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10

MADISON

“ I can handle it Daya. Please, you and your husband go home with your baby. I’ve closed the bookstore before.” Giving my boss, Daya, a reassuring smile, I point at the front door. “Go.”

Daya laughs. “When did you get so bossy, Maddie?” She turns and watches her husband go to the door, waiting for her. “Okay, fine.” Holding her hands up, she says, “But call if you need anything, okay?”

“I promise. But I won’t need anything. Now go home.”

I watch them leave, then head to the restroom. For some reason, the image of the girl, Katie, and the posters I saw in the woods a few days ago won’t leave my head. I mentioned it to Ben when I returned home to our apartment, and he mentioned they were plastered all over campus since Katie is a student there. Ben threw me a worried look and asked if I was being safe when I went for a run in the woods. I assured him I was.

It's weird being at the apartment with him and Chloe. Things are strained as hell with Chloe after I confronted her about not checking on me while I stayed at my mom’s house. She claimed she was giving me time to grieve and said she figured I’d text her if I was in the mood to talk.

Every time Ben and Chloe are in the same room together, I analyze every interaction and word spoken. There isn’t any difference in their interactions when I’m overtly watching, But I’ve seen the sidelong looks from Chloe when I’m watching her from my peripheral vision. I’ve caught her looking at Ben with longing in her eyes. It makes me feel guilty because it’s what I imagined I looked like when I sat in the tree in my mom’s backyard, thinking about Mr. Dimple, which is my new nickname for the hot stalker in the hoodie and leather jacket.

As I return to the register, I still, my eyes land on a newspaper lying on top of my purse. My brow wrinkles, my gaze darting around the store, but it’s empty.

Swallowing hard, my mouth is dry as I slowly approach it. Circled in black Sharpie is a front-page article entitled “Killer in Falls Creek.” My hands shake as I lift the newspaper, reading over the article. Two days ago, Katie Michaels’ body was found in the woods nestled behind Falls Creek College. She had been sexually assaulted and strangled. What’s worse, Katie is the fourth victim found violated and killed in this manner, all of them found in the woods behind campus.

It feels like the hand of the grim reaper trails over my spine as I read the next words. “All the victims have been between the ages of eighteen and twenty years old, with blonde hair and brown eyes.”

Clamping my hand over my mouth, I try to keep the contents of my lunch inside my stomach. I’m nineteen, blonde, with brown eyes.

My only consolation is that I don’t attend Falls Creek College.

Cutting out the article, I toss the rest of the newspaper away. My eyes keep darting around the shop and to the windows, expecting to see someone lurking outside. But no one is there.

Stop it, Maddie. Everything is fine.

But I don’t feel fine as I pace in front of the register, my eyes searching for the culprit who laid the newspaper on my purse.

Someone was in here while I was in the restroom.

Even though I don’t see him, my thoughts instantly go to the guy who left me the roses. Could he be the one doing this?

Pulling my phone from the back pocket of my jeans, I snap a photo of the newspaper article and then text it to Ben with the words, “Did you hear about this?”

He texts me back about five minutes later, saying he did.

Seconds later, my phone rings and Ben’s name appears on my screen. “Hey, Maddie,” he says solemnly when I answer. “I didn’t want to have this conversation via text. Umm… that’s what I was distracted about the other day. I know…” He hesitates, then begins again. “Knew Katie. She was in one of my classes and part of the group project I’ve been working on.”

“Oh, Ben. Why didn’t you tell me? I’m so sorry.”

He heaves out a sigh. “I didn’t want to worry you. I saw the poster when we walked into the ice cream shop. I saw you looking and pulled you away from it. I was hoping they’d find her, and I wouldn’t need to tell you anything.”

“I appreciate your concern, but I hate that you went through this by yourself.”

“I appreciate it, Maddie. I’ve talked to Chloe about it. Katie was in her sorority, and they also had a class together.”

For some reason, his comment stirs up jealousy.

He’s talking to Chloe about Katie, but not me? I mean, sure, my dad died. And I don’t know Katie, but Chloe does.

