Beyond Redemption (Marked Series Book 2)

by Jesse Lorenzo

  “Don’t,” Eva forced out through clenched teeth. She was on her feet in an instant. “Giddeon, you can try to push me away and shut me out all you want, but I’m not so easily dismissed or chased away. Not even you can break my strong will. Whether you like it or not, I’m here, and I’ll always be here. Right by your side.” Eva approached the agitated man teetering so close to the edge, ignoring his warning glances.

  Placing her hands on her hips in a defensive stance, she continued in a low, stern voice. “Through it all… the good, the bad, and the terrifying, I will not be chased away, so you’d better get used to having me around.”

  Giddeon pushed through her stance abruptly, shaking his head as he walked away. Eva ran after the retreating man. There was no way in hell she was letting him leave like this, not after all that had happened, and definitely not after all he’d revealed to her. After the story he told while in a trance-like state, Eva’s heart ripped wide open. She decided right then and there she wasn’t going to fight it anymore. She tried with all her might to stay on the straight and narrow, but all her efforts to be his counsellor, and only his counsellor, had failed. She was falling for this tortured soul, and it was tearing her apart inside.

  He had been pushed away, discarded, and abused his whole life. He needed someone who could love him, a constant in the midst of all his chaos. More than anything, he needed someone to stay. No matter what.

  Giddeon stopped short a few feet from the front door, turning on his heel to face Eva. He didn’t want to be cruel to the one and only person to act as though they really cared what happened to him. She deserved better. The momentum of Eva’s haste to catch up to her dark warrior had her crashing into his chest.

  His cold, rigid arms instinctively wrapped around his Angel to prevent her from falling. Blowing out a steadying breath, Eva slowly ran her hands up his broad chest. The adoring, determined look in her eyes knocked the wind out of him, catching him completely off guard.

  It was an expression he hadn’t seen from her, and she was directing it right at him. Giddeon’s body stirred. Emotions he’d never had for a woman before awoke all his senses. Lust. Need. Wanting. The overload of feelings to his system caused his whole body to quake under her tender touch.

  His body grew warm, reacting to his beautiful Angel as she ran her hands over his shoulders and into his thick hair. His heart awoke, slamming hard into his chest, when a jolt of adrenaline coursed through every limb and extremity. When she tugged on a fistful of hair, his body became hyperaware of the erotic beauty standing before him.

  All of a sudden, every nerve in his body was alive, awakened to everything around him, including the lust-filled wanting in her hooded eyes that mirrored his own desperate need. He noticed the way her golden hair shimmered under the harsh florescence of the entryway light, and the feel of her soft, creamy skin, clear of any makeup, as he ran his fingertips over her cheek.

  She grabbed hold, pulling him in tighter, and her intoxicating scent accelerated his heart like a powerful aphrodisiac. Giddeon shivered as her heavy breaths fanned over his face. He closed his eyes briefly as Eva ran her fingernails into his scalp, taking him to heights he’d never experienced before.

  He desperately wanted her. Even if it was just one night, Giddeon wanted to give his Angel everything he had left to give.

  This woman was weakening him. He could feel the last bit of control slipping away. She had this incredible power over him. Whenever Eva was around, Giddeon no longer suffered from the overbearing pull that the beast had over him, keeping him a prisoner in the darkness. When she was near, that part of him remained quiet and hidden.

  His dark eyes shot open when her hot wet lips kissed a path up his neck, rousing him back to the present. “Eva,” he groaned out. Against his body’s wishes, he tried one last time to push her away with the last reserves of strength he had. “Don’t. You don’t want this. You deserve better than a disgusting piece of shit like me.”

  Eva shook her head in defiance, her lips dragging against his neck at the action, and gave his neck a little bite. Giddeon shuddered, a gritty groan elicited from deep within.

  “You can’t get rid of me, Giddeon. I have made my choice. I will stand by you. I will be there with you in your darkest moments.” She placed several more kisses up his neck then continued. “I will be with you through it all.” She continued her soft kisses down his neck and across his collarbone, smiling against his skin when he hissed out a breath.

