Chapter 3
Chapter Three
EROS
Ilied about why I put the blindfold on her. It didn’t matter if she knew where the hole was. What I wanted was a chance to be able to watch her. I’m rather good at hiding what I’m thinking and keeping a blank expression, or I have been.
I’m quickly seeing that’s not going to be the case when it comes to Blair, and right now, I need a second to be able to take every inch of her in without creeping her out more than she already is.
Because I could stare at her all fucking day and night.
First, it was her eyes, and then her mouth.
I could sense Blair was different and trying to hide it.
Darkness has touched her, but still light shone out in her eyes so bright and warm I could feel it.
I never wanted to stop feeling it either. It was a lure I wouldn’t resist.
But I’ll keep those eyes covered for now. She won’t know the location I’m taking her to. That could help deter her from trying to escape. I’m not headed back to the farm or my normal place in the city.
Instead, I drive farther out of town and toward seclusion in a cabin I had built a couple of years ago. It’s my sanctuary that no one knows about and where I go when I want to be completely alone.
I flick my glance toward Blair each time that I can without risking driving off the road. I can’t allow that. Blair already has marks on her body, her knees are freshly scraped, and one side of her face is slightly swollen and already starting to bruise. I tighten my hand on the steering wheel.
I’m both pissed and proud that she killed the fucker. I would have enjoyed a chance to play with him myself. If anyone deserved a trip to the hole, it was that asshole.
A fall down the stairs was far too easy of a death for him. I can’t fathom how anyone would want to mark up her beauty, and fuck me, is she beautiful. A word I don’t think I have ever used.
I could tell she was pretty when we were down in the hole, but the light was dim, not letting me see enough of her.
I’d been more focused on the words coming from those plump lips, wanting any details that I could get.
Knowledge is power, and it can often help you in your quest to torture a person with the things you know they hate the most. To be able to drive all their fears into them.
That hadn’t been the reason I was doing it with Blair. If I’m to go off what Mac told me, then I’m going to have to extract almost everything about her. I glance over at her again.
Blair's hair is a silky black that is a stark contrast to her creamy pale skin and those bright blue eyes. All of her is a contrast, honestly. She’s in the sweetly innocent schoolgirl uniform that she has paired with combat boots that lace up high.
I’ve never seen a pair like them before.
Then, that fucking choker that is tight around her throat and the delicate small heart charm in the center.
I realize she is shorter than I initially thought. Those boots give her a few inches, but even with them, she only comes up to the center of my chest. The white top she has on is tight against her tits, showing off how curvy she is. I bet she fits in the palm of my hand perfectly.
I shake my head, take a deep breath, and refocus my attention on the road. I’m not used to having any of these sorts of thoughts when it comes to women. To be honest, I rarely feel any emotion toward anyone.
She’s gone quiet on me. That sassy mouth of hers is not feeding me like it had been doing. Who knew words could be addictive? I sure as fuck didn’t. I think back to the last thing she said.
Ah, she’d asked about the hole being a secret location as a joke.
After that, she hadn’t said anything else.
Did my response to her question facilitate that?
That she’s the first to come out of the hole alive?
I mull that over, trying to understand it, but finally she speaks again, lifting a weight off my chest.
“You’re not falling asleep over there, are you? Don’t be driving me off the road. I already beat death twice. I don’t want to chance a third time.”
“You’re safe with me,” I try to reassure her.
“Right.” A humorless laugh leaves her. That's not sitting well with me either.
It’s making me—I think for a second, trying to understand what is happening inside of me—uncomfortable.
A person has never made me feel that before, not in a way that was her doing but my own.
It’s stemming from the fact that I have upset her.
The need to fix it slams hard through me like a physical blow, rattling me from the inside out.
“You want my vow that I will not physically hurt you?”
“Does a vow mean anything to a person like me?”
Like her.
“Yes, it means everything.”
“All right, vow it then.” I glance over at her to see a small smirk tug at her plump lips. I reach down, pressing my palm into my cock that’s been hard since I locked eyes with hers.
