Page 52 of The Boy I Loved (Eternal Hell #1)

I wasn’t vain or selfish in any sense of the word—at least …

I didn’t think so. But from my knowledge, he didn’t act this way with any of the other girls.

He was cruel. Hell, he was covered in another woman’s blood after raping her and here he was, kissing and groping me.

He groaned against my lips, his chest heaving erratically.

“Fuck,” he whispered, nipping my lower lip between his teeth and tugging it. “You’re trouble.”

I spared a brief glance over at Stacy, who was watching the interaction with wide eyes, confusion swirling through her brown orbs.

Tristan’s voice brought my attention back to him. “Get on the bed.”

Every muscle in my body seemed to lock up, unease coiling around my stomach like a vice of doom. I pulled away from him, stepping back to put more distance between us. I knew better than to cause him trouble when he looked like … this. He was off his fucking rocker .

“Don’t worry. I’m not going to fuck you tonight. I don’t want you dead just yet and I’m not sure I’d be able to stop from slitting that pretty little throat if I allowed myself to lose control.”

My gaze snapped to the knife again. This was him in control?

He was like a viper—cold, calculating, and completely unhinged. I wasn’t sure I’d seen anything so evil, and I’d seen a lot of fucked up shit by now.

Reluctantly, I moved to the bed, lowering myself on it.

The weight of my body pushed against the ground underneath, and I had to reposition myself in order to find an illusion of comfort.

Tristan moved toward the cell door, placing the knife on the floor and pushing it right outside, just out of reach.

Smart move.

When he returned, he joined me on the bed and fished around in his pocket for something. “I want you to do something for me,” he began. “If you do this without having to force my hand, you’ll be moved upstairs tonight. I’ll even sweeten the deal and let you bring a friend.”

Hope sprouted within my chest. Moving upstairs would provide us with more of a safety net.

We’d have more freedom, better food, and human interaction.

I’d be able to shower in an actual bathroom that didn’t look like someone had been massacred in there, nor would it smell as rancid and rotten as the bathroom they granted us access to now.

“Every desire has a price,” he continued. “Are you willing to pay it?”

He pulled his hand from his pocket, his fingers curled around the item he possessed, preventing me from seeing it. I could feel the blood covering my face as much as it was his now, repulsion swimming through my gut. But what really had my heart rate accelerating was the item hidden in his palm.

My mind raced with a million different possibilities. What did he want me to do in exchange for getting me out of here? It wasn’t just my life on the line either. It was whatever friend I chose to bring with me.

Slowly, he uncurled his fingers, revealing a small, bloody item resting in his hand. All I could see was blood, and for a moment, I didn’t understand what I was looking at or what he wanted me to do with it.

“Take it,” he encouraged, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

“What is it?” I asked instead, too scared to reach out and just … take it as he instructed. It was covered in blood and who knew what it was?

His lips curled at the corners. “Look closer.”

Reluctantly, I scooted closer to him, straining my eyes in an attempt to make out the features of the item. At first glance, it was just blood. But on closer inspection, I could make out flesh . Acid burned the back of my throat instantly just as the realization hit me.

“Y-you cut off her—” My sentence broke off and I clutched my stomach, willing the nausea to calm.

His small smile widened into a maniacal grin. “Her clit,” he finished for me.

I shook my head, a mixture of emotions slamming into me—fear, disgust, and confusion. “What do you want me to do with that?” I whispered, knowing it wouldn’t be anything good.

“Eat it.” He shrugged as if it were that simple. Like he didn’t just tell me to consume human flesh.

“Why?” I asked, my stomach curdling. “Why would you want me to do that? If this is punishment for?—”

He reached forward with his free hand, gripping my jaw between his fingers in a firm hold. “Not a punishment—a gift. Punishments don’t come with rewards, Hazel.”

He truly believed this was a gift, didn’t he? He was that far gone that he thought he was truly offering me something special. It was almost sad. My lower lip trembled of its own accord. I’d been warned not to cry, but how couldn’t I? This was too much .

