TWENTY-TWO
Milan
PRESENT
After getting dressed, I light a cigarette. In the end, I convinced her to change. I couldn’t let her leave the house like that. Without panties, swollen lips, flushed cheeks, and a messy ponytail that made her look like she’d just been fucked.
And worst of all, in Shin’s fucking T-shirt.
It’s bad enough that Damian’s seen her in this state.
The mere sight of her, her innocent eyes, made me want to turn my dirty thoughts into reality. I’ve known Damian all my life and I know what dirty fantasies he has.
He wants her and I’m a bastard if I let him.
The only way to handle Damian’s subtle malice is to play by his rules. He wants her to provoke a reaction from me. A proof that Aliya Sierra isn’t just an easy fuck, that I’m obsessed with her and want to claim her for myself.
Just for me.
And I know just how fucked up Damian is. Shin and I are the only people he feels anything like emotions for. When someone gets in his way or he feels threatened, he shows his true colors.
We’re both messed up in our own ways, but Damian … Well, he just doesn’t give a shit.
The bathroom door opens, and my personal curse enters the room. My clothes nearly swallow her whole. The T-shirt I gave her is too big, slipping off her shoulders. A smirk tugs at the corner of my mouth. Seeing her in my clothes makes me want to devour her all over again.
Her sweet taste still lingers on my tongue.
“If you’re happy now, can I leave?”
“I’ll drive you.” I stub out my cigarette and stand up.
I don’t give a shit about the party downstairs. Even though I’m the host, I trust Damian and Shin to have everything under control.
“I can go home on my own.”
“You can’t.” I walk past her to leave the room.
“Then I’ll ask Shin to drive me home. There’s no need for you to drive me.”
I pause with my hand on the doorknob as her words register in my head. All it takes is for her to put his name in her mouth and my blood starts to boil again.
And that’s probably exactly her aim. To steal my mind.
With my jaw tensed, I turn to her. “I said I’d drive you.”
“And I told you it’s not necessary.” She crosses her arms in front of her chest. “I could also ask Damian. He’s probably already waiting for it. After all, he was going to make me come next time, wasn’t he?”
Her eyes flash angrily as she points to Damian’s and my conversation.
That sassy attitude again.
She has no idea how much I have to fight the urge not to force her on the floor and take her.
When will she learn that she can’t talk to me like that?
“I don’t think you quite get it.” My hand brushes over the redness and slight bruising I gave her as she swallowed my fingers.
Goosebumps spread across her skin under my touch, and I love the effect I have on her. She blinks uncertainly as I slide my hand along her collarbone and wrap it around her neck. Her racing pulse becomes apparent under my fingers.
“When I said I didn’t like the way you smelled like my fucking friend, I wasn’t just referring to Shin.”
My grip on her neck is tight enough to control her breathing. But I haven’t started squeezing her throat yet.
“You’re not going to Shin. You’re not going to Damian. You will only come to me,” I add, the threat in my voice unmistakable.
“I can-”
I increase the pressure to interrupt her words.
“No, you can’t,” I correct her, “Whether you like it or not, you’re mine , Little Curse.”
I feel her pulse quicken further under my grip. Her emerald green eyes sparkle at me and tear at my last nerves.
“Are you insane?” she nags at me, even though a squeeze from me could shorten her breath.
“I probably am.” I squeeze lightly so that her lips part and she gasps. “You’re driving me insane.”
With my free hand, I caress her lower lip.
“Crazy bastard,” she curses without resisting my touch.
She’s not wrong. I must be crazy, because her retort makes me want to put her over my knee and punish her for her insolence.
“Such ugly words for such a lovely mouth.” My grip on her throat tightens. “And I still desire you like you gave me a compliment.”
Instead of giving her a moment to breathe, I claim her lips, plunging my tongue into her mouth to devour her again. She tastes like a fucking sin I shouldn’t crave, but I can’t help but give in to the sweetness. Her lips were made to be conquered by me. Like pure ecstasy, she’s made me addicted, and now I can’t imagine ever tasting anything better.
Her delicate fingers barely touch my hand and I let go of her mouth.
“M-Milan,” she pants for air.
Hearing my first name come breathlessly from her lips is probably the most beautiful melody I’ve ever heard.
Finally, I loosen my grip on her throat, causing her to gasp for breath while keeping her eyes locked on mine. “Can’t you be nice just once?”
I smirk as I lick her upper lip. “I’m always nice.”
She snorts. “You could at least pretend.”
“But that would be boring. Lying isn’t my strength, you know that, sweetheart. I’m direct.”
She rolls her eyes and tries to take a step back, but I tighten my grip around her neck to keep her in place.
