Page 111
Story: Ricochet
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
There weren’t many times in Colin’s life when he had lain awake instead of racking up hours sleeping. None of those times had been when he was already in bed. Watching Adelia work through her mental hang-up and then climax had been powerful. He didn’t get the why, but he had spent most of her time sleeping theorizing.
Her biological father had been a pimp. She had been soldfor sex.
Mayhem had purchased her—even if they did so to save her—and Colin wasn’t sure what kind of place that compound would be to raise a teenage girl.
Even if she hit the universe’s lotto and something tragic hadn’t happened to her, she likely hadn’t had great positive examples of women in her life—at the very least, not when she was younger. The jury was still out on her time with Mayhem,as far as he was concerned.
It was as if she’d been schooled in the idea that she couldn’t get off without him. Did that make sense? Colin pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn’t have the first clue about psychology, despite years of working with trafficking victims. Adelia wasn’t one of their victims. Yet she was, and he couldn’t forget where she came from or what she knew.
And maybe thatwas part of why they were in this mess. Her fear of climaxing was almost like her need to run away from him when he wanted to help. She had to go dark, work alone, survive alone.
She flinched, batting the air unexpectedly, then settled down.
What was driving her to run from him? What couldn’t she trust him with?
Again, she twitched, waving away a dream, but this time, her pink lips mumbledfor whatever haunted her to go away.
“It’s a dream,” Colin soothed. “You’re okay.”
She quieted, snuggling against him again, and the minutes rolled by. His side hurt, and he needed to go check the front door for the pill delivery they were expecting, but he didn’t want to move away from her.
Adelia mumbled again, but this time, her dreams seemed to hold less of a scary hold over her, and theoccasional grin appeared as she stretched awake.
“Are you asleep?”
“Mm-hmm,” Adelia purred. “Kinda, sorta.”
Cute.Colin leaned into his pillow. “Kinda, sorta, you are adorable.” This was what he needed to recover: a safe house and Adelia. Everything else could wait.
“You are too.” Her sleepy eyes blinked open.
“I don’t know about that.” He ignored the throbbing in his side as he leaned overto kiss the top of her head. “But Javier once told me not to disagree with a Brazilian woman. Ever.”
Adelia’s laughter was stilted, and her warm eyes dulled.
“You okay?” He leaned back, again ignoring the discomfort that would be there for a few days. “You had a nightmare, I think.”
Lines etched across her forehead. “Ugh. Yeah.”
“Do you remember it?”
She nodded, rubbing her temples. “Yeah,it’s—I don’t know. Never mind.”
The pain of her dream clearly still weighed heavy, and he hated that she boxed him out.One step forward, two steps back.It was like whenever he thought he’d figured something out, she’d closed another passage.
Then again, maybe he was high as a kite or septic and hallucinating. His side hurt like a bitch. Maybe he was just getting older. “What was your dreamabout?”
“I can’t remember.” She scowled at the dream that seemed to flash before her eyes.
“Of course not.”
She twisted. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. I’m curious about your nightmare. You don’t remember. No worries.”
“Right. I don’t.”
There weren’t many times in Colin’s life when he had lain awake instead of racking up hours sleeping. None of those times had been when he was already in bed. Watching Adelia work through her mental hang-up and then climax had been powerful. He didn’t get the why, but he had spent most of her time sleeping theorizing.
Her biological father had been a pimp. She had been soldfor sex.
Mayhem had purchased her—even if they did so to save her—and Colin wasn’t sure what kind of place that compound would be to raise a teenage girl.
Even if she hit the universe’s lotto and something tragic hadn’t happened to her, she likely hadn’t had great positive examples of women in her life—at the very least, not when she was younger. The jury was still out on her time with Mayhem,as far as he was concerned.
It was as if she’d been schooled in the idea that she couldn’t get off without him. Did that make sense? Colin pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn’t have the first clue about psychology, despite years of working with trafficking victims. Adelia wasn’t one of their victims. Yet she was, and he couldn’t forget where she came from or what she knew.
And maybe thatwas part of why they were in this mess. Her fear of climaxing was almost like her need to run away from him when he wanted to help. She had to go dark, work alone, survive alone.
She flinched, batting the air unexpectedly, then settled down.
What was driving her to run from him? What couldn’t she trust him with?
Again, she twitched, waving away a dream, but this time, her pink lips mumbledfor whatever haunted her to go away.
“It’s a dream,” Colin soothed. “You’re okay.”
She quieted, snuggling against him again, and the minutes rolled by. His side hurt, and he needed to go check the front door for the pill delivery they were expecting, but he didn’t want to move away from her.
Adelia mumbled again, but this time, her dreams seemed to hold less of a scary hold over her, and theoccasional grin appeared as she stretched awake.
“Are you asleep?”
“Mm-hmm,” Adelia purred. “Kinda, sorta.”
Cute.Colin leaned into his pillow. “Kinda, sorta, you are adorable.” This was what he needed to recover: a safe house and Adelia. Everything else could wait.
“You are too.” Her sleepy eyes blinked open.
“I don’t know about that.” He ignored the throbbing in his side as he leaned overto kiss the top of her head. “But Javier once told me not to disagree with a Brazilian woman. Ever.”
Adelia’s laughter was stilted, and her warm eyes dulled.
“You okay?” He leaned back, again ignoring the discomfort that would be there for a few days. “You had a nightmare, I think.”
Lines etched across her forehead. “Ugh. Yeah.”
“Do you remember it?”
She nodded, rubbing her temples. “Yeah,it’s—I don’t know. Never mind.”
The pain of her dream clearly still weighed heavy, and he hated that she boxed him out.One step forward, two steps back.It was like whenever he thought he’d figured something out, she’d closed another passage.
Then again, maybe he was high as a kite or septic and hallucinating. His side hurt like a bitch. Maybe he was just getting older. “What was your dreamabout?”
“I can’t remember.” She scowled at the dream that seemed to flash before her eyes.
“Of course not.”
She twisted. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. I’m curious about your nightmare. You don’t remember. No worries.”
“Right. I don’t.”
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154
- Page 155