It hurts he didn’t mention it to me. Distance goes between us, the two of us on different land masses, separated by a deep river.

“Maddie. Are you okay? You got quiet there.”

Clearing my throat, I force myself to sound natural. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just… Thinking about Katie and feeling awful for her and her family.” Liar. While I do feel bad for her, she’s not at the forefront of my thoughts.

Chloe and Ben have taken that spot. Once again.

“Listen, you need to be careful. That article talks about a killer in Falls Creek.”

“Yeah, I saw that.” My voice is small. “But I don’t go to Falls Creek College and—”

“Still, I’d feel safer if I knew you were being cautious. How about I follow you home? I get off work at the same time as you, so it will take me about ten minutes to get to the bookstore.”

Oh shit. I forgot he was working. “Um, sure. As long as it’s no trouble.”

“It’s no trouble at all.” His voice is low and seductive. “I’ve missed you. Chloe works late tonight, then will be heading to the campus library to work on a paper. You and I will have the apartment to ourselves.”

A warm feeling spreads through me. Ben’s insinuation isn’t lost on me, and after leaving me wanting the other day, I can’t think of anything I’d like more than some alone time with him.

“That sounds amazing.” My voice is low and throaty. “I’ll see you in about an hour and fifteen minutes.”

“See you then, Maddie.”

B en pushes me against the wall, then presses his lean body into me. Grabbing my arms, he shoves them over my head, pinning them in place with one hand.

Jesus. This is hot.

We haven’t had sex since before my dad died, and while our sex has always been good, tonight it seems different. He’s more aggressive with me, for one thing. For another, as he presses his lips to mine, the kiss changes from demanding to almost punishing.

I push against him, trying to pull away from his mouth, but he must assume I like it. He groans, his other hand threading through my hair, then yanking.

Ow! What the hell?

Bucking against him, he finally pulls back to take a breath. Unease lodges in my spine, my breathing ragged as I say, “Ben, that’s a little rough.”

“I know.” His eyes sparkle with delight. “Fucking hot, babe.”

He moves in, and I quickly turn my head, just barely. “Ben… It’s a little much.”

Pulling back, his brows knit together. “What? Seriously?” Annoyance lines his face as his jaw ticks.

“Yes… I’m just… This is surprising.”

He visibly relaxes, taut muscles still holding my wrists in place relaxing slightly. “Oh, I caught you off guard.” His other hand comes up, stroking my face. “How about we do something a little different tonight?”

Okay, maybe I overreacted . “Like what?”

“Well… What if you pretend you don’t want me and try fighting against me?”

My brows shoot up, feeling like they are in my hairline as I stare at him curiously. “Umm… But with your friend dying… Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

Ben’s smile disappears, as does the glimmer in his eyes. A hostile look is on his face, darkening his skin and eyes. “What does that have to do with anything? It’s not like I’m trying to rape you.”

His words make me feel slightly foolish. I bite my lip as I look at him, then release it. Exhaling, I say, “What do I do? I mean, I’ve never…”

Ben’s slow smile quickly changes to a beaming one that covers his face as he says, “Well, I’m going to be a bit rough. Just push and struggle against me. Tell me no…” His smile is smug, and there’s a hungry, animalistic gleam in his eyes that makes a shiver skate down my spine. His thumb strokes my face reassuringly. “You and I know you want me. That’s what makes it hot.”

I don’t want to tell him that this doesn’t sound hot to me, nor that I feel a bit uneasy about it, so instead, I give a slight shrug. Forming my lips into what I hope appears to be a relaxed smile, I say, “Okay, let’s try it.”

I barely finish speaking, and he’s on me, shoving his lean, muscular physique against mine. His grip tightens painfully around my wrists, and I wince, which spurs him on. Hungry and demanding lips capture mine, and he roughly grabs my breast through my shirt, squeezing painfully.