“But don’t worry, I won’t choke you. At least not today.”
A small, mocking sound escapes her. “How generous of you.”
“I already told you, I’m always nice.”
I take her lower lip between my teeth and suck on it. She lets out a soft sigh and a hint of arousal glows in my body.
“Nice is relative,” she murmurs in a cracked voice.
I continue to nibble on her lip. “Maybe.”
She returns my gaze with an intense glint in her eyes, and I can feel the desire in her, the same desire that pervades me.
“You’re going to ruin me.”
“I told you I will, remember? I’m going to keep my promise.”
A smile forms on her face and a tiny dimple appears on her cheek, an adorable feature that has escaped me so far.
I pause, my gaze lingering on this detail to take a closer look. I feel the urge to put my hand on her cheek and stroke the hollow with my thumb, but I just manage to suppress it.
This girl is my downfall.
I let her go before I change my mind and decide to keep her.
My gaze turns away from her, because everything in me longs to surrender myself to her curse. “Let’s go.”
So I open the door to my room while she reaches for her bag. Feeling her following me, I make my way to the stairs.
But when I see Elena Davis coming upstairs, I freeze.
The blonde girl lifts her head and smiles when she sees me. “Oh, there you are, Milan. I was looking for you downstairs. Damian said you were up here.”
She climbs the last few steps and stops in front of me. “Have you seen LJ? I can’t find her anywhere-”
Elena interrupts herself as her eyes fall on the shadow behind me. On Aliya, with swollen lips, hickeys on her neck, and wearing my clothes.
I stiffen. Fuck .
Elena’s eyes widen and a red flush spreads across her cheeks as she studies Aliya. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you.”
“We were just leaving.”
I grab Aliya’s hand to get her away from here as quickly as possible. Away from Elena before the queasy feeling in my stomach becomes reality.
But it seems to be late for that, because Elena stops us from leaving. “Wait.”
I look at her with a tense jaw, hoping that she won’t do anything rash. Her blue eyes don’t leave Aliya’s gaze. She fakes a smile and holds out her hand. “You must be one of my sister’s classmates. I’m Raelyn’s older sister, Elena.”
My grip on Aliya’s hand tightens instantly and I wonder if I should just drag her away from here before she can answer her.
She stares at Elena’s outstretched hand in confusion before hesitantly accepting it. “Aliya.”
As expected, a shadow falls over Elena’s face after she learns Aliya’s name.
“Nice to meet you, Aliya .” Her intonation sounds anything but enthusiastic.
The tension in the air is now palpable and I’m sure that Aliya has also noticed the darkening of Elena’s expression.
Elena’s gaze wanders to me and I see a treacherous glint in her eyes. “Then I won’t bother you two anymore. I’ll come back later.”
Before I can answer, she turns away and hurries down the stairs.
“Fuck,” I curse quietly and wipe my face before turning to Aliya, who looks at me, completely baffled. “Wait here, I’ll be back in a minute.”
I let go of her hand and rush after Elena, who is already leaving the house. I quickly catch up with her, stop her and close the front door behind us so that Aliya doesn’t hear anything.
The roar of the music from the party reaches here, but my focus is on the blonde girl in front of me.
“Elena,” I begin.
She turns to me, her glassy eyes meet mine and I can feel the tension between us.
“That’s her , isn’t she?” Her lower lip quivers as tears glimmer in her eyes.
She catches my silence in response and a short, hysterical laugh escapes her mouth. “I knew it.”
She swallows hard and her shoulders shake with repressed emotion.
“Why her of all people, Milan?” There is a hint of despair in her voice. “Did you forget what she did?”
Her words hit me like a blow, and I feel a stab in the pit of my stomach.
Why do I want someone who should be forbidden to me?
Why do I long for her so much, but loathe her at the same time?
There are plenty of women out there who can entertain me, but the only one I want is waiting for me upstairs. And she’s also the only one I’ve sworn revenge on.
I grind my teeth. “I haven’t forgotten.”
She makes an offended sound. “ They have the same eyes, Milan.” Her gaze drops and tears now flow freely down her cheeks. “You were right when you said they are alike.”
I watch in silence as a veil of melancholy covers her face.
“I overreacted,” she covers her sadness with a smile. “If you see LJ, give me a call, yeah? See you later.”
She turns her back and leaves the driveway to go home. The heavy weight of the past presses down on me. And the person responsible for all my burdens is still upstairs, waiting for me to come back.
I almost forgot. My resentment toward Aliya.
But even worse than my hatred is the fact that I’m obsessed with someone I originally wanted to destroy.
Still want to destroy – should destroy.
Because that’s exactly what she deserves.