Stepping out of the vehicle would feel amazing if I wasn't painstakingly aware of Ryan studying me like a hawk even while standing among his group of men. He doesn't even seem to be paying them any attention, which causes me to sigh.
I wish I could run away from Ryan, hide from those blue, penetrating eyes, but trying to escape from here wouldn't serve a purpose when each one of his men carries guns and weapons so heavy they can barely stand straight.
"What are you going to do with her?" Giovani asks, and I know without asking that they are talking about me.
I remain painfully still as the men turn their heads in the background; their eyes feel like a physical weight on my shoulder. Still, I manage to focus on the world around me. Soft tufts of snow are circling down from the sky, landing on my red velvet dress as I stand there, blinking at the many cabins and houses in the courtyard.
This place looks like a miniature town hidden away from the world.
I toss and turn in my slumber for what feels like hours before finally awakening from my nightmare. My breath is hitched, and I can't seem to relax, too shaken up by today's events. I'm freezing even though the sheets beneath me are drenched in a cold sweat.How I managed to fall asleep in the first place is a mystery, the temperature inside the room is freezing. A window is letting the moonlight come in and illuminate the wooden planks, and I shift until I'm staring at the chair where I've thrown my velvet dress.I'm so messed up. Fear is scratching within me, speeding up my heart and inviting the reality of today to sink into my brain by replaying the unfolded events.I was kidnapped, betrayed, and fooled by a man who played me for a week, and then I watched this man named Arthur die at the hands of the same man—Ryan is dangerous. That realization makes me cover under my sheets.Tired of acting strong, exhausted from playing tough, I let the tears
I have a theory that hating someone and being attracted to them is so scarily similar that I might have mixed up the two emotions. Attraction and hatred are both instinctive—your stomach mangle like a rag at the idea of that person. Your heart thumps painfully and brilliantly, almost to the point of threatening to burst out through your ribcage. It's impossible to stop thinking about the person, and every interaction with them fastens your pulse. Obviously, I'm not attracted to Ryan at all—I simply hate him. That is why I wasn't visualizing Ryan naked before I fell asleep yesterday or imagined his lush lips kissing my earlobe before biting down on it, whispering: "I want you, Amelia," Fuck. I wish Ryan was ugly. It would be easier to keep him away from my dreams and sweet reveries if he was a short, fat little man with a balding head and warts covering his entire face—stained, yellow teeth from smoking and a foul stench that followed him everywhere. B
Anger is sizzling through me, awakening vicious rattlesnakes in my blood until I'm standing there, hissing. "And how do I do that?""Do what?" Courtney sounds surprised; her facial expression makes me want to laugh."Find a man who isn't sick in the head?" My voice is loud and filled with rage. It's not aimed at Courtney but this entire situation. "Because I've only met evil ones!""Really?""Yes!" I'm shaking, tired of being at this place already. "Ever since I was kidnapped, all I've seen is blood, crazy men, and their stupid agendas. I might have lived under a rock my entire life, and yes, I don't know what's going on anymore, but I do not want to stay here if it means having to suck someone's cock,"Courtney witness the tears already gathering in my eyes. I'm pacing the room, clenching my teeth, and walking around with blinding fury rattling my bones. In an attempt to calm down, I sit down in the rocking chair, only to find myself unable to sit
I never thought it would be this hard to milk a cow—Courtney makes it look so easy. She is squeezing her fingers and sliding down weirdly, filling her bucket with ease while I'm struggling to sit straight on my chair. My back is already sore, and the three girls leaning over me, snickering at my technique, aren't making the situation better. "She is doing it all wrong," One of the girls complains and sighs in a frustrated manner that makes it sound as if she wants to step in and take over my job. "The bucket won't be filled until midnight..." There is a snicker. "I've heard the girl has been spoiled her entire life and had servants serve her dinner on a silver platter; I don't understand why Ryan has taken a liking to her," "Yeah, she is nothing special, and she isn't even pretty. So why is she allowed to live inside the luxurious cabin?" When I raise my head with a deadpan expression, the three girls freeze into their spots. They are leaning over the
Later the same day, I'm staring up at the hunting towers built around the large walls surrounding us. Men dressed in suits and fedoras walk around the planks carrying massive guns, patrolling the ramparts as if waiting for something to jump out from the woods. I shudder at the thought. The cabins where people live are scattered in a vast courtyard, more significant than a field, creating a small town hidden away from the world. But the question I've been asking myself is: who, or what are we hiding from? Why is everyone carrying rifles? The idea of there being an invisible enemy out there, one I don't know about yet, makes me want to throw up. My life has been turned upside down already. What else is happening in our strange world that no one has informed me of yet? My knowledge of the world isn't enough, but so far, I know world war three happened, that food and electricity are a rarity these days, shampoo is apparently a luxury... But why are people
Ryan locked the door as soon as we got inside, and now the angry brute is carrying me in his arms, ignoring me pushing against the muscles in his sturdy chest. I'm not even sure why I'm fighting him right now. Maybe because having his scent whirl around me while his big arms are pressing me to him is making me weirdly aroused? "Fuck! Will you stop squirming?!" Ryan growls, his deep, guttural voice startling me. I glance up to find him watching me with his unrelenting, stormy eyes. "Put me down," I tell him, not one bit afraid of the big brute. "I can walk by myself," I'm met with silence. Ryan looks thoughtful for a few moments, grimaces, and then opens his mouth when we enter the room upstairs. I'm starting to suspect he is a super-human; he doesn't show any signs of fatigue from carrying me up here. "I know you can walk on your own, but holding you is oddly calming, so I'm doing it for my sake," "Calming?" I snort. "You're not calm;
I'm late for my date with Courtney. Determination is pumping through me as I put on my rags. Ryan spoke from behind the door earlier; he told me his men found and killed the infected that had managed to get inside the courtyard without any casualties.After the information, I had told Ryan that I would head outside to milk the cows with Courtney since the threat is gone, and that had made him laugh and say: "Trying to win my heart by working, are we?" which had sent a spike of heat to my chest. It seems jokes and fun has become our new routine as of today.If only I hadn't fallen back asleep.Shit, I'm such a clutz!I rush down the stairs, halting when I catch Courtney's shoes thrown off on the carpet in the hallway.
