Unlocking her door, Ev quietly made her way inside, hoping Lacey and Marcus were still asleep. The door clicked shut just as a hand gripped the back of her neck, slamming her into the wood. She knew better than to cry out. When she did, Andy always came to see what was wrong, and she refused to be the reason the boy was traumatized.
“Well, well, well,” Marcus whispered in her ear, making her skin crawl with disgust. “Look who finally showed up.”
She wanted to vomit when he rubbed his groin against her lower back, and she felt his erection harden. With his hand still holding her still, he slipped his other around her front to slide slowly into her pants and under her panties where he caressed the fine hairs of her pubis that she didn’t shave.
“Please, don’t,” she begged. Tears threatened to fall the lower his hand went.
“But Evie.” She hated when he called her that. “I saw you were giving it to every Tom, Dick, and Harry.” He laughed when she tried to pull away from his wandering fingers as they dipped ever closer to her opening.
She felt his fingers probing and began to gag. When he managed to fight one finger inside of her, her stomach let loose and she vomited all over the floor, covering their shoes and ankles.
“You bitch,” he spat, spinning her around by the neck. His finger still trying to bury itself inside her. “You’ll pay for that,” he sneered.
She struggled to tighten her legs together to force him away from her body. Twisting and turning did no good, only earning her a slap across the face. Slamming her head back into the door, she was dazed. Her head was spinning, and she felt sick again.
“You’ll learn to love it,” he whispered sickeningly against Ev’s lips as he strove to claim them in a savage kiss while forcing two fingers inside of her. She felt the burn of tearing flesh as he scratched her most intimate places. She wanted to curl up into a ball and die.
She was dirty. Tainted. Used.
This wasn’t how her life was supposed to go.
He finally pushed himself away from her, a smug look on his face like he’d somehow won the ultimate prize…
Her.
His laughter rang hollow as she slid down the door, cradling her knee’s to her chest and burying her head as she felt blood dripping from where he’d violated her. Regret burned like acid as she thought about what would have happened if only she’d stayed with Casey. If only she hadn’t run from him and the feelings he evoked in her.
Her life seemed to be one out of control train wreck after another, and she was tired. Tired of fighting off demons, real and imagined. She was at her wit's end, wondering if pain was all there was going to be to her life.
“You mean to tell me, your ass pussied out when shit got real?” Casey couldn’t tell if Dom’s voice was filled with anger or laughter. There seemed to be a mix of both.
“Yeah, pretty much.” He took another drink of the coffee he wished was filled with bourbon. For three days after he dropped Ev off, he’d remained holed up in his cabin. So many times he’d gone to get her, drag her back there, and finally lay claim to her. Every fucking time, he’d chickened out. Afraid she wouldn’t give him the time of day.
“I get to be her watchdog while he begs for reports,” Ace said laughing at him. Case did beg and pester the other man as much as possible. He was watching his woman so, of course, he had to check in, make sure she was alright.
Wouldn’t be a problem if you’d grow a pair and check on her yourself, ya wuss! His fucking sergeant’s voice was stuck in his head.
He came over to Dom’s house in the early morning, as soon as he’d seen Dee and Jax leave for that Mommy and Me class they go to. He didn’t want to see the disappointment in her eyes when she realized he’d fucked up with Ev.
“Why, Case?” Dom’s question had him looking up. “What the fuck was so scary? Was she repulsed?”
“No.”
“Get sick at the site of your peg leg?”
“No.”
“Then get your fucking head out of your ass and fucking go get that girl before someone else does.” His anger was loud and clear.
“Hell,” Ace began, a wicked gleam in his eyes, “If you don’t, I will. That girl’s got a killer body and her innocence is begging for a real man’s touch.”
“Shut the fuck up!” Case grimaced. Anger and jealousy burned through his body at the thought of Ace or any other man touching her.
“Dom!” They heard Dee’s stressed voice as she slammed through the front door with Jax in her arms, running into the kitchen where they were sitting.
“Unca Case!” Jaxson squirmed to get free, running and jumping into his arms.
“What’s the matter, Princess?” Dom pulled her into his lap, and Casey had to look away. A desire so strong to have what they did burned his heart. You could have that if you manned up.