlocks the door, he turns to me. “You ready for that other tattoo?” He motions for me to walk inside first. “I could use the distraction.”
“Me too. I’m more than ready.” I walk inside first, stopping and waiting for him to shut the door behind him and lead the way.
“Go downstairs. Wait for me in my room.” He yanks his hoodie over his head, pulling it off, and looks down at his dirty hands. “I need to shower first and wash this shit away.”
I look at his firm chest, pressing against his black tee, and swallow. It fits him so damn well, and looks extremely sexy, showing off his sculpted, inked arms. “Take your time,” I breathe softly.
Pulling his eyes away, he turns and walks away, pulling his shirt over his head, before jogging up the stairs to the top floor.
I wait until he disappears before walking down the hall and into the kitchen in search of some water or something to drink. My mouth suddenly feels extremely dry.
“Whoa!” I cover my face with my hand and back into the wall when I see Jax’s firm ass, flexing as he fucks some leggy chick on the kitchen table. “Shit! I’m sorry.”
Jax laughs and keeps going about his business as if he could care less. “What you looking for, babe?”
I peek around my hand to see Jax roll his hips and then thrust forward hard as shit, making the redhead scream out and grip the table. “I was just thirsty. I’ll go.”
“There’s shit in the fridge. You’re not bothering us,” he says with a slight growl as he pounds into her again and turns away from me.
“I’m good.” I back out of the kitchen and rush down the hall, feeling embarrassed that I just witnessed Jax fucking.
“Oh. My. Goodness.”
It was hot; extremely hot, I admit, and definitely not something that I’ve ever walked in on before. Well I did walk in on Madison once, but they were both under the covers . . . Thank God, but Jax . . . hot damn.
Catching my breath, I walk down the stairs to the cool basement and let myself into Royal’s bedroom. I look around in curiosity as I take in his oversized bed that I slept in not too long ago.
The memory of that night causes my heart to beat wildly in my chest. My body is still aching for him to touch me since he refused to that night, but I quickly shake off the thought and plop down in the middle of his bed to wait for him.
Everything in his room is either black or gray. There’s a black chair that sits next to his bed, and across from his bed is a black, leather couch with gray pillows.
Grabbing the remote off the nightstand, I turn on the huge TV that’s hanging on the wall above the couch and turn it on to keep me distracted.
When I go to place the remote back, I notice a black knife. Letting my hands wander, I pick it up and look at it, trying to imagine what Royal uses it for. Oddly, it sends a surge of excitement through me.
About twenty minutes later, Royal walks into his room, shirtless with a pair of sweats hanging low on his narrow hips. I can’t turn my eyes away as he stands there just looking at me.
His body and hair is still wet, as if he just jumped out of the shower and got dressed without even bothering to dry off first. It’s a glorious sight to take in, and all I want to do is run my tongue over his slick body and lick the water off. Screw the bottle of water I was searching for when I walked in on Jax. This looks much more fulfilling.
“You comfortable in my bed, Darlin’?” He asks while walking closer to me. His eyes land on the knife in my hand, but he doesn’t say another word as he watches me play with it.
I swallow and nod my head. “Yeah. It’s really soft. I like it. Oh and by the way, I would probably wash the kitchen table before you decide to eat a meal from it.”
“Yeah, Jax will take care of it.” He looks me over as if he was expecting me to be gone by the time he got out of the shower. “You’re not scared to be in here alone with me?”
I sit up straight and meet his eyes. “I’m not afraid of you, Royal. I could care less about anything your brother has said. You’re not twisted . . . you’re just hurting.”
With purposeful steps he walks over to the bed and grabs my legs, pulling me to him, and positioning himself between my legs. “Yeah . . .” He brushes his lips over mine and tangles his hand in my hair, causing me to moan. “What if I told you that I stabbed a knife through a man’s hand tonight and didn’t feel one bit of remorse as he screamed out in pain? Would you still say I’m not twisted? I’m a slave to darkness, Avalon, and all I feel is pain. Nothing more.”