Ryan Most days, it feels like I'm drowning. I've stopped trying to hold my head above the surface a long time ago. These days I'm sinking to the bottom without keeping my eyes open. Can anyone blame me for not wanting to live? I lost the two people I loved the most, my wife and daughter, Vera and Fanny, and now I'm standing here without them, a man with only one purpose—revenge. That's right; I can't die yet. I still have to punish the man who ordered both of them killed, Ola Svensson, Amelia's father, and the man I worked under for several years. The man is a swine. I was his bodyguard for years. Ola Svensson invited me to dinners and took me everywhere. We were close like brothers until I told him that I wanted to move away from Sweden with my family, find a warmer place to live. Ola Svensson didn't like that. He claimed I knew far too much about his research projects, that I had seen too much to leave him when in reality, I
Ryan My memory is foggy. The last thing I remember is that uncomfortable hospital bed with my five grandkids crying and holding my hands. Maeve was smiling sadly from a chair in the far back, and Wyatt leaned in to whisper: "I love you, dad." Did I die? I glance down at my hands, oddly aware that I'm not dreaming. My wrinkles are there, but my back pain is gone. How peculiar. What is this place? I've never been here before, yet I feel at ease. And the air is so fresh, like apples, a rainy day, and the ocean breeze combined. Breathing it in is like experiencing a rebirth, and I look ahead, wondering what I might find if I keep walking. Carefully, I walk forward, lifting my head to be blown away by the waterfalls crashing down and landing nowhere. "This place sure is beautiful... Like a dream..." The sky is darker than black, but the flowers on the floor, growing on the walls of the mountain in clutches—they are glowing in these
Maeve We have spent one week in the hybrid village. I haven't recovered entirely yet, and I'm not sure if I ever will. We are giving the magical healing thing one more day before giving up and accepting that I'm blind. The world is scary when everything is dark, but things still feel light even if my vision is gone. Like my feet when I'm around Wyatt. We have talked things out and decided to become a couple. Even though I'm blind, he is still the sexiest man on earth. And me being blind isn't precisely a handicap—now I can freely grope him, squeeze his super-hero muscles, and blame it on being blind. It makes him laugh every time, especially when I was using that excuse when I was licking his abs yesterday. And fuck me. Wyatt seriously has the mightiest abs, like rocks inserted into his body and then draped over with human skin. He is seriously so gorgeous—a sex god sent to earth. Flames sear within me—merely thinking about having Wyatt to mys
Maeve Wyatt gently places me down on a bed. The innkeeper told us to get some rest before she attempts to heal my eyes. She used up most of her stamina, patching up my wounds and stopping the bleeding—it no longer feels like I'm leaking. "I shouldn't have brought you with me," Wyatt says as he crashes down behind me. "It's my fault that Bob and Garett died." His sheer weight got me tumbling into him, and his arm falls over me, holding me in place. It sounds like he is crying. It breaks my heart because I feel at ease with him, safe. He is like a giant teddy bear, but right now, he is vulnerable, and it tears me apart. I suck oxygen into my lungs, fully aware of my heartache. "Hey," I whisper at Wyatt, holding his shaking hand. "It's not your fault that they died—we didn't know Marcus had a bomb, and Bob made his own decision to save me." "I know, I'm just..." He is breathing into my neck with his curly locks brushing against me. It tickles. I
WyattI approach the hybrid town through the forest with my skin bleeding and pants leaving my body. My exhaustion is rising, and my thoughts are scattered, running wild with worry as I clutch Maeve to my body. She was so close to dying. Shit. I will never let her go again, never look away!"Wyatt..." Maeve chuckles a little. Her head slumps to my shoulder, where she rests with her eyes closed. It's beyond me how she can appear so peaceful after what we have survived. "You can slow down. No one is chasing us, and we are both alive.""But you are-..." I stop talking, confused about the growing smile on Maeve's lips. Why does she seem so entertained? It's annoying not to know!"I'm what?" Her hand strokes over my chest, and she digs her cheek into my naked skin, inhaling my scent. My heart swells. I care about her so much, and she is injured because of me. "Well… I'm alive, Wyatt. I'm grateful for that, and if I'm blind, then so what? At least you ca
