After Sean, I promised myself that I would keep away from men, that I would never again let a man treat me like that again. That I would never let a man hurt me like Sean hurt me, but here I am. Dag is the first man that has entered my life since Sean, and already I am thinking of being with him and touching him. There must be something wrong with me. I must be stupid if after everything that happened to me, it hasn’t shown me that men are evil, that they will drive you to destruction with no remorse or pity.
“Umm,” I start, only to find my mouth dry. Licking my lips, I try speaking again. “Fine, thank you.” I start to turn, but his hands tighten on my waist, holding me still.
“How is the pain? Have you had any pills?” Earlier, before I went to bathe, Freya showed me where the pain pills were when she saw me wincing. Instead of taking the two which were prescribed, I only had one, as I don’t want to dull my senses completely. Now, I am happy that I did after I heard the interaction between the Elementals and the Desperados.
“I had one earlier,”
He frowns, but then nods. His hand lifts, swiping behind my ear a strand of hair that fell over my face with his gentle touch.
“I know you heard us talking earlier outside,” he says, surprising me by bringing up the topic. “You don’t need to worry. You are safe here.”
Looking up at his face, I meet his intense gaze. His eyes feel like they are boring into my very soul.
“Why? Why are you willing ongoing to war because of me?”
His hand cups my cheek as he continues to look at me. “You are mine. That means that you are an Elemental. Everyone in my club will stand behind me to defend you.”
Tears pool behind my eyes. I fight to keep them at bay as I feel a tightness fill my chest. No one has ever stood up for me or defended me. Now here I am, standing before a man that is willing to be at war because of me and I have nothing to offer him.
“You can’t…” I say softly. I can’t let him do this. I won’t let him be misled by this idea he has of us. At one time, I would have given everything for this, but now I’m too broken to have someone like Dag—to have this life. I can’t face the disappointment on his face—the disgust and anger when he finds out everything I did. It doesn’t matter that I was forced. It doesn’t matter that I was also being tortured. All that matters is that I was one of the main culprits of all those women being kidnapped.
“And why not?” he asks, as he raises a brow. Even though he asked, I have a feeling that he is distracted as his eyes roam across my face, his thumb stroking my cheek. I want to close my eyes and enjoy his touch—enjoy this dream that he is drawing me into, but I can’t. I can’t mislead him or Freya and Anastasia. I don’t want to mislead all the men that are prepared to be at war because of me.
“I’m not what you think.”
He shakes his head. His gentleness has a tear escaping down my cheek. If he was rough or forceful, I wouldn’t feel this despair, but he is caring, something which I have never had.
“Nothing about you will change my mind. You are mine—my mate, and not just the outside shell but the person you are.”
Another tear escapes, and then another, and before I know it, I’m crying deep soul wrenching tears that surprise both of us. I see the look of horror on Dag’s face as I try to pull away, but he shakes his head and then his hand is threading into my hair and he is pulling me tight against his chest, his other arm sliding around me to hold me tight against him.
“No, baby, don’t cry,” he whispers in my ear. His manly essence surrounds me—calming me. Dag makes me feel safe. When he’s close, I don’t feel as broken as I am. I try to stop crying, but the wrenching sobs won’t stop, my very soul crying in anguish.
“I… I’m… sor… sorry!”
“No, don’t be sorry. It’s okay. Just let it all out. I’m here for you no matter what.” I don’t know how long we both stand like that. But we do until my sobs finally start to quieten, my body weakens in exhaustion, and my mind feels shattered.
I lift my face up to Dag to thank him, only to have him lowering his head as his lips take mine in a gentle kiss—a kiss that I can easily break. But I don’t. I want to give him this. I need to experiment with this.
I have never shared a kiss with a man that wants more from me than just sex, a man that is gentle instead of forceful. I let the kiss deepen, my senses exploding with sensation and wonder. Dag’s hands frame my face as the kiss continues. My hand lifts to his chest, feeling the muscles ripple under my touch.
The heat of his body surrounds me and the taste of him is like an aphrodisiac that heightens my pleasure like nothing else ever has. I can feel his hardness against me, evidence of his passion for me.
Panic starts to set in. I can feel my muscles tensing as my heart races. What if Dag turns out to be just like Sean, what if I left one hell for another?
“No… I can’t.”