Page 101 of Blood and Thorns

But I didn’t want her silence. I wanted her moans, and her whimpers and cries.

I wanted her pliant beneath me so I could use her body to anchor me to the present.

“Sebastian,” she whispered, my movements agitated,rough as I grabbed her. Smearing her with the remnants of paint.

Except that was wrong, the vicious red and orange too much. So I tore at her T-shirt, using the fabric to remove the colour before my past engulfed my present. Ruining my future.

“Sebastian?” Her fingers were soft, her movements gentle.

I silenced her tears with my lips, needing her in that moment. Her hands gripped me, tearing at my clothes with a heat I revelled in. Deep down I loved how she saw past my cruelty and scars. How she seemed to want me as much as I wanted her.

She audibly swallowed when I released my aching cock, her eyes darting up to hold mine. Without a smile I lifted her naked in my arms, walking back until her skin hit the coolness of the window. Her thighs tightened around my hips, her moan caressing my face when I fucked into her in one thrust. Her body was always ready, allowing me to sink deep.

Tangling a fist in her hair, I pulled it to the side,biting and teasing her throat. Needing to mark as her inner walls clenched the rougher I thrusted. I bit to bruise, to bleed before using my tongue to ease the sting.

“Look how well you take me,belle.” Her head hit the glass, hair framing her beautiful face as I reached between us to press against her clit. “Like you were always meant for me.”

She came in a gush, and I went fucking savage. My hips pistoned into her until I knew she’d feel me for days, and I didn’t stop when she tightened around my cock again, her scream echoing around me. Her voice keeping my demons away as I finally found my release.

Chapter 45

Sebastian

I needed this fight. Needed to feel flesh split and bones break beneath my fists. But I wasn’t fighting, instead I was forced to watch because Langdon needed it more.

He didn’t fight often, but when he did he was quick, his movements like dancing. If he had working vocal cords, his taunts and chuckles would be heard above the violence. Instead, he’d settle for frantically signing, knowing usually only I and Caden could understand his words.

Arabella watched beside me, reacting to every hit as if it had been personal. A particularly hard blow knocked Lang into the ropes, and Arabella flinched, as if she’d felt it.

“He’s playing,” I assured her. “Pretending he’s weaker than he is, so he can draw his opponent into a false sense of security before he strikes.”

Arabella didn’t seem particularly pleased with my explanation. “Is this safe for him to do this so soon? He looks like he’s losing.” She wore a new dress, a deep gold colour that framed her curves perfectly and kept drawing my attention to her rather than the fight.

I returned my attention to the ring, able to read Langdon’s enjoyment from his movements. Even if he lost, hewould’ve been able to release some of his frustrations. He never cared whether he won or not, and often asked to go against men twice his size just for the thrill.

The bell dinged to finish the round, and Langdon grinned, his teeth red with blood.

“He just called his opponent the ‘syphilitic remains of a gangbang.’”

“A what?” Arabella snorted.

She looked stunning beside me, and I glared at the men whose eyes hovered on her for far too long. “Come here,” I said, waiting to see whether she’d follow the order.

She pursed her lips, sliding across until she could settle with her back against my chest. I didn’t understand what made me feel so anchored with her weight on my lap, when anyone else would’ve turned me violent.

“Are you fighting?” she asked, always so full of questions.

“Not tonight.” Despite losing a chunk of product in the fire, in the past few days there had been two more OD’s, and each one pointed to my powder. We may have stopped anymore from being tainted, but I didn’t know how long Margot had been fucking with my existing supply.

“Why do you do it?” Arabella asked quietly. “Langdon said you got your name in the underground fights.”

“Langdon has a big fucking mouth.”

“So that’s how you gained the name Beast?” she wondered, seeming quietly excited by my answer.

“Among other reasons,” I said, brushing my fingers down her exposed arms. “I fight because I enjoy it.” When I didn’t elaborate, she wrinkled her nose. “I find it calming.”

“Calming?”