Tommy
I’ve been awake for a while now, but I’m afraid to open my eyes.
Didi’s still here, her soft body nestled in my arms. Before I finally drifted off last night, I traced her body in my mind, memorizing every curve.
Not that I needed to, since it’s already etched into my soul, but I was just so aware of how much I’d missed her.
Having her in my arms again makes me complete. I even started composing a new song in my head, one with an epic guitar solo. She sings to my soul whenever I’m near, which is why I haven’t been able to create anything new since she left.
I stay very still, taking slow, deep breaths, scared that she will disappear the second I open my eyes.
Eventually, I do, and Didi’s staring at me, her eyes much clearer than they were last night.
Her cherry lips are pursed, the only hint of color on her face.
She seems to have been watching me for some time.
The room is dim, but she’s illuminated by the glow of my lava lamp, her skin is a mix of purple and pink.
My balls tighten when I realize the only thing between my cock and her virgin pussy is a thin pair of undies.
I reach my hand to her face and rub my thumb over her lips. “What’s going on in that head of yours, firefly?”
Her head quirks and she blinks. “I hate you, Tommy.”
My heart sinks. “Damn, Didi.”
She squeezes her eyes shut, and her hands cup my face. “But I missed you more,” she whispers.
I lean my forehead against hers, our breath mingling. “I missed you, too. So damn much.”
My heart is beating out of my chest, and she doesn’t move. Her lips are so close to mine, and they are mine if I want them because she’s not moving or squirming.
My hands find her hips, and she tenses. “Don’t,” she whispers, but she doesn’t move away.
I nuzzled her neck. “Why?”
She shoots me a blank stare. “You have a girlfriend, for one.”
Talia… Damn. I haven’t given her a thought all night.
I’m in deep, deep shit. Talia won’t be happy that I locked the door. We have a rule in this house, and Talia’s used to coming into my bed whenever it suits her.
Didi needs to leave, now. If Talia even suspects I still have feelings for her, she’s finished.
Talia will force me to kill her to keep my side of the bargain I struck with the devil.
The massive inheritance my father gave me last month was on the basis that he thought I killed the girl in my arms. How can I explain what Talia is to me without sounding like a total jerk?
“You should go,” I tell her. “Because if you stay in this bed with me for one second longer…”
Her hips buck and back arches in response. Teasing me. “I should go…”
Screw it.
I steal a kiss, covering her lips with mine, and pull her closer. I wanted her so damn bad, my cock’s never gotten over it. I think about that night in my car every moment of every day. It was the last time I saw her before seeing what I thought was her dead body in that well.
“Tommy…” she whispers against my lips.
When she does, I give her my best puppy-dog eyes. The ones I know make her melt—or at least, used to make her melt. “What is it, firefly?”
“Stop doing that.”
I can’t help but smile, because everything about Didi makes me smile. “Doing what?”
She sits up and frowns, her hair falling in wisps over her face. “Stop doing all the things that made me fall in love with you.”
I grab her hips and tug her close, enjoying the soft skin I appreciated last night.
Those words consume me. She loves me…
I still have a chance.
Even if it’s just for one more selfish moment, I let go of her. I don’t kiss her…just graze. “I never stopped loving you, firefly. I fell in love with you the moment I saw you.”
She shifts and peers up at me. “I’m not the same girl I used to be.”
I roll onto my back and pull her on top of me, admiring her in the dark. “I highly doubt that; you were only gone for a few months.”
She holds my gaze for a moment longer, her pupils dilating. My desire intensifies, becoming almost overwhelming. I can’t resist; I gently bite her shoulder, my teeth barely breaking the skin. It’s an instant surge of arousal. All I want is to possess her and mark her before Remy gets her.
“I killed Father Malcolm,” she whispers. “I stabbed him the same way Talia stabbed her boyfriend.”
I pull my teeth from her shoulder, and my stomach sinks. I knew this, of course…but hearing the words from her lips makes it real. Makes her deadly.
“And what happened with your mama?” I ask her.
Her hand moves to the cross she’s still wearing around her neck. Her soft body is otherwise naked. “She’s with her Lord and Savior.”
I watch her for a moment as her breath lengthens, and visible emotion pours out of her eyes. I put my arm around her, not wanting this moment to end.
“Do you still want me now?” she asks, moving her hand to the teeth mark I left on her.
My body freezes, trying to imagine this sweet, innocent girl doing that to her mother or Father Malcolm.
She hums. “That’s what I thought.”
I open the blanket, letting the cool air snake in, and as much as it pains me, I rise out of bed and walk to my dresser. “Come on. We should go up and talk to everyone. I’ve messed up by keeping you down here this long.”
She sits up and keeps the sheets wrapped around her.
“You look different,” she says, clearly admiring me, then shifts to being more contemplative. “You look better than before.”
I shake my shaggy hair. “I am better than before, I think.”
She grows quiet again, and I want to kick myself for saying that. I am better, but for other reasons that have nothing to do with her. Her being back makes me feel complete.
She climbs out of bed, scours the room for her clothes, and I toss her one of my Doors band T-shirts.
“How are you after last night?” I ask her. The comedown from LSD is brutal, and judging by how intense her trip was, she’s probably experiencing flashbacks.
“Why would Talia drug everyone like that?” she asks me as she pulls the T-shirt on. I watch every movement as she slides her tight jeans on over her slim, sexy body.
I shrug. “Talia does what Talia does. She has her reasons.”
I wish I knew what Talia was thinking—I doubt I’ll ever understand her motivation for anything—but I follow her blindly, anyway.
She crosses her arms. “Why are you doing these horrible things?”
I pull on my shirt. “Because we can and always will. Look, if you want to leave this house, I won’t blame you.
I can sneak you out before Talia notices.
There is a secret entrance to this basement.
You can leave, and you don’t have to come back.
” I glance at the dark hallway that leads to the tunnels that would take her into the forest. It’s dark and scary, but a way out if she wanted it.
For a split second, I think she might take it.
“But if you want to stay, then there’s no coming back from this, Didi.
Once you’re in, you’re in. So, what’s it going to be? ”
She quietly faces me, her mouth set in a thin line. “I think it would be rather rude if I didn’t go upstairs and thank Talia for her generous hospitality, don’t you?”
I’m screwed.
I nod toward the beaded curtain. “Come on, let’s go meet her. It’s noon, and she’ll be expecting us.” I can already sense her anger for taking Didi away all night and locking the door. When Talia is pissed, her energy gets sucked into the air vents, pushing it through the whole house.
There is no getting away from it.
Didi hesitates. “Can I have a few minutes to freshen up?”
“Take all the time you need.” I walk over and take her hand. “Don’t worry, Didi, I won’t let anything bad happen to you again.”
Lies. If she stays, she won’t survive this.
I turn to face her, the turmoil inside me almost unbearable, then slide upstairs to face the music.