WyattWhen I can see again, I crawl on all fours while my heart is aching with the knowledge Maeve is hurt. I'm a hybrid, and my skin is burning. One of my legs is hurting tremendously—nothing important. It will heal in mere minutes, but Maeve won't heal if she is injured.She is a human who might need a hospital—Shit, I shouldn't have taken her with me! I won't forgive myself if she is dead or injured! I'm already responsible for my mother's death, and now maybe I've also murdered Maeve.I'm such a monster!A fucking idiot!Maeve isn't a superhero—why the hell did I bring her here?!"Maeve!" I call her name through the smoke, making my way forward over rocks and debris from the mansion. White fragments are circling in the air like snow, and I cough as I crawl. My heart is beating a mile per minute. "Maeve?!""Fucking shit! That hurt!" Bob swears to the right of me, and I watch him stand up, entirely unscathed as if
WyattMy heart is in pieces, shattered, as I walk into the building where Marcus is supposed to live. I should plan on how to kill him, how to make Marcus suffer as he deserves. Instead, my entire focus is on what I told Maeve yesterday.I told her the thought that has plagued my mind for as long as I can remember—that I can't have children. If I could decide, I would have plenty of children, at least three, but I don't want my lover to die.I wouldn't be able to live with the grief of losing Maeve in childbirth. My father raised me and handled his sadness, but I don't want my life to be a repeat of his tragic one. He had Giovani and me by his side, but his gaze would always turn sad whenever we would pass a lake as if he could imagine my mother being there.Halting in my tracks, I glance over my shoulder, finding Maeve tilting her head at me with a weak smile. She is beautiful, like a gemstone in a place with rocks. Her soul is so pure. I love how
MaeveAs we drive through the woods, past ghostly trees, I hold on to Wyatt as if he is my lifeline. My guy tells us to turn around the car, but Marcus chasing our families and sending his men to kill us must end. I'm tired of running, and I don't want my children to fear him like I've done since I was a child.My mother, Zoya, taught me how to fight at the ripe age of four. It was when we started, and no child should be using guns that early.In the future, I want my children to enjoy their childhood. I want them to play with the other kids instead of teaching them how to use a flamethrower.I look out through the window, squeezing Wyatt's hand. "I hope us murdering Marcus will be easy. I have a bad feeling about visiting him, but we have to end this horror story.""I think it will be easy to get rid of the man," Wyatt replies. "Marcus is old, almost blind if you ask Bob. Victor was his strength, and he is dead."Bob meets my eyes in the re
MaeveMy breasts feel heavy when Wyatt carries me outside of the car. I'm wrapped around him but not able to circle his large torso entirely. He is too broad, too damn powerful, and the awareness makes my clit throb with hot, pulsating need.He is this ridiculously tall mountain of a man, while I'm the lucky woman allowed to touch him. My heart is beating double-time in my chest. I can't wait to fuck him, or get fucked by him, whichever is fine. I was drawn in hours ago, tricked to get turned on, when Wyatt let me touch his enormous pecs much more prominent than my boobs."I'm so hard for you," Wyatt speaks huskily; even his voice sounds like sexual frustration. His breath is warm, evaporating in the frozen air. "I wish you could touch me."Pure ecstasy hits me when I hear his deep, raw voice filled with desire. I can't confirm if his words are valid, but I'm dying to find out. I'm quivering with anticipation as Wyatt explores the surface of my clothes.
WyattHandshakes are special because some people only touch your skin, while others affect your soul.Maeve is sitting next to me in the middle seat of the car. I'm glancing out through the window, pretending Maeve's hand on my thigh doesn't reach deeper than the surface of my jeans. The truth is that she is under my skin, and I can't remove her from there.My eyes briefly glance down at Maeve. She is sleeping peacefully, and with a heavy sigh, I brush her hair with my hand."You're a pain in the ass..." A soft smile touches my face, and with warmth flooding my senses, I hug her to my chest. "But I wouldn't want you ever to change."Maeve snores in response, and I chuckle.When I was younger, I was always smiling and trying to make people like me. I feared being lonely, which surprise-surprise made everyone think I was annoying. Little Wyatt was too horny for attention, and I was bullied for it.As a child, I was small and motherless.