  Giddeon pulled Eva away again, this time holding her at bay. He didn’t want this Angel to be exposed to his demons. He didn’t want her to see him at his worst. He didn’t want to drag her down into his hell. She deserved to be put up on a pedestal. He wanted her so bad, but knew she deserved better. With sad eyes, he proclaimed brokenly, “You can’t change me, Eva.”

  The strong-willed girl jumped up to defend her actions. “I’m not trying to change you, Giddeon. I’m simply trying to help you walk a path that will eventually lead you to hope for a better life. For happiness.”

  His heart constricted at the pleading look in her eyes and the conviction in her voice as she looked deep inside him. “That’s not what I meant, Angel.” His voice dropped to a soft gravel. “You don’t understand. I died right there with them that day.” He pointed to his heart. “This is dead. I’ve suffered nothing but loss and pain for so long, I don’t think I’m capable of loving someone like you the way you deserve to be loved. I know I’m not worthy of having someone like you love me. I can’t give anything back. The only things residing in me anymore is hatred, vengeance, bitterness, and guilt. My demons leave no room for anything else.”

  When Eva shook her head, Giddeon captured her chin in his rough hands. “I’m not the man you want me to be, Eva. I never will be. I can’t make you happy, and that’s what you deserve—a strong man to take care of you, to make all your dreams come true. That man will never be me.”

  Giddeon let go of her and ran his hands through his dark hair, dipping his head. He was pissed at himself for saying all that shit when he wanted nothing more than a night of passion with his Angel. But everything he said was true. And he fucking hated himself for it. When he looked up at Eva through his lashes, he was shocked to see her shaking in anger.

  Without warning, Eva pushed Giddeon hard in the chest. A jolt of electricity sparked at the point of contact, waking other parts of his long dead body. She was seething in anger, and it was adorable.

  “Who the hell ever said I wanted, or needed, a knight in shining armor? What gave you the impression that I’m looking for someone to take care of me? I’ve taken care of myself all my life. I’m not some weak chick who needs a man to fucking hold my hand through life. I can take care of myself! Always have!”

  Eva pushed Giddeon harder this time, and he looked down on her condescendingly and smiled, egging her on. Grabbing fistfuls of his shirt, the pissed off blonde pushed Giddeon hard up against the wall, knocking down keys that hung on a loop by the door. Giddeon raised a challenging brow and a crooked smirk, awaiting the next outburst from his Angel. He was again caught off guard as she attacked his mouth instead, crashing her lips to his.

  Her fervent aggression sparked a hungry need deep inside of him that grew with each move of her punishing lips on his. Having lost all power to push her away, Giddeon reciprocated. Their lips crashed together in a desperate frenzy to devour one another. Eva dominantly sucked on his bottom lip, biting down, while curling her fingers into his hair and pulling down hard, roughly positioning his head where she wanted it. Giddeon groaned euphorically as the mixture of pleasure and pain shook him to the core. Burning electric currents coursed through his body, pulsating in the pit of his stomach then rippling outward. Eva’s tongue dipped in and out of his waiting mouth, erotically massaging it in a manic rhythm that quickly became his undoing.

  Giddeon wrapped his arms around her delicate body tightly, his fingers gripping her hips with almost painful pressure as he brought her body closer. He n
eeded her closer. A deep growl left his heaving chest as an unfamiliar dark desire clawed its way to the surface. Feeling her pelvis grind suggestively against him pushed him right over the edge. He wouldn’t be able to control himself much longer. Her punishing tongue was driving him mad; any more of this and he would take her… right there against the wall.

  Her throaty promise was finally his undoing. “I’m going to pour out all my love and devotion onto you. You don’t have to give anything back. Let me love you, Giddeon. Let me show you what that feels like. You don’t have to do anything. Just accept it.” His golden Angel cupped his face and brought her plump, swollen lips back to his, slowing the kiss down. She brushed her hot tongue along the seam of his lips in a provocative torture that almost brought him to his knees.