I shake my head and wrap my arms around his neck—still holding the knife—afraid that he’ll pull away from me. “There’s a darkness inside your eyes that tells me you’re fighting demons, that you’re driven by the pain and not willing to give up until you feel the peace you’re seeking. It’s part of being human. Fighting is the only thing you can do. Pain is part of who we all are.”
He closes his eyes and pulls me closer to him, wrapping my legs around his waist. “You don’t know the demons that drag me down. They’re darker than you think.”
I lean in and kiss his closed eyes, before wrapping my hand in his hair and whispering, “Not dark enough to make me want to leave.” It’s the honest truth too. The last thing I want to do is leave.
This man truly has no idea how drawn I am to him. The rush he makes me feel keeps me wanting more of him.
With raw need in his eyes, he crawls onto the bed, pulling me below him. After he’s positioned between my legs, he sits up straight and brings the knife in my hand to his chest, slowly moving the blade down his body.
His eyes close and he tilts his head back when I pull the knife away and my free hand traces every hard muscle, leading down to the V that disappears into his low hanging sweats.
“It feels so fucking good when you touch me.” He opens his eyes and tilts his head down to look at me. With dark eyes, he brings my hand up to run the knife across his neck, before pulling it out of my hand. “So touch me.”
He releases my hands and growls out as I slowly tug on his sweats, but stop before pulling them down. I’ve never been so nervous in my life.
“I need you to feel me,” he says tensely. “Every part of me, and none of me is good.”
“I don’t believe that,” I admit.
Locking eyes with me, he balls his fists into my hair and slams his lips against mine, kissing me so damn hard that the air gets knocked right out of me.
He bites my bottom lip, pulling on it with his teeth, before he runs his tongue over it and then sucks it into his mouth.
His kiss is so intense; almost hungry as his lips devour mine, and I haven’t been able to catch my breath yet. I don’t need to. All I need is to feel his mouth on me.
Pulling away from the kiss, he roughly grabs the top of my shirt, cutting it open with his knife.
Admiring my breasts, he wraps his free hand around my neck and squeezes, before gently running the tip of the blade between my breasts and cutting my bra off.
My whole body is craving for this rough, dark man to take me. A knife has never turned me on so damn much.
Tossing the knife aside, he yanks my jeans down my legs roughly, and then my panties, before flipping me over and slapping my ass, hard.
I feel his fingers wrap into the back of my hair and pull as his other hand reaches around to grip my neck again. His heavy breathing caresses my ear as he presses his lips against it. “Fuck! You’ll never understand the darkness in me until I show you. You want to feel it? No part of me is gentle. I can promise you that. You really want to be hurt by me?”
I suck in a deep breath and close my eyes as his hand releases my neck. “Physically, yes. In this bed right now, yes. I want nothing more right now.”
He growls and pushes my head down into the mattress, before slapping my ass and then biting it. He bites it so damn hard, making me scream and bite down on the blanket.
An aching pleasure runs throughout my body, causing me to tremble as he inches his way down my body and then up my inner thigh, biting down close to my pussy. This man’s mouth does things to me. “Royal,” I say breathlessly. “I want your mouth on me. I want to feel you.”
I moan out as his tongue slides up my pussy, slowly and teasingly, before he stops and pulls away. “You’re going to get my mouth and so much more.” He moans. “I’ve warned you.”
Fuck . . . that moan is so sexy; so deep, rough, and raw.
His tongue works slowly at first, causing me to moan out, wanting more of his perfect fucking mouth. His rhythm is precise and in control, as if he knows the exact way to work me up and pleasure me. I’ve never felt something so damn good in my life, and the thought of him stopping makes me want to scream.
I need this man touching me, every single inch of me, before I explode. I want all of him. His darkness included.
