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“Fuck no.” I hold her through her tantrum. I’ll always hold her. “I don’t want that.”

She looks out the window, at the empty gardens. Then she looks at the door to Dempsey’s office. She must hear it as much as I do. The silence outside.

“Eyes on me,” I growl, licking her salty cheek.

She gives me what I’m after. Her blue eyes shine at me through the darkness. She parts her swollen, wet lips to speak. To finally tell me what she needs.

“Make me bleed,” she whispers as if she’s ashamed of it. As if it’s the wrong thing to ask. “I wish you’d make me bleed for you, Kaleb. When he hit me that day, when I patched myself up in the bathroom, I pretended it was you who did it. It was sick, but it made me feel better. Imagining you hurt me. It wascomforting. But if you stay here…Fuck. You’ll get caught. You have to hide.”

“There she is.” Satisfied and throbbing in my jeans, I run my fingertips along her jawline, then snap them back to her chin. “My girl.”

One last kiss and I step back, out of her reach. I whip my hoodie off and flatten it on the floor behind me.

“Come here.”

My impatience gets the better of me. I don’t wait for her to actually do it, grabbing her by the waist, manhandling her on her hands and knees on top of it.

Once we’re done, there’ll be no sign of what we’ve done here.

She notices how carefully I’m setting the scene. From her place on the floor, she’s silent, waiting. Her resistance has been drained out of her.

I bunch her dress up her thighs. Kick her knees apart. With one swift movement, I hook my fingers into her fishnet leggings and tear them down to her knees.

“You want to bleed for me?” I stop and stare at that dark spot on her panties. I get down behind her, breathing in the temptation that she is. “Is that it?”

“Yes.”

“Fuck.” I’m unable to tear my eyes from the soaked material. “You ruined your panties. You stood here”—spank, because she’s been such a bad girl—“lied to me”—her other cheek gets the same attention—“told me to leave when you desperately needed to be fucked.”

“Saving you is more important than anything.” I rip her panties off her, and she gasps. In my pocket they go. “I’ll never fail you again.”

I have my hand in her hair, hauling her up to me. Twisting her so her wide, frantic eyes meet mine. “You never failed me. Of all people, Shiloh Josephine Talbot, you. Never. Failed. Me.”

“Now who’s the liar?” A tear rolls out of the corner of her eye. I catch it with my mouth.

“I love you.” These words. Three abominable words that I can’t believe just slipped past my lips. “I love you. You’re my savior. My demise. My endgame. You’re the only person who did everything they could for me. Do you hear? Do you hear it in my voice? I. Love. You.”

Her whimper is as sweet and as sad as she is. With her body leaning into mine, her hands go to her heart. “I love you. You’re going to get caught. Then you’ll ruin me for real. But I love you, you bastard.”

The other day, telling her I loved her was so out of character for me. It fucked with my head, saying those words to another person.

Hearing her say it back? I’m fucking dying over here.

Except I need to stay alive.

For her.

“Back on your hands and knees.” I shove her down.

Her fingers scramble to grasp my hoodie on the floor. Treating her like my doll sends a sense of urgency through me. I shove her dress up, staring at her swollen pussy. At the wetness coating her inner thighs.

“Hurry,” she whispers.

“Shut up.” Her ass hasn’t been spanked enough, I see. I crack my palm on it.

Three times on each cheek. Shiloh is being so good, suppressing her moans. Her body isn’t as quiet. It speaks, shuddering beneath me. More arousal trickles out of her pretty cunt.

“You’re beautiful.” With the tip of her knife, I trace the curve of her ass. I let her try to escape, only to grab her hip and drag her back to me. “Smooth skin and all. You’ll be even more beautiful when I fuck you up.Me.”