“I vow that I’ll never physically hurt you.”
“Why do I feel like you’re adding the word physically on there for a reason?” Smart girl.
"I'm sure you are unhappy with me. I can't control your emotions."
"But you can." She cocks her head to the side even though she can't see. I miss her eyes. What the hell is wrong with me?
"If I could, then you wouldn't be unhappy with me."
"You could make me happy by taking me home. Let me go and we both can forget any of this happened.” Fat chance of that happening.
I could never forget her. If anything, I want to memorize every single detail about her.
To know her in ways that no one else ever has or ever will.
I can’t stop thinking these irrational thoughts when it comes to Blair.
"How do you know I'm not headed there now?" She shifts in her seat.
"The direction feels wrong along with the turns and the speed of the vehicle.
Unless you're driving around to throw me off before taking me home, so I really don't know where this hole is, and trust me, I don't want to know where the hole is.
I'm not going to sneak back to have a grand old time and reminisce.
" She says it all in one impressive breath.
"I have a grand old time in the hole."
She snorts a laugh before she quickly covers her mouth with her hand. I get a funny sensation inside my chest that I can’t explain, but it helps ease some of that discomfort.
“You do know that you’re saying you enjoy torturing people, and that makes you a sociopath.”
“I’ve been called worse.”
"I'm not sure I want to know what worse is."
Not sure I want to know anymore either because I think if it came from her lips, it could cut deep enough to scar.
My phone starts to go off, Damon’s name showing on the screen. I answer it.
“Eros,” I say.
“Where the hell are you?” Damon asks. Blair sits up straighter at the sound of his voice. They go to school together.
“I’m handling things.”
“Where is Blair?”
“I have her.”
“Have her where?” my brother pushes.
“Why the fuck do you care so much?” I throw back at him, irritated. Not only because he’s pushing for answers but also because he’d been there when they went to go save the girls.
That means he would have known she was drugged and put into the hole. It pisses me off when it shouldn’t. It’s normal procedure for anyone our family considers a threat.
“Are you okay?” Damon asks after a beat.
“I will be.” I only need to get her back to my cabin and tucked away.
“What the hell does that mean?”
“It means you forget Blair ever existed. You don’t know her."
“Eros—” He starts to speak, but I'm done. I end the call before powering my phone off then putting it into a Faraday bag I always keep on hand. Turning your phone off isn’t enough these days. Blair doesn't make a move, and then I see her bottom lip tremble.
"Hey." Without thinking, I reach over and pull the blindfold from her eyes.
I can see the tears she's holding back. I jerk the wheel, pulling over to the side of the road.
As much as I don't want to see her cry, I won't deny her. I’m finding that true for a lot of things when it comes to her.
Unless we are talking about her freedom. "Are you okay?"
"Am I okay?" There is a tremble to her words that has me clenching my fist.
"You need to cry, then cry. Don't fight it; let it out.
" Her eyes widen slightly before she bursts into tears.
The sound rips through me. I unclip my seat belt and pull her into my lap.
I have seen my father do it to Mom before; it always calms her, and right now I'll do whatever I need to do to soothe her. It soothes me deep inside too.
Blair buries her face in my neck. I’m way out of my depth here. I have never had a woman in my lap weeping. I run my hands up and down her back.
“I can’t believe I’m in your lap crying.” Blair sniffs. Any hardness my heart has in it cracks in this moment.
“I want you here,” I tell her. Blair tenses for a second before relaxing again. My words must have freaked her out. I’m not sure. I can’t read her without seeing her face.
We sit in silence for a few moments. Her sweet scent surrounds me. For once in my life, I shut my brain down and allow myself to enjoy the moment. I didn’t think feeling like this was an option for me, but I was dead wrong.
It doesn’t go unnoticed by me that she shifts a little closer. She should be trying to get as far away from me as possible, but that’s not the case.
I’ll do whatever I have to to keep her right where she belongs. Here, with me. That is the only option.