Page 62 of The Invite (The Massacre Ball #1)

Augustus

A naked Nessa strolls along the shelves in my walk-in closet.

A rule is a rule.

Every inch of her lithe body belongs to me and nothing will hinder my view of it. Especially not a stupid piece of clothing.

I have to adjust my dick—which is crying for relief since the life-altering kiss—when her raspy voice travels to me.

“I can’t believe you brought me to your house.” Her eyes meet mine in the full-length mirror. “What if Scarlett comes in here, or your mom?”

The last one causes trepidation to sneak into her expression. So, I quickly assuage her worry. “My mother is out of town and Scarlett can’t come in here.”

“Why? Is she not allowed or something?”

“The door is locked.”

“Oh!” An amused smile tilts her lips, before she teases, “Doesn’t she know how to break into rooms like her brother?”

“Fortunately, no.”

“Thank goodness.”

“Though she has skills of her own.”

“Of course.” She snorts.

She resumes her tour of my closet when suddenly her gaze latches on to something. I immediately know what caught her attention as she runs to the shelf opposite her and digs it out.

“Oh my god! You didn’t burn my clothes.”

I suppress a smile.

Lifting the bag in which I packed her meager belongings, she raises an eyebrow in question. I answer with a shrug, “I guess I forgot to set them on fire. We can do it together.”

She balks at my suggestion and shakes her head, clutching the bag to her chest protectively. “You had your chance, mister.”

“I’m not letting you wear them again,” I say as I cross the room.

“But I like a few of them,” she protests, digging inside. A cute frown mars her forehead a second before her eyes snap to mine. “Why are my panties missing?”

“I jacked off in them every night after returning from your place.”

Her jaw drops.

Snatching the bag from her grip, I aimlessly throw it away and back her onto the shelves.

Caging her with my arms, I drop my voice an octave and paint her a vivid picture.

“Since you live inside my head twenty-four seven, my cock would be hard again as soon as I got home. Except, I can’t come unless your scent is in my lungs and your taste is on my tongue.

So, I used the next best thing. I’d spit on the silk, imagining it was your juices, before wrapping it around my shaft.

I’d fuck my fist while pretending it was your tight cunt I was fucking until I came all over your panties. ”

Her pupils dilate with every tiny detail, goosebumps dancing along her skin with each filthy word. A swallow works its way down her throat as she squeezes her thighs together.

Reaching between them, a groan climbs from deep inside my chest at the wetness I find. Nessa whimpers when I stroke her folds. Her knees almost give out when I swirl her arousal around her clit.

Her small hand latches onto my bicep as I press two fingers inside her pussy. A needy sound joins the thrusting slap of my wrist as I set a ruthless pace.

“Ahh… August,” she whimpers prettily.

“If you were with me while I jacked off, I’d make you lick my cum off of them after I finished.”

“Oh umm!”

I add another finger in her tight channel. “I bet I can make you do it right now. There’s one lying in my bathroom, you know. I fucked it this morning.”

Her face flushes and etches in pleasure, her bottom lip trapped between her teeth as she tries to stifle her moans. My girl is a screamer.

“Will you clean them with your sweet mouth, little prey?”

“Yes!” she gasps.

“Are you going to eat my cum like a hungry little slut?”

“Yes… anyth—”

A loud bang on my door cuts her off mid-speech. She stills, like a deer caught in the headlights, when the voice of my sister comes through.

“Gus!” Scarlett knocks again. “Open up! It’s almost midnight.”

“Oh god!” whispers Nessa in a panic.

My fingers are lodged inside her. I give a shallow thrust, wanting to finish making her come. Nessa reads my intention and shakes her head.

With a curse, I pull them out and lick her juices off. It’d be a shame to let it go to waste. Yanking a shirt from the hanger behind her, I tell her, “Wear this and stay here.”

The request tastes sour because I don’t want to hide her. It diminishes what we have, and I hate it.

Kissing her forehead, I walk out to greet my sister, who hasn’t let up her banging. At this rate, I don’t need to teach her to break in because she’s going to break it .

Grabbing the T-shirt I left discarded on the beanbag, I put it on as I reach the door and swing it open.

Scarlett startles and her fist freezes in midair. It drops, and she storms inside, asking, “What took you so long?”

“I’m getting a little tired of your newfound obsession with interrogating me.”

Whirling around, she runs her gaze down my body as I purposely stay where I am, so her back is to the closet.

“I thought I heard voices.”

I keep my expression neutral. “Do you see anyone else here?”

“Ugh… Never mind.” She switches the topic and smooths a hand down her shorts. “Have you decided what you’re going to post about Kenny?”

“I hardly know the guy,” I mutter, scrubbing a hand along my jaw. “Didn’t even know of his existence until we met him. I had Maverick look into his family. Once he has something, I’ll post it.”

She rocks back on her heels and nods. “Okayyy.”

“What’s going on?” I ask when she says nothing else.

Hesitation sparks in her eyes before she peers at her bare feet.

“Scarlett?” I prompt.

Walking over to my bed, she takes a seat at the edge. “I was thinking maybe we… should play the game.”

“No,” I snap, glaring at the fact that she would even suggest it.

Unperturbed, she stares back at me with a dangerous gleam in her pupils. “Listen to me, Gus. We can let others go ahead with the plan while we post something true. Anonymous will go after them and our secret will remain safe.”

I look at her like she’s lost her mind. “It still leaves you and I. This isn’t a team game where both of us win.”

