The Way She Burns

She gasps when she feels my erection, her fingers curling against my chest, that delicious body shifting in anticipation. “Can I sleep in your bed tonight?”

“No,” I say. “You can sleep there every night.”

My body Is demanding I take her again, right here and now, but I can see the abrasions on her perfect skin left behind by the grass. That simply won’t do. I want her skin soothed in my sheets. Want her comfortable and warm. Reluctantly, I fix our clothes and stand with her cradled in my arms, marching back toward the house.

With a breathy sigh, her cheek comes to rest on my shoulder as I bring us back through the gate and up the back steps of the house, once again making use of the rear entrance—

And as soon as we’re inside the house, the hair stands up on the back of my neck.

A small voice calls out. Panicked.

In pain.

Chloe stiffens, before pinwheeling into motion. She throws herself out of my arms and runs through the kitchen to the large foyer through which Curtis’s bedroom is located. I’m right behind her, expecting to find the child having a nightmare. It’s much worse than that, though. He’s lying at the bottom of the stairs cradling his arm, tears running down his cheeks.

“Oh my God! Curtis!” She rushes to his side and drops to her knees, hands fluttering as if she’s not sure if touching him is wise. “Your arm is hurt? What happened?”

“You weren’t upstairs,” he sniffs. “Then I fell.”

Chloe drops back, looking stricken.

Her gaze flies to mine—and dread swamps me.

“I did this,” she whispers.

The cold finger of dread traces up my spine.

I need to tell her she’s wrong. Completely wrong. But I know she’ll hear nothing I say right now. This girl lost her mother and blames herself for it. Now she’s blaming herself for this incident, believing that that act of indulging her sexual hunger—hunger that is specific to me—is the cause. Of course that’s nonsense. What her body needs is beautiful. What we do together is right and perfect and fucking fated, so help me God.

How can I tell her this in a way she’ll believe and understand?

A conversation with Chloe from earlier in the day comes back to me.

“That’s why you built the walls? To keep them out?”

“To keep everyone out,” I rasp. “I’m never going to bare myself like that again. It’s better to hold the power. To keep it close. Untouchable.”

How can I even attempt to convince her to let go over her insecurities when…I haven’t totally let go of mine? Is that how to break through to her? Finally, once and for all, making myself completely vulnerable…again? The way I’m asking her to do for me?

8

Chloe

I pace the bedroom at the foot of Curtis’s bed where I’ve been standing vigil all night, my heart and mind in turmoil. After carrying my brother to the room beneath the stairs, Sebastian took one look at my face and backed out through the entrance, striding to his den with purpose. What purpose? I’m not sure.

I only know that as soon as the sun comes up, we have to leave this place. The home, the land…and the man that has captivated me. Made me burn out of control.

This was my warning. Curtis’s arm isn’t broken, thankfully. Just bruised. But that bruise stares at me from across the bedroom like an accusation. If I’d been in the house, if I’d been watching him like I should have instead of indulging my physical curse, this wouldn’t have happened. I would have soothed my brother back to sleep and avoided this injury.

Giving in to my hunger means neglecting everything else. And now that my mother is gone, I can’t afford to do that anymore. I’m all my brother has.

I completely lost myself on the cliffs.

I said and did things that have always been stored deep down, never to see the light of day. I didn’t just call Sebastian by the name Daddy. He was that man while he bucked inside of me. And I was his little girl. We vanished into our roles effortlessly and reveled in them. The rest of the world simply doesn’t exist when he’s inside of me, pleasuring me in ways I never knew were possible. It’s not a matter of if I would slip deeper into this…obsession with Sebastian. It’s a matter of when. And my brother is going to suffer for my weakness.

Swiping the tears away from my eyes, I check to make sure Curtis is sleeping, then I begin to gather our things. In the morning, we’ll travel to my aunt’s house. We’ll beg her to let us remain with her until I can get employment. Once again, I’ll shove this hunger inside of me down deep, even if it will be so much harder now. Now that Sebastian has coaxed that side of me to the surface and given it texture. Given it life.