“No, don’t. That’s too rough,” I murmured, a slight edge of panic in my voice. That only encourages him as his hand moves down to my pussy, cupping it roughly through my jeans. Wincing, I squirm, trying to get away from him. Pushing against his chest, I turn my head. “Ben, please.”

Grabbing my chin, he yanks my head back to his, demanding hot lips crush mine. His tongue thrusts inside my mouth, swirling inside angrily. He pants from excitement, turned on by my fear. This doesn’t feel like want. It feels like dominance.

His hand wraps against my neck, and my eyes pop open. “Ben, what are you…” my words are cut off as he presses harder, limiting my oxygen. Fear trails through me as my hands grip his forearms, trying to push him away.

“Stop talking.” His voice is cold and rough, unrecognizable.

My breaths are quick and shallow, my eyes squeezing shut from the panic coursing through me. I push against his hands again, and they finally leave my neck. His lips come down against mine, hard and bruising.

“Ben, stop. It’s too rough.” My words are garbled from being pressed against his so hard.

But he doesn’t listen, continuing his assault on my mouth. He pushes me harder into the wall, causing my terror to spike. What is he doing? Why is he so rough?

Biting down hard on his lip. I expect him to jump back and apologize like he’s done before when he got a bit too rough with me, but he doesn’t. Instead, an animalistic growl comes from his chest, reminding me of a hunter and its prey. My heart pounds inside my chest, and adrenaline pours through me. Squirming with everything in me, I finally get a leg between us.

When he pulls away from my mouth, I shove my knee straight up to his groin area. He grunts, loosening his hold on me as he doubles over. Pushing against him, I take off running for the door, hellbent on escaping… This weirdness.

I open the door and am about to run through it when his hand shoots out, yanking my hair. Screaming, I grip the door frame, trying like hell to prevent him from pulling me inside the room. But my resistance is futile as he wraps his other arm around my waist.

Releasing my hair, he lifts me off my feet, carrying me, then tossing me onto his bed, face first. He throws me with such force I bounce on the mattress.

“Stop resisting me.” His weight comes down on me, sinking me into the bed. “You know you want it.”

He adjusts his weight, rolling me onto my back. His hands are demanding, grabbing my shirt so hard I’m afraid he’s going to rip it as he tugs it up my torso.

“Please, Ben, stop.” Tears roll down my cheeks, my lips and chin trembling.

He freezes, his eyes narrowing. Staring down at me, the angry look on his face slowly changes to one of horror. “Maddie, please stop crying. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just thought… you’d be into it.”

Biting my lip, I breathe in and out through my nose, trying to get my emotions under control. “I-I-I’m s-sorry,” I manage to choke out. “It’s just…”

He loosens his hold on me. “It’s too much. I didn’t mean to upset you. I just wanted to try something different.”

Still trying to salvage our night, I give him a watery smile. “Maybe I need to ease into it more.”

His face brightens, a smile transforming his features, relaxing them. He looks eager when he says, “Yes, it was silly of me. I pushed too hard, and since you’ve never…” He pushes back, running his hands through his hair. “How about we start again?”

Though I’m nervous, I push it aside and nod.

Ben covers my body, kissing me the way I like. My muscles loosen, and I relax beneath his touch, winding my arms around his neck. Moaning into his mouth, I arch up against him.

He breaks the kiss, grabbing my hand and pulling me to a sitting position. Pulling my shirt overhead, his hands immediately move to my bra, taking it off. Kneading and fondling my breasts, his mouth lowers to my neck. He scraps his teeth over my skin and squeezes my nipples too hard, causing me to wince, a slight yelp coming from me. Ben chuckles against me, moving his hands over my stomach and jeans.

He undoes them, then yanks them down. After tossing them aside, he grabs the back of his shirt, yanking it overhead. With his tussled hair and boyish smile, I wonder why I was so afraid earlier.

“Ben, let’s try it again. Just don’t… try to take it a little easier.”

His eyes shine happily as he rises to his knees, opens his pants, then pushes them to his knees. He shrugs out of them, tossing them onto the floor.

