Keep Me (Broken Heroes 3)

When he doesn’t, a nervous knot starts to form in my belly. Is he going to leave me down here all night? I want to plead with him, start begging him, but I remember his words, his desire to hurt me if I didn’t shut up. Shock fills me when he strolls across the floor and bends down to pick me up, sliding one arm under my legs and the other under my shoulders.

I put my arms around him and bury my face into the crook of his neck, taking in a deep breath, letting his unique scent fill my nose. My freezing skin on his warm body drives all my coldness away and replaces it with warmth.

“I know you want me to believe you’re a horrible man, but I don’t. I feel safe with you,” I whisper into his skin, near his ear.

He stiffens but continues walking. “You’re the only person I know that would say that they feel safe in my presence.” His voice booms loudly in my ears.

“I do.” I swallow. “I know I shouldn’t. I know this is fucked up on so many levels, but I do, and I want you to know that…” I gaze down at his shirt-clad chest. “I didn’t mean to scare you with your… son.”

Xander’s grip on my body tightens just as we reach the bedroom, and he deposits me onto the mattress. Then he walks over to the dresser and grabs something before going into the bathroom with a cup. I hear the faucet turn on and assume he’s getting a glass of water. When he appears before me a few seconds later with his hand extended outward with the glass of water and a little white pill, I take them from him.

He watches me intently as I take them. I shiver at his eyes upon my skin, they mark every inch of my skin with heat.

“My son means the most to me, and you discovering him has ruined our perfectly integrated plans.”

My eyes widen at his words. “What do you mean? I thought we had an agreement?”

The dim lighting in the room makes it hard to gauge Xander’s expression but when I see the evil smirk on his lips, I know something has changed. He walks over to the nightstand on the opposite side of the bed and pulls something out. When he walks back over to me, I catch a glimpse of the item in his hands.

Handcuffs? Is this it? Is he just going to take from me, before finally putting a bullet in my head? How could I be so stupid? Why did I leave the room? He had been so kind to me… kinder than his father ever would’ve been.

“I see your brain conjuring up all kinds of things.” His voice sounds dangerous, and when I move back slowly onto the mattress, he’s right there invading my space. He’s huge, and intimidating and as I move, the shirt I’m wearing rides up my thighs.

My eyes move up his body, stopping once they reach his dark orbs, but he won’t meet my eyes and that terrifies me more than I care to admit. “Last time someone tied me to the bed it wasn’t all that fun.”

“And I can’t promise that this time is going to be fun either.” He snatches my arm and slaps the cuff on me over my still-bandaged wrist, attaching it to the headboard. I know better than to fight. The metal will only dig into my wound, and maybe that’s what he wants, me helpless, unable to fight him off. Then he takes the other cuff and tightens it on my other wrist.

Panic floods my body along with memories from the night I was at Xander’s father’s mercy. The things he said to me. The way he touched me. I suck in a ragged breath and squeeze my eyes shut, trying to forget that day completely.

“You know I can never let you leave now, right?”

My eyes fly back open. “What do you mean? What about the arrangement?”

“It’s still on… partially at least. I can let you live, but I can’t let you walk out of here, not with you knowing about my son. I won’t be able to let you leave… ever.”

I take a moment for his words to sink in. Am I supposed to stay the rest of my life in this room? How am I going to find my sister if I’m trapped here? There’s no way I’ll stay here. I’ll escape or I’ll die trying. I keep the thought to myself, burying it momentarily.

“So, you’ll just keep me tied up in your bed like a sex slave?” I spit the words, anger filling my belly. Xander’s hot and cold behavior confuses me. Every time I think I know what to expect from him, he surprises me.