Page 31 of Marked for Execution

“Eliseo,please.”

His eyes dilated. Cradling my face with his busted hand, he breathed, “Say that again.”

Shaking my head, I didn’t even remember what I said. This was all so strange, so crazy.What was going on with him? Why was he like this? Why me?

Why didn’t I want to run away?

He gently kissed me, and my heart melted. How could he go from a raging beast, tothis,at the drop of a hat?

“I need to know you’re safe. I need to know where you are. Can you do that for me,Sili? Can you just give me that? I know I’m a hard man to be around. The world has brought out the ugly side of me, but I promise you I’ll be everything you need. Just stay by my side.”

There was a strange longing in his voice. It broke at the end, and I wondered what had happened in his past to bring us to this point. What good would two very damaged people do for one another? I could barely hold onto myself most days when my flashbacks got the better of me.

“I-I don’t know. It’s all just so much. I can barely remember my past, Eliseo. You don’t want that burden on you.”

He kissed me again until I was out of breath. His lips teased mine until he licked the seam of my lips and asked for entry, to which I easily surrendered. His tongue enticed me, coercing me to believe in what he wanted me to believe. I wanted to, but what if the more I found out about myself…

“Sili. Stop thinking so much. Just be with me in the moment. Life is so fuckingshort.”

He ripped my borrowed shirt off an instant later, his hands all over my breasts, pulling my nipples deliciously before claiming my mouth again.

“The fuck?” Reed’s voice came through the other side of the door. I quickly bent down to put my shirt back on right before he shouldered himself inside.

At this rate, I would end up like Samuel, with just a curtain to separate myself from the outside.

“What is with you assholes and breaking my door?”

Reed stared at Eliseo, and Eliseo did the same. My skin prickled with how much the tension had ramped up in my house. My nipples were hard as rocks as I stared at these two virile men locked in some sort of battle.

What the hell? Since when did you start thinking of them as virile?

Since Eliseo fucked the innocence out of me. I squeezed my legs together, and Reed’s attention zoned in on my movement, making me flush with embarrassment at getting caught.

Eliseo smirked and crossed his arms, a look of triumph on his face. I punched him in the shoulder, knocking him off balance, and he gave me an incredulous look. I must have used too much strength in the hit but fuck it. He deserved it.

“What are you doing here, Eliseo? Why is her door busted?”

“You just busted right through it yourself. I should ask you the damn same thing. I told you I was taking care of her.”

Reed’s nostrils flared, and my pussy fluttered. This was not good. Not good at all. Could he tell I looked freshly fucked? My hands went to my cheeks with concern. Would the whole community be able to see it on my face?

“Are you alright, Fitri? Did this bastard do anything to you?”

I was surprised by his question. Would he assume he did something bad to me? Was there something I didn't know about Eliseo? My face must have betrayed my thoughts, because he took a step toward the man in question.

Eliseo stood there with his arms crossed again, acting like he couldn't care less. “You got something you want to say to me, Reed? I did whatever she asked me to, have no doubt. I didn’t leave her wanting.” He leaned in and gritted out, “But I don’t remember her invitingyou.”

“Is he lying, Fitri? Tell me, and I’ll kill him.” Reed didn’t take his eyes off Eliseo, and I wondered if they had some old beef between them. If so, why were they on the same team all the time?

And what was up with these guys always wanting to kill people at the drop of a hat?

Fuck. I lost my hat.My fingers ran through my hair, and a pang of loss hit me. That hat had been my security blanket for as long as I could remember.

“Fitri!” I jerked back from Reed’s tone.

Eliseo growled out, “Watch it.”

“Fuck you, Eliseo! You knew exactly how I felt about her. You never once showed any interest and yet here you are, pissing around her like a fucking wolf marking his territory. What’s really going on? You haven’t had your sights set on a woman since I’ve met you. You’ve only cared about the mission.”