Then he’s on me, and though he’s gentler than he was before, he’s still rough enough that the fear steadily rolls through me as I buck and push against him. God, why did I agree to try this with him again? He was turning me on when he was gentle, but his roughness isn’t doing it for me.

Jerking against him, I start to hyperventilate. Oh, shit . Think of something to calm yourself.

Onyx eyes bore into me, a smile quirking his lips. Stilling, the flames of desire burning in his eyes relax me as he sheds his jacket, tugging his hooded sweatshirt overhead. His mussed hair falls in his eyes, an intense stare boring into mine. Biting my lip, my gaze takes in all the ripped muscle from his shoulder to the slim V taper of his jeans. God, this man is fucking sexy.

He puts one knee on the mattress, climbing over me. I lay there like helpless prey, captivated by the lust on his face. My breath hitches as I study his expression. His smile widens, the dimple I love popping in his cheek. Squeezing my legs together, wetness floods my center.

Ben roughly pushes against my thighs, spreading them wider, bringing me back to the present. I’m horrified as I realize I’m thinking about another guy. He’s blissfully unaware, sliding his finger inside me, a victorious grin stretching his lips. “Ahh… I knew you’d like it. You want me, don’t ya, Maddie?” There’s a challenge in his eyes, a darkness I’ve never seen before. I nod mutely, feeling his dick growing even harder against my leg, as though my submission to him makes him intensely excited.

I’m barely aware of him sheathing the condom over himself because I’m too busy criticizing myself in my head for thinking about my stalker.

He lines up and shoves himself inside me. I gasp, and a slight scream comes out of me as the pain rolls in waves. Gritting my teeth, I squeeze my eyes closed as he thrusts in and out of me, his pants and grunts sounding like a boat floating along the waves of my suffering.

Please hurry up and come . I wrap my hands around his back and dig my nails into his skin. He shivers, like the pain feels amazing to him, and begins thrusting harder. It feels like his dick thickens inside me more as he keeps moving, pounding into me hard.

Turning my head away from him, I picture the hot stalker and the way his eyes burn into me, a desperate urgency in them as he trails his hands and mouth over my body, gauging my reaction. His caresses turn harder, more frenzied and daring as I respond to his touch and mouth, writhing and arching into him, whimpers, moans, and gasps falling from my lips. I’m coming undone by the things he’s doing to me. His slow smile grows wide, pleased when I start begging him, grabbing his hair, and tugging him into my body. He flashes his dimple as his husky voice says, “That’s it, baby. Submit to me. Let me control you and show you how good it can be.”

I’m so lost in my fantasy, that I don’t realize I’m arching up against Ben until I hear him mutter, “I knew you’d like this. That’s it. Fucking take my cock.”

Rolling my head the other way, I imagine what my stalker’s voice would sound like as he teases me into a frenzy, making me feel pleasure like I’ve never known before. “Fuck, baby. Your pussy is soaked for me,” His voice is so seductive it nearly makes me come.

With a loud roar, Ben shoves himself inside me with a hard thrust, finally reaching his peak.

Collapsing against me, his sweaty face against my neck, he gives me a kiss. “That was amazing, babe. The best we’ve ever had.”

I nod, my orgasm long gone as his words wash over me. Either Ben doesn’t know that I haven’t come or simply doesn’t care.

Ben pulls out, then heads to the bathroom to dispose of the used condom. Sitting up, I grab the covers, climbing beneath them, wanting to hide as the guilt washes over me.

I was thinking of someone else while having sex with my boyfriend. I’m an awful person.

I hear the click of the lamp switch, plunging the room into darkness. The bed shifts as Ben climbs into bed behind me. Wrapping his arms around me, he nuzzles his face into the side of my neck as I try not to cry.

“Goodnight, Maddie.” He relaxes his body against mine, his arms caging me in, feeling like a prison. Within a few minutes, his breathing is steady and even.

I blink, staring out his bedroom window, tears falling down my cheeks.

Ben loves you, Maddie. What is wrong with you that you were thinking of another man? One who stalks you.

The silence taunts me, no answers to be found.