  The marked man was a goner. He couldn’t fight her any longer. Giddeon opened up to her, ready and willing to take her in his mouth. She didn’t disappoint. His Angel tasted of sweet honey. Eva let out tiny breathless moans as Giddeon took control of the kiss. The noise awoke a carnal desire inside of him. He spun them around, crashing her tiny frame into the wall, and extended her hands high above her head, trapping her. Giddeon aggressively deepened the kiss, probing his tongue in and out of her hot mouth in an erotic rhythm that brought them both to frantic heights.

  Giddeon’s body tremored and quaked with his need to feel her soft skin against his. Muscles coiled and twitched with desperation to take his Angel. Giddeon hadn’t experienced so many sensations all at once like this, ever. Now that he had been taken over by it, he wanted more. The marked man was becoming addicted to how Eva made him feel when he was with her.

  “I want to feel all of you, Eva. I need you. Right now.” Eva continued to kiss him in between each breathless word proclaimed. Without hesitation, she tugged his shirt up over his head and tossed it away. He hissed through gritted teeth when the bold girl ran her hands up his tense and twitching ab muscles and over his chest, her touch leaving a hot trail behind. The path they took raised goosebumps on his dark, heated flesh.

  Giddeon let loose a groan, feeling a different kind of torture that he wasn’t used to. The pleasure of each touch and stroke from his Angel was a delicious kind of agony that made him want to beg for more. Pressing all his weight into her as he ground his hips alerting her of his growing need, he managed to growl through tightly gritted teeth, “Bedroom. Now,” in between punishing kisses.

  Without answering, Eva pushed him across the room, managing to navigate without needing to look. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him in tighter as they stumbled down the hall, half aware of their surroundings. Giddeon gripped the hem of her t-shirt and pulled it over her head in one swift movement, reveling in the sight of her golden hair tumbling down around her lace-covered breasts.

  Her chest heaved as she breathed heavily in and out. She gazed at her dark warrior through hooded eyes, ready to give herself to him. Giddeon froze in place, mesmerized by her beauty. She was perfect to him in every way. When he hesitated, Eva took hold of his hand and placed it over her heart.

  “If your heart is dead, I’ll give you mine.” Her words struck the concrete wall that guarded his dead heart and shattered it. He could feel the force of it like a solid punch to the chest.

  Giddeon shivered at all the new and unfamiliar emotions that rushed forward, leaving him trembling in her arms. Cupping his Angel’s face, he gazed down on her with an adoration and longing he’d never in his life awarded to another person, until Eva. Slowly dipping his head, he captured her lips with his and kissed her with all the feelings coursing through him. He held nothing back. He worshiped her mouth, taking his time to explore her with all the attention she deserved.

  Fumbling blindly, he finally found the knob of the bedroom door they were standing in front of. Giddeon wanted to make sure his lips properly worshiped every inch of her perfect body, and he’d need lots of time and space to do so. Eva began unbuttoning his jeans as she nibbled on the delicate skin of his earlobe. She whispered softly, promising, “It’s just you and me tonight, Giddeon.”

  That was it. He pushed past the door with Eva wrapped around him. “Your voice chases away all my demons. With one touch, you bring me out of the darkness and into the light with you.” Giddeon gently bent her backwards onto the bed, proclaiming as he kicked the door closed behind them. “You are MINE now, Angel.”

  Dalton paced the room he’d been holed up in for the last few hours. The longer he waited to be in a room alone with Ellora, the more agitated and reckless he’d become. The stunt he pulled in Ellora’s room was an unnecessary risk and a very close call. Gritting his teeth, he pinched his eyes closed, imagining the feel of her soft lips pressed against his.

  He couldn’t wait any longer. He took it upon himself to up the ante. Desperate times called for desperate measures, after all. His pocket buzzed, signaling an incoming call. Pulling out his cell, he bit out, “Dalton Ramsey Claiborne here.”

  The man at the other end answered, “Yes, sir. It’s done. I did all that you’ve asked.”

  Dalton let out an appreciative sigh of relief. “Exemplary work. Now, we wait until he leaves to make my move. I’ve wired your fee directly to you. Our business is finished here.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Claiborne, sir. This was most generous of you.”