“But—”

“I said no!” She flinches and her face falls. Softening my voice, I explain, “If we do his bidding, we’ll never be free of him. Today, he wants us to expose a dirty scandal, tomorrow he’ll want us to kill somebody. We are no one’s puppet, Scarlett. That’s what we’ll be if we play his game.”

She takes several heartbeats to acquiesce. “You’re right. I’ll stick to the plan.”

“We’re going to catch him.”

Returning a shaky smile, she struts to me. “I believe you. Thank you for always watching out for me.”

“I’ll always have your back.”

After hugging me, she leaves.

I lock the door behind her and turn in time to see a guarded Nessa step out of my closet. My shirt dwarfs her as she toys with the hem. I crook a finger at her and she bridges the gap.

“Your sister means the world to you, doesn’t she?” she says sweetly after wrapping her arms around my waist.

I play with her silky hair, fascinated by the feel of it. “It’s always been me and her against the world.”

“What about your mother?”

“You’ve met her. Does she seem like an affectionate woman?”

“People are different behind closed doors.”

“Well, she’s always been the same.” Which is completely indifferent to her children’s lives. I know it won’t matter to her if we live or die. We’re only important because we serve a purpose in her grandiose plan to rule the world.

Nessa’s expression turns crestfallen and she cautiously asks, “Were you close with your dad?”

“I was.” His sudden passing still causes a visceral pain. “He was an amazing dad. Patient and kind. It was because of him I took sketching as a hobby. He never judged me for being different and loved me for who I am.”

“I’m sorry you lost him so soon,” utters Nessa, holding back tears.

“The last time I cried was after his death.”

If possible, she becomes even sadder. “At least you know you were loved, Augustus. He may be gone, but his memories will always stay with you.”

Except memories fade as time goes on.

“Do you miss your parents?”

A shutter goes down on her face and in a dead tone, she confesses, “No.”

“Why do you hide their picture?”

“Because unlike you, I want to be rid of their memories. It took me a while to realize they didn’t really love me. If you put conditions on affection, it’s not love.”

“If my father taught me anything about love, it’s that it’s unconditional. If I went through what you did, my dad would’ve torn the world apart and hunted my captors down.”

“You were lucky to have him then.”

There’s so much longing and misery combined in her sentence, that it feels like someone inserted a searing rod inside my chest. Cupping her face, I promise her, “I can’t take away your parents’ or tormentors’ memories, but I can help you conquer your fears, Nessa.”

“How?”

“Let me take you to the basement.” It’s risky what I’m suggesting, but the reward will be her taking one step toward healing.

She shudders violently. “No.”

I hold firm as she tries to shove away from me and soften my tone.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of, honey.

I’ll be with you. The room I took you to before was an old and unused one.

I have another space that is nothing like it.

At any moment you feel like it’s too much, just say the word and we’ll turn around. ”

Over the weeks, I’ve come to understand and know her on a deeper level. All she needs is a little nudge. Having done it in the past when it came to her fear of knives, I know the same approach could work.

As she shrinks in fear, looking like a shell of a broken person, I swear my heart roars in agony. It’s an emotion I’ve come to recognize every time the thought of her in danger filters through my brain.

I’m equally furious that the people close to her turned her into this, adding salt to the unhealed wounds left by those monsters who took her.

However, underneath the frightened girl lies the glimmer of the courageous woman I know all too well. The one determined to slay her demons one at a time. I need to coax her out.

“You’re stronger than you think you are. You survived a horror that most people can’t. You handled everything I threw at you. You, my Nessa, are a force to be reckoned with.” I add a little motivation lightheartedly. “If you’re brave and come with me, I’ll kiss you again.”

Watching me under her lashes, the fortitude in her eyes grows. I’m proud when she nods. “Okay. I’ll try.”

Before her anxiety can trickle in, I take her hand and guide her back into my closet. I help her into one of the pairs of leggings she brought with her so she isn’t naked from the waist down. The stairway can be a little cold.

“August,” Nessa utters in confusion when I stop before the coatrack.

An astonished gasp slips from her when I press a tiny button on the side, filling the space with a whirring noise.

The entire shelf opens backward, presenting the hidden staircase behind it.

I take a step, which triggers the motion detector, and in a split second, light bathes the entire area.

“Wow… I can’t believe this,” she mumbles in awe.

It turns into dread when I tug her to follow me. I glance back to find her eyeing the dozens of steps with alarm. “You can do this,” I encourage.

After several breaths, she tightens her grip on my hand and confidently enters the doorway. A noticeable tremor rocks her entire body the deeper we go.

“Which subject would you teach if you could decide?” I ask to distract her.

Peeking at me, she replies, “Math or physics.”

I should’ve guessed. She did say she skipped two grades. It piques my interest. “Why did you pick teaching?”

The job feels beneath her, considering her intelligence.

“It was the only job available here.”

The more we talk, the less tense she becomes. So, I keep talking as we near the bottom step. “Why did you move to Fallthorne?”

“I wanted the opposite of where I grew up,” she murmurs. “I wanted peace.”

Yet she found anything but that.

I vow to change it.

At the landing, we halt in front of a set of double doors. I thrust it open before Nessa’s nerves can spike. As we traipse inside, my attention is on her as she studies the cavernous room with wide and curious eyes.

Not a shadow of fear in their depths.

I smile that she’s not thinking of running as she steps farther after dropping my hand. Probably because this room doesn’t indicate it’s a basement. She’s one of the handful of people who knows of its existence in my house.

I shouldn’t brought her straight here. Now that I know her story, I’ll be extra careful of the potential things that can trigger her.

“Is this where you…”

“Record my videos? Yes,” I finish her sentence as she trails off. “Told you, you had nothing to be afraid of, little prey.”