I arch my back and moan out loudly as he slides his tongue down further and shoves it into my pussy as deep as it will go. He’s fucking me with his tongue and the feel and the thought is enough to almost bring me to climax.
Slipping his tongue out, he slides it down and over my clit before sucking it into his mouth. It feels so good that I grip onto the blankets and scream out as my orgasm rocks through me in intense waves. “Oh shit . . . I can’t . . .” I pant.
I feel him moving behind me, working on pulling his sweats off, before I hear the nightstand open as he pulls out a condom.
Next thing I know, he reaches around and grips my neck, hard, pulling me up flat against his chest. His hand squeezes my neck as he leans in close to my ear. “You ready?”
I nod my head. “Yes . . .”
Closing my eyes, I hold my breath to prepare for his entrance. I know it’s going to hurt, but I don’t want him to think that I want him to stop if I scream.
I feel the tip of his dick slide across my entrance, before he bites my neck and slams into me hard; so fucking hard that I bite my bottom lip, drawing blood.
His tongue works my neck, easing the pain from his bite, as he pulls out and thrusts back into me, even harder. “You feel better than I imagined,” he growls. “So fucking good. Come here.”
Tilting my neck back, he runs his tongue over my mouth, before sucking my bloody lip into his mouth as he rolls his hips, making me moan into his mouth.
He pulls away from the kiss and licks his lips, no doubt tasting my blood. As weird as it is, it turns me on more. He’s so rough and unfiltered and I love it. It’s a complete turn on and so different from anything I’ve experienced.
Both of his arms wrap around my body, him pulling me as closely as possible as he thrusts into me repeatedly.
Pounding into me hard, he grabs my throat and pulls my neck back. He’s holding it so tightly that I can barely breathe for a minute, until his grip loosens and he growls out in frustration at the realization of him almost choking me.
I scream out in a mixture of pleasure and pain, only causing him to go faster and harder. I don’t want him to stop being rough. I want to feel what’s inside this man.
“Fuuuck!” He yells out, while picking me up and carrying me out of bed and over to the wall.
I grab his hair and moan out as he slams me against the wall and buries himself deep between my legs. “Deeper,” I growl against his lips.
He pushes in deep and stops. His heavy breathing caresses my mouth as he looks me in the eyes and wraps his hand around my throat again. “Like this?”
I lean my head against the wall and scream. “Yes!”
“Grab my hair and hold on,” he demands.
I tangle my right hand into his glorious hair again and hold on as he pounds into me fast and hard. So fucking hard.
“I’m about to come . . .” I yank his hair, causing him to shove in as deep as he can go. “Royal!” I scream out as my body shakes in his strong arms, as another orgasm shakes to me my core.
He waits until I’m done, before placing his forehead to mine. He keeps it there, while slowly pulling out of me and then slowly thrusting back in. “Fuck! I can’t hold back.”
Placing his hand at the back of my neck, he presses his lips against mine, before rolling his hips and then fucking me as fast and hard as he can.
His teeth dig into my bottom lip, causing me to scream out as he releases himself inside of me. His roughness is such a turn on that the pain is the least of my worries.
Breathing heavily, he runs his tongue over my lips, before pulling me away from the wall and laying me back down on the bed.
His eyes look into mine for a few moments of silence, before he slowly pulls out of me and turns around, baring his beautiful ass to me.
“Why don’t you take a shower and clean the sweat off of you.” He runs a hand through his hair and lets out a long breath. “Then meet me in the room across the hall for that tattoo.”
My heart sinks as he walks out of his room, leaving me alone. My whole body is aching for him to come back even though deep inside I know it probably won’t end well for me.
“Holy shit . . .” I pant. “What the hell just happened?”
I run my hand over my face and then look up at the doorway to see him standing there, watching me. “Grab some clean clothes out of my dresser. You’re staying here tonight.”
He disappears again, leaving me alone in my mixed up thoughts.
This man is going to ruin me, but I have a feeling that after tonight, nothing will be able to keep me away . . .