  Dalton hung up on the man without as much as a salutation. Stalking back over to the monitors, he searched for the object of his growing desire. She was working up quite a sweat today. He stared at her for an extremely long time, imagining her petite body writhing on top of his, working up an identical sweat.

  His twisted heart accelerated when he thought of her. The time for action was drawing closer. His entire being grew anxious to take her and use her in every way he’d ever dreamed up. Dalton was borderline manic, desperately needing to claim Ellora as his. His plan had to work, and fast. His time was running out where her innocence was concerned. He feared that the large man always around her might possibly beat him to the punch if he waited any longer.

  If that bastard took his dark beauty… if he ruined her, Dalton would have no choice but to end them both. After all, he always won, no matter what. They wouldn’t have a happily ever after, not while he had a breath left in his body. “Soon enough, darling, I will have you all to myself. There will be no one else standing in the way of our destiny.”

  He kissed his cleanly manicured fingers and stroked them over her face on the gritty monitor. He zoomed in as she smiled at her friends. This girl… this one little girl held a lot of unrealized power in her hands. She just had to beckon to him, and he’d gladly give up billion dollar deals to be by her side. Hell, he’d already done just that. She had but to ask, and he’d give her the world on a platinum platter.

  All his privileged life, Dalton only cared about money, power, and success. He didn’t care who he had to destroy along the way. But this raven-haired enchantress barged into his ruthless world and knocked him sideways. His entire empire was now in danger of falling down around him from his silence, the amount he’d spent on his plan to get her back, and his lengthy absence from the company.

  He knew that backstabbing prick he hired, Detective Antonelli, was gunning for him, and he wouldn’t stop until he had his man. But no one could take him down. He’d made sure of that. He had more men lined up, ready and willing to put everything on the line, to do as he ordered with the snap of his fingers.

  Money could always be earned. Loss could always be recovered. But Ellora was the once in a life time opportunity that he simply couldn’t… wouldn’t pass up. Ever.

  She’d learn to love him. She’d have no other choice.

  Ellora looked over at Adelle and couldn’t help but laugh at her beautiful friend. She was even flawlessly stunning in paint-stained overalls and with plaster stuck in her hair. She practically painted with her pinky up. She was adorable. As always, they broke up into pairs: Behr and Ellora on one side of the warehouse wall, and Gavin and Adelle on the other.
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  Adelle was wearing an adorable pout as she was forced by everyone to lend a helping hand. She really despised manual labor. Gavin was all too willing to help instruct her on her terrible painting techniques whenever he could. Like a jackal ready to pounce, he looked forward to every opportunity that became available to get closer to her.

  Ellora was indebted to her thoughtful friend for digging up old photos from Kristy of the hardware store when her father had worked there. Her plan was to try to restore it as close to how he had it all those years ago. So, they were painting the newly installed walls a rich, dark burnt orange color, which warmed up the atmosphere of its warehouse coldness. It provided a down to earth, homey feel for the place. She fell in love with it.

  Luckily, the painting job was an easy one compared to the pub. Three of the walls were a long, blank uninterrupted expanse. Only the front of the warehouse had large bay windows with large double doors in the center. They could easily kill the painting job in one day. After another hour or so, they stopped for lunch.

  Kristy stopped by with two bags filled with food. The woman was a saint. They all congregated at the now polished front counter to stuff their starving bellies. As always, Behr prepared Ellora’s plate first, and even laid a cloth napkin on her lap as he kissed her nose. Ellora looked up at this magnificent man adoringly, mouthing, “I love you. So much.”

  Murmuring softly in her ear, he responded, “And I, you.” His affectionate pale blue eyes and brilliant smile left her spellbound. Oh, Behr.

  Adelle hopped up onto the counter, refusing to sit on the dusty ground, with her plate in hand. Gavin piled food high onto his plate and sidled up next to her. His eyes roved over the regal beauty from the top of her strawberry colored head and slowly travelled their way down every curve her body boasted, to the soles of her feet. His expression changed from its usually light-humored cocky air, to a profound longing.

  When Adelle finally looked to her side and met his eyes, they shared a prolonged unspoken connection, as if they were the only two people in the room. The air was thick with their mutual tension.