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I sob harder. "What? No…please, Luca. Don't. Don't tie me up."

"I'm sorry, but you're scaring me," he says.

"Please, Luca. Don't do that to me. I'll die."

He laughs. "Teagan, you won't die, baby."

"Please. You don't need to do that. I'm not going to do anything. I won't leave. I'll be good."

"Teagan…"

"Everything already hurts. Be reasonable."

"Okay. I can be reasonable." He turns, opens the side table drawer, and pulls out a pair of handcuffs. "Look," he says. "Compromise."

He closes one of the cuffs around my wrist before I can react, then closes the other around his own.

"That's not so bad, is it?" he asks.

But I can't answer. I don't know how to answer.

He smiles, apparently taking my silence as agreement, and pulls me in closer to him. "Go to sleep, Teagan," he says.

"Okay."

I close my eyes and beg for it to pull me under.

ELEVEN

I'm awake, but I refuse to open my eyes. My body feels so heavy, I'm not sure I can move. Everything from last night plays back on repeat in my mind. I hear Layla's voice in my head when she woke me up and told me how I'd helped her so clearly that it's as if she's here with me now. And I can feel it—the weight of her limp, bloodied body. The way it felt when she'd thud against the ground while we rolled up the sheet. I remember the cold and Luca fucking me.

I can hear his steady heartbeat now as I lie against his chest. He's awake, too. His fingers are in my hair, massaging my scalp. If I don't think too much about it, it feels really nice.

Our cuffed hands are resting together near my chin. The muscles in my back are sore enough that I feel the hurt when I breathe.

Digging a grave is fucking hard. It's definitely not something I want to do twice.

"Teagan, I know you're awake," Luca says. Still, I don't react or open my eyes. "Your breath is too slow and shallow. You weren't doing that when you were asleep."

"I'm not ready to deal with this," I tell him.

He sighs, then moves his body on top of mine.

"Open your eyes," he says.

I do as he asks and look up at him. His chiseled jaw has more stubble than I'm used to seeing, his dirty blonde hair falls around his face. A tattooed hand reaches for me, caressing my cheek.

"Not so bad, right?" he asks.

His tone is as gentle as that touch. I'm not sure what to make of it.

"I'm not sure how to answer that," I tell him. "Which part?"

He leans in and kisses me on the lips. "I'm sorry, Teagan," he whispers before kissing me again. He shifts, and I feel his hard cock between my legs, eliciting a small gasp. "I'm so sorry, baby."

He moves his mouth to my neck, gently rocking his hips against me, keeping one hand on the side of my cheek while one in the cuff runs over my body, squeezing my breast and toying with my nipple.

"Luca," I pant. "Everything hurts."