“You called it,” Katana replies before nodding at Dragon. “I think he’s dead now.”
Dragon snarls, his eyes dark with rage. “He deserved it.”
Katana tosses me my shirt and cut. “Put those back on. We need to bail.”
I scramble off the bench and throw my clothes back on, wincing at the sting of the fabric over my nipples. Dragon rises, staring at the corpse at his feet, a smirk transforming his stupidly gorgeous face from angry to amused.
Insane.
Completely fucking insane.
His head cocks to the side as he shifts his gaze to study me. I swallow down the unease, drowning out any lingering lust. With blood splattered all over his clothes, arms, and face, I should bolt away from this monster, not allow my stare to linger on the way his lips seem to pout out sometimes in an extremely tempting way. I’m still staring at his perfect mouth when Katana clears his throat.
I snap out of my daze, keeping my attention off the hole-riddled body on the floor and pushing past Katana to the reception area of the shop. The girl from earlier is gone, but I don’t waste time asking where she went. I follow Nees out, hopping into Copper’s truck with him. He doesn’t wait for Katana and Dragon, peeling out of the parking lot.
“Dude is fucking crazy,” Nees says, shaking his head, a manic grin on his face. “You never want to piss him off.”
His words settle in my gut, souring my stomach. Dragon stabbing Wex was just a reminder of his power and uncontrollably violent nature. Sure, we got off, but it was a one-time thing. Dangerous, but I lived. The next time, I might not be so lucky. I sure as hell won’t let my sister step in and save the day again. I’m an idiot for letting my guard down, even for a few seconds of bliss.
Dragon is a monster.
He eats guys like me for dinner.
The drive back to the motel is filled with Nees’s chatter. I nod and smile where appropriate, but my head is still in that room with Dragon. It bothers me that I can’t erase his lips from my mind. I should be disgusted, but nothing about his blood-splattered runway beautiful face turns me off.
I’m just like my mother.
Her choices left her with a brutal death. Mauled to death by the dogs of her drug dealing boyfriend. If it weren’t for Stormy, who was able to shepherd away two toddlers while just being a kid herself, we would’ve met the same fate. We would’ve been consequences of Mom’s terrible choices.
Stormy already paid for me once. I’ll be damned if I keep putting my family in harm’s way because I can’t think with anything except my stupid dick.
By the time we step inside the motel, I’m hardened with the resolve to do better. When I’m not in Dragon’s crosshairs, I can think properly. Like a sane man, not this dick-obsessed idiot I seem to become in his presence. While Nees calls Koyn to update him on the events that transpired, I close myself in the bathroom to take a look at my piercings. Once I shed my cut and shirt, I stare at the metal glinting under the harsh fluorescent lights.
They hurt pretty badly, but they look cool as hell.
The door handle jiggles, making me jolt in surprise.
“What?” I bark out.
“Shower.”
Dragon’s deep, irritated tone sends a shiver rippling down my spine and wrapping around to my groin. Just like that, all resolve flies out the window. With a shaky hand, I unlock the door and face off with the dragon. His nostrils flare and I swear I can imagine smoke coming from them. The blood is still splattered on his skin where he didn’t even bother to try and clean it off at the shop.
I take a step forward to move past him, but he’s already shoving inside the small space with me. He slams the bathroom door hard enough everything rattles in the motel room, including my teeth. Green eyes bore into me, fixating on my parted lips for a beat before raking down my naked chest. The heat of his stare on my newly pierced nipples has my dick once again betraying me.
“You killed him.” I’d meant my words to come out as an accusation. Something to remind him he’s a monster. Instead, they’re soft and almost awe-filled. Shame licks at my skin, painting it crimson with each shallow breath I take.
“He touched you.” His words are sharp like his blade, slicing through me in an unapologetic way. His words expose parts of me I’ve been trying to keep hidden.
Loneliness.
Despair.
The ache to be loved and needed and adored.
Despite my sane brain telling me to run, I turn my eyes from him and grab a clean washcloth from the shelf by the sink. Once I’ve wet it and wrung it out, I meet his penetrative stare in the mirror. The heat of his body burns into my back as he steps close enough I can feel his erection against my lower back. He rests his chin on the top of my head in an oddly affectionate gesture that has my heart flip-flopping in my chest.