Buttons and Lace (Buttons 1)

I writhed underneath him, clinging to the euphoria as it slipped away. I never wanted this feeling to end. It was phenomenal, better than the most exquisite food in the world. It was even better than freedom.

And that’s when the guilt kicked in. I was enjoying this far too much. I had a boyfriend at home worried about me, and I was getting good sex in a foreign country. It didn’t just make me a slut. It made me a terrible person.

Crow caught the change in my eyes. He saw the light leave forever. “Where did you go?”

I didn’t want to talk about it with him. I’d just told him my pussy was his. Jacob hadn’t come into my mind once. I just blurted that out without any thought of consequences. “Nowhere.”

***

After he showered, he entered my bedroom. I just finished applying ointment to my ass to stop the burn. My cheeks were red and covered in welts. While they hurt, I still enjoyed them. It reminded me of the fierce way he took me. And that usually made the area between my legs ache for him.

He walked to the jar sitting on the shelf where two buttons sat at the bottom. He pulled out five buttons from his pocket and dropped them inside, bringing my new total to a whopping eight.

He sat beside me on the bed, his eyes soft again. The darkness and heat had disappeared once we were finished. “You liked it. And then you disappeared. What happened?”

He was two different people depending on what time of day it was. Right now, he was the gentle and protective man I saw from time to time. He had no interest in hurting me, and he would protect me against anything. He cared about my feelings and thoughts. I loved that side of him. But I also loved the feral side too. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

He brushed my hair from my face and glided his fingers through the strands. He soothed me quietly, lulling me to a safe place. He leaned in and kissed my cheek then my shoulder, treating me like a goddess he worshiped. “Did I do something?”

“No.” Well, yes. I was in this situation because he wouldn’t let me go. He kept screwing me and making me enjoy it.

“I’m here if you change your mind.”

“I know...” My heart softened at the offer.

He cupped my face and gave me a kiss. “Good night.”

“Good night...” I didn’t want him to leave. When I slept with him last night, it was the best night of sleep I’ve ever gotten. No one could touch me when I was in his arms. Bones couldn’t get to me. No one could.

He left my bedroom and shut the door behind him.

My eyes moved to the jar on the counter, seeing the eight distinct buttons sitting inside. They were all different colors, coming from different places. Each one was unique, special. It was the rarest form of currency I’d ever heard of.

I went to bed and felt lonely. The room was too big, and I was too small. My past haunted me, and I couldn’t escape. I kept thinking about Bones and the way he hurt me. But then I thought about Crow doing the same thing and how much I enjoyed it. It didn’t make any sense. Nothing was adding up.

I finally fell asleep but didn’t have any dreams. Instead, I had nightmares. I dreamed of Jacob trying to get back on his feet after I disappeared. I imagined that sadness in his eyes everywhere he went. He was lost without me, living in the apartment he used to share with me. He went to the police and tried everything he could to find me, but the trail went cold. He lost me forever.

Then the dream changed to Bones. His grotesque face looked into mine before he slapped me as hard as he could. A bat came from nowhere, and he chased me around the house, prepared to crack my skull in.

Crow came out of nowhere and pushed him back, breaking the bat across his thigh before he slammed both pieces in his gut. Bones fell over, dropping dead on the spot.

Crow came back to me, wrapping his protective arms around me. “Button, no one will hurt you. My word is law.” His voice was hazy, blurry from the dream.

I wrapped my arms around him and finally felt safe.

Bones rose from the dead and pulled the wood out of his stomach. Then he lunged for Crow, stabbing the wood all the way through his back and through my chest. We were stabbed together, fixed in place.

Bones laughed as the light left Crow’s eyes.

Stop.

Wake up.

Come on, Pearl.

Get up.

I finally snapped out of the dream and sat up. My body was covered in sweat, and I couldn’t keep my breath steady. I gripped the sheets beside me and felt the moisture that dampened the material. I needed something to confirm that I was truly awake—that I was safe.