Page 20 of Hollow House

Each time I thought I had seen the entirety of the house, a new hallway appeared, a labyrinth rather than a mansion. Damon gave my hand a firm squeeze as we turned down the new one. He opened one of the doors and stepped aside to let me in first.

A throne sat in the middle of the room, and I froze in the doorway, barely able to believe my eyes. If I hadn’t encountered far stranger all night, I would’ve surely believed myself drugged.

Damon nudged me forward, his massive frame filling the doorway behind me.

“What is this?” I asked, turning into him, my hands landing on his chest.

“For you,” is all he said.

I turned my head to glance back at the throne, but before I could take it in, to see if I’d imagined it, his hand caught my chin and turned me back.

The way he gripped my face was sure to leave bruises, a thought that should terrify me, but I found I wasn’t scared.

Not with him.

This house of desires and nightmares had my heart racing, but the second he was by my side, I felt oddly safe.

Yup, I was truly going mad.

I tried to extricate myself from his grip, curiosity burning hot in my chest. This time, he grabbed my hips and flipped me around without warning, pressing me back to him.

My eyes took in the throne in its entirety, sitting in the center of an otherwise-empty room. The black and gold matched most of the décor throughout the mansion.

I had to blink a few times just to be sure I wasn’t hallucinating. It wouldn’t be the first time tonight, and I was starting to feel like it might not be the last.

“Why is this here? This can’t seriously be for me?” I asked.

“It wasn’t originally brought here for you specifically, but rather, for the woman of my desires.”

I almost choked at his words, holding back a giggle. I looked back, only to find him completely serious.

Moonlight poured in from the single window, almost spotlighting the chair. I walked toward it, drawn to it for some reason, its presence both magnetic and unsettling. The air in the room weighed on me, and I held my breath, not knowing what I was even waiting for.

My hand ran along the arm of the throne, an intricate golden metal design. The seat itself was black with a tall back, outlined in gold.

“Sit,” he commanded from behind me, his voice growing closer.

My pulse picked up, and I slid into the chair, which felt massive compared to my tiny frame. An odd hum rang in my ears as I watched him approach. It grew louder, only adding to the blood rushing in my ears. My head spun as he leaned over me, arms on either side, gripping the arm rests.

“Perfection,” he said in a low tone.

I swallowed hard. The word shouldn’t have made me flush the way I did. This house of pleasure was one whole night of purely ludicrous happenings.

“This is ridiculous,” I huffed.

“Is it?” he asked, leaning in further and pressing kisses to my neck.

“Is this whole house not a tad ridiculous then, this entire party, a house of pleasures? Some might say that is also a little ridiculous, and yet, you’re still here.

So perhaps it is the rest of the world who places the unexpected into ridiculous little boxes and tries to trap us there? ”

“Damon…” I started as he resumed his nips and kisses.

“Do you feel it?” he asked.

“Feel what?” I responded.

He dragged a hand slowly up my thigh, eyes now locked on mine.“The way people here respond to you, the way you fit perfectly in this house,” he answered.

Before I could answer, he leaned back in and cut off my words, gently kissing my lips. He pulled back slightly, his words a whisper against my flesh.

“You belong here,” he said firmly.

The chill in the room intensified, the humming growing louder. Goosebumps spread across my arms, and I shivered under his touch.

“Damon, I can’t---” I started, unsure what I even wanted to say.

My head swam with every possible thought.

This was not what I was expecting to find when I decided to come here.

I never once thought this entire new future would be laid out before me.

A single article, that was all this was supposed to be.

A way to get Darren off my back. And now what?

Damon wanted me to give up my life for one I had only seen a glimpse of in a single night.

Damon pulled away completely and held out a hand as my head still tried to wrap itself around the offer that hung between us.

“Come. The party is almost over.”