by Kaye Blue
On the surface, he looked unbothered, but something about him was off.
I could sense that he struggled, suspected I knew with what.
The desire to go to him, hold him, was strong, but I kept my distance, knew that if I pushed, he would retreat.
So, I stood to the side, leaning against my love seat, my arms hanging loosely.
He circled the small space, seeming like a caged animal. The tension was rolling off him, his agitation seeming to grow. But I held my tongue, knew he needed to do this in his own time.
After a few more tense moments, he exhaled sharply, roughly dragged his fingers through his hair, and then looked at me.
“You aren’t going to ask how it went?”
He eyes didn’t leave me, and in them, I saw challenge. He was trying to goad me, but I wouldn’t take the bait.
“Would you tell me?” I tossed the challenge back at him.
The smile that curved his lips didn’t reach his eyes, was more like a sneer, one that revealed cruelty I’d never seen from him.
My heart sped, and my first instinct was to step back, run.
I didn’t.
That was what he wanted, and I somehow knew that if I gave even an inch, I would lose him forever.
“I think I should,” he said, his smile almost feral now, the gleam in his eye dangerous.
He held my gaze, again practically daring me to relent, but I stayed rooted, refused to give in.
He nodded. “I killed my cousin today, Tru. Stuck a letter opener in his throat and watched him bleed out.”
His didn’t leave me as he spoke, and I could see his see his test, see how each of the words was calculated to get a specific response.
After long, heavy moments, I finally spoke.
“Did he deserve it?”
Ivan
I’d braced myself for her reaction, prepared myself for her horror, her rejection.
Was so focused on that I almost missed what she said.
“What?” I asked when her words finally penetrated.
“Did he deserve it?” she repeated.
“I just confessed to murdering a member of my own family, and that’s your question?” I asked, disbelieving.
“Yes.”
That answer momentarily froze me, but not for long.
“Tru, what the fuck does that matter?”
“Ivan, I know what you’re trying to do,” she said.
“And what’s that?”
“You’re trying to push me away. You think if I’m afraid of you, afraid for myself, it’ll be easy for you to walk away.”
“You’re analyzing me now?” I countered, feeling weak, like I was losing the battle.
“No, there’s nothing to analyze, Ivan. I saw you kill five people, and that didn’t scare me away. Do you think this story will?” she asked.
“It should.”
“Well, it won’t,” she said.
“What about the clinic?” I asked.
“You’ve been looking into me, huh?”
“Yeah, and I know how much that clinic means to you. You think you can walk away from that? Because you’ll have to. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but eventually.”
I knew how much that meant to her, how she’d wanted to be a doctor her whole life. Walking away from that would be hard, maybe impossible for her.
I didn’t look away from her as she considered what I’d said.
She didn’t look away from me either. Instead, she crossed her arms under her breasts and then stood up straight, her eyes glinting with a hard glare.
Her eyes didn’t leave me when she started to speak.
“I made my choice, Ivan. If you want to go, go. But I won’t let you push me away.”
She went quiet, her eyes still on mine, the seconds ticking by. I wanted to look away but couldn’t, Tru’s beauty, her quiet strength, not allowing me to.
“Do you know what you’re asking?” I shouldn’t have been asking questions. I should just turn, leave, once and for all, but my feet didn’t move.
“Tell me.”
Her voice was soft, her eyes full of tenderness, and the last of my resolve fell away. I went to her, pulled her body flush against mine, my eyes searching her face.
All I saw was love, acceptance.
“Tru…” I whispered, my voice cracking with emotion.
She smiled up at me, tenderly stroking her hand down my cheek.
The urge to kiss her was so strong I didn’t even try to deny it.
I pressed my lips against hers, the depth of my desire, my love, leaving me shaken.
Tru kissed me back and trembled in my arms. I was struck again by how right this felt, how nothing else in my life had ever felt this way.
How it never would.
I’d tried to be without her, but in that time without Tru, I hadn’t been living. I’d solely been existing, moving from one day to the next.
But here, with her, I was finally alive again, knew that I could face whatever might come as long as she was by my side.
I deepened the kiss, my ever-present desire for her increasing. She matched my desire, kissing me with the same fervor that I felt.
I guided her toward the bedroom, each of us leaving clothes in our wake. I pushed her down on the bed, thrilling in the feel of her naked body beneath mine.
“Ivan, I need you,” she whispered, her voice breathy, needy.
Need I well understood because it matched my own.
I reached between her our bodies, stroked between her thighs, smiling when I found her wet.
Slow seduction was beyond me. I needed Tru like I needed my next breath, and as I kissed her, I pushed inside her, filling her with one stroke.
She held me tight, her breath warm against my ear.
The peace, the rightness, I felt in that moment was beyond comprehension. So I didn’t even try to understand, to think. I just allowed myself to feel, to try and show Tru how much she meant to me.
How I loved her now and forever.
“Tru,” I whispered over and over again.
“Ivan…”
The sound of my name on her lips, the emotion in her voice, sent me higher, but I refused to go alone.
I teased her clit between my fingers, sighed when she clamped down on me tight.
“Come with me, Tru…” I said.
“Yes, yes…” she cried.
Her climax struck, crashed through the last of my restraint, and I came with her, losing myself in the sensation.
When I came back to myself, I pulled her close, smiled when she curled her arms around her and held her close.
“I love you.”
I’d spoken the words without thinking, but they felt right, so right I had to say them again.
“I love you, Tru.”
“I love you, Ivan.”
We went quiet, but I noticed Tru tense, and I stroked my hand against her back until she relaxed.
“What is it?” I asked.
“It’s just…” She trailed off.
“What?”
“You’re not going to leave again, are you?”
Her voice was tentative, hopeful, yet restrained.
I didn’t answer immediately. Instead, I just held her, but then finally met her eyes.
“Never.”
My voice was rough, the emotion undeniable.
When Tru smiled, I knew she believed me.
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And for more dark and dangerous alphas, read the Irish Mob Chronicles!
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