Page 161 of Endgame

My fist tightens. My shoulders tense.

Then I refocus on her.

Her softness, her beauty. Her soul.

That’s what matters.

My existence is pointless without Aurora in it.

I learned that the hard way. When she ran away, first, then over the week that I’d been keeping my distance. When I didn’t have the one thing I needed the most.

And she took me back. Demanded to have this fucked-up, emotionally damaged man.

With her smart mouth and fierce will, she weathered the storm of me. Stood tall, even after everything I put her through.

She fought for me.

Later, I’ll go to hell and back for her. I’ll slay her demons one by one.

Tonight, I’m overcome with the need to haveher.

Unable to hold back anymore, I drape my arm over Aurora, pulling her to me.

Being in bed with her, naked in the dark, I’m clinging to this moment like a lifeline.

As if summoned by my thoughts, Aurora’s hand reaches out to me in her sleep.

Her eyes remain closed while small, gentle fingertips brush the sharp edges of my jawline. Searching for me, almost.

I take a deeper look, and yes, she’s asleep.

Her relaxed expression is unbearably sweet.

For one second. The next, her nose scrunches. Eyes squeeze. Her breasts rise and fall faster than before.

Is it me she’s afraid of? God, I hope so. I hope to possess every part of her.

Always.

Time slips by as I watch her, every second feeding the obsession.

Her very existence shreds my patience into jagged, bloody pieces.

My lungs burn, raw and punctured with impatience.

In the dead of night, silence hangs heavy around my neck. A chain. A burden.

Aurora. I want her awake. Need it.

The longer I wait for her eyes to flutter open, the harder my temples throb.

And the darker my thoughts spiral. I don’t just want her awake, I want her speaking to me. I want every word, every secret, every mundane detail she’s ever held back. Everything I’ve been denied.

“Aurora.” My hand flattens on the curve of her spine, drawing her closer. “Wake up.”

Not close enough. My cock jerks when I grab the back of her thigh, hiking her leg on top of mine.

“This isn’t a request.” To drive my point home, I yank her so her pussy is pressed to my hard cock. “I’m ordering you to look at me. Talk to me.”