Tristan’s eyebrows dipped in confusion, like he didn’t understand it. “Shhh,” he soothed, roaming his bloodied thumb over my lower lip in an odd act of kindness. “Just do this for me. You don’t even have to chew. Just swallow it and it’ll be done and over with.”

“I-I don’t know if I can,” I admitted.

He blew out a sigh. “You’re eating it regardless,” he explained. “You can either eat it and gain a reward or eat it and receive nothing.”

Terror slashed through my chest, but I knew there was no way out of this.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I snatched it from his palm.

It was squishy and wet between my fingers, causing my stomach to recoil.

Holding my breath, I slapped that same hand against my mouth, forcing the small item inside.

My throat constricted immediately, and I gagged, nearly spitting it right back out.

My entire body seemed to want to reject it as I forced it to the back of my throat and swallowed it down, my eyes watering.

A sob wrenched free, and I bowed forward, disgust and agony penetrating my defenses.

Tristan enveloped me in his arms, pulling me against his chest. “You did well, Little Nightmare.”

His praise blurred with my thoughts, fading into the background as I shook uncontrollably. He was a monster—the worst of the worst. But I did it. I did what he asked me to.

His lips brushed against the side of my neck, blood smearing over my skin, followed by the kisses he peppered along my flesh. “I want to give you another reward,” he whispered. “Would you like that?”

“Like the gift?” I asked skeptically, unable to keep my voice from trembling.

A soft chuckle rumbled through his chest, and he shook his head. “No. You’ll actually enjoy this one, I’m certain.”

I was wary about accepting anything else from him, but I was even more wary about telling him no. For whatever reason, he seemed to like me right now, and I needed to keep it that way if I wanted to survive.

“Okay.” I breathed, sucking in a shuddering breath.

He placed another kiss to the corner of my mouth before pulling away. “Lay back,” he instructed.

My heart stuttered within my chest, but I hesitantly lowered myself to my back. He said he wouldn’t fuck me, but I didn’t know how honest of a person he was. My thoughts faded out of existence when he pushed my thighs apart and climbed in between them.

His bloody hands gripped my hips for purchase, and he didn’t waste any time, burying his face in my pussy. I gasped audibly, pleasure flooding through my body.

Dominic’s face flashed through my mind, triggering a current of guilt, but I knew he’d understand. I didn’t have a choice, and I definitely wouldn’t be allowing this if it was up to me.

Tristan groaned against me, sending a vibration of pleasure through my core.

I shuddered beneath him, unable to help myself as my hips bucked upwards of their own accord.

My mind was at war with my body and there was no telling which one would win.

His tongue expertly flicked over my clit in a gentle stroke before he plunged it into my hole with aggression.

My back arched off the bed, moans tumbling from my lips.

I hated him so much. He was a murderer, a rapist, and he was sadistic as fuck. But my body ignited beneath him, craving every twisted thing he was doing to me. My hands tore through his blond hair and his grip tightened around me as he feasted, eating me like I was the last meal he’d ever tasted.

“Oh God,” I whimpered, clenching around his tongue when he shoved it back inside of me after toying with my clit again.

Everything else flickered out of existence—the vile act he just made me commit, the blood covering us both, the woman he murdered, the girls watching from the shadows in silent anticipation. It was only Tristan and me .

Electricity prickled along my spine, sending another flood of pleasure pushing at my core.

I was writhing beneath him, chasing the desire pulsing violently through my body in waves.

Moan after moan, plea after plea, curse after curse—I was coming undone, gushing into his mouth, coming harder than I’d ever come before.

My hips snapped up, grinding against his face, which only made him moan against me.

As I came down from the intense orgasm, my chest heaving as I worked to catch my breath, Tristan pulled away. His blood-stained chin glistened, and his eyes sparkled with need.

“Fucking beautiful.” He growled, climbing up my convulsing form. He pinned me into the mattress beneath him, lowering his lips to mine again.

I didn’t understand him. Why was he so interested in me of all people? I knew better than to look a gift-horse in the mouth, but I couldn’t help but question it. He didn’t even know me, and he could have his pick of any of the women in here to mess around with. So why me ?