I blinked away the moisture in my eyes and ran my hands through my hair, my heart pounding at a thousand miles per hour. Hearing all these ugly things about Riley... It didn't fit with the image I had of her. Of the way she had been with me. But like Ella said, it was all a facade.
"I still need to confront her first," I stated firmly. "And when I'm done, I will call the cops myself. Can you please not say anything to anyone until then?"
Ella looked at me with a frown, her gaze searching my face. "I'll come with you," she offered but I shook my head.
"I need to do this alone."
She appeared disturbed by the thought and put a hand on my arm. "She's not normal, Jude," my friend stressed again. "You can't reason with her. And don't let her convince you that she's somehow the wronged one here no matter how young she is and how innocent she looks. You know this," she insisted. "You're a lawyer too. Criminal law was your specialty."
I gritted my teeth at that. Was Ella right? Was I somehow being manipulated by Wynnie on a psychological level that made me blind to her flaws? Was the girl I had been with for weeks and grown so close with these past several days just someone incapable of being a good person? Was she unhinged?
"Ella, leave us," I ordered in a brittle tone. "Don't inform the police yet. I want to handle this properly. If she...if she tries to hurt me, I know how to defend myself. But right now, I need you to leave."
There was a flash of hurt in Ella's eyes followed by concern and fear. "Jude," she whispered, shaking her head. "You can't excuse her crimes-"
"I won't," I snapped and she flinched at my tone. "I know the laws, Ella. I don't support criminals either. Riley...Wynter will be punished for what she has done. I will turn her in myself. Give me some credit here. You think I can't confront a teenage girl and live to tell about it?"
She chewed on her lip and appeared so tortured so I leaned in and put an arm around her shoulders. "Please. Let me do this. This is personal. She used me, Ella. I trusted her with my work, my home...my body. I tried to help her. Before I take any sort of legal action, I need to hash this out with her okay. Now go home. I'll call you when I'm done here."
She hesitated for another minute and then took me by surprise when she reached up to plant a firm kiss on my lips. When she drew back, I was staring at her, stunned. Ella gave me a weak smile.
"Please be safe. And keep your phone turned on. Mine will be with me and I'm going to wait for your call."
I nodded, unwilling to process her soft, intimate tone and the emotional expression in her gaze in light of my other bigger problems. Ella squeezed my arm and then left, her footsteps slow and reluctant. I waited until I heard her car pulling away from the driveway before heading upstairs.
Chapter 26
Wynter
I was in bed going through some of my notes for Jude’s novel when he entered the room, appearing grim and exhausted.
“Hey. Everything okay?” I asked, getting up quickly to go over to him.
He held up a hand and I halted halfway between him and the bed. “Don’t come near me,” he said in a tight voice and I saw the rage banked in his blue eyes.
“Jude-“
“I know who you are,” he cut in, keeping his stare fixed on me, his chest rising and falling in swift movements.
I swallowed at the accusation I heard in his tone, the anger and judgment. I tried to open my mouth to respond but words deserted me.
“You really had me fooled, Riley,” he continued in a subdued manner and then I felt the ground move from beneath my feet when he added, “Or should I say, Wynnie?”
My breath caught in my throat, my eyes filling up with tears. The first time he ever said my name and there was so much hatred spilling from his tone. I wanted to explain everything to him then. My secret was finally out. It was pretty obvious that Ella had discovered who I was before informing him. The fear I had anticipated was overwhelming but so was the relief. Even if he said it with hatred, at least my name had fallen from his lips. He knew me. He knew I was the one he had shared parts of himself with that he never dared share with anyone else.
“You violated my trust,” Jude hissed at me. “I thought…I was safe with you. I let you in my life, my home, my bed.”
I began shaking my head at him slowly, finally ungluing my tongue from the roof of my mouth to whisper, “You are safe with me, Jude.”
His disbelieving scoff cut through me painfully.
“You are a criminal,” he stated aggressively. “A psychopath. A liar. I came up here to tell you that I know about your deception and I hate you for it. If you thought this was going to get you me, you thought wrong. I should have reported you that first day you sent me that message. You know what sucks the most, Ril-?” He stopped and dragged in a rough breath. “The knowledge that I was taken for a ride by a fucking teenager. An eighteen year old girl.”
I frowned at him when he spat out those last words. The way he reduced my existence to something so simple and made it sound derogatory. An eighteen year old girl. Like it was my curse.
When I stepped towards him once more with determination, his frown matched mine and he bit out, “I said, don’t come near me. I’m calling the police. I didn’t want them bursting in on you without giving you a warning first because a small, stupid part of me felt like I should let you know what’s about to happen.”
"Why bother?" I asked as I approached him, ignoring his command to stay away. "Since you've taken it upon yourself to be my judge, jury and executioner, why not just turn me in right away now that you know I'm a dangerous criminal?" I reached him and we stood face to face, staring into each other's eyes. "It sucks the most that you were fooled by an eighteen year old because you hate admitting how much you liked fucking this eighteen year old," I taunted, not breaking my stare.
His words had hurt me but I was hell-bent on making him admit to this one last thing. Whether he agreed with anything else or not, he would agree to this before the police came and took me away. I tried not to think about that as I reached out a hand and touched his abdominal muscles through his shirt.
"Stop it, Riley," he snapped at me and I smiled, pressing my palm against that solid strength of him.
"It's Wynnie," I said softly and it felt good, saying that after so long. Being able to tell him that. "Say it. Say my name."
He shook his head at me and dug into his pocket to fish out his phone.
"Oh, come on, Mr. Knight," I crooned, pressing into him and inhaling his scent, my sex-hungry body craving his again. "We all know what a bad boy you are. How much you enjoyed fucking this teenage cunt of mine. Why not do it again one last time before you condemn me to a prison sentence? God knows I won't be getting any in there."
Saying that, I gripped his erection through his jeans and we both paused because there was the evidence that even in the middle of telling me he hated me, he was turned on. He wanted me. Jude Knight still wanted me.
I smirked at him again and raised an eyebrow, dropping all pretense of even trying to be that pathetic, undemanding Riley Benson who was unsure of his feelings for her. I had power over him now.
"Your cock really seems to prefer this eighteen-year-old pussy," I murmured and raised my mouth to his.
"I don't want it," he said stubbornly through his teeth and yet, when my lips touched his, light and teasing, he didn't push me away.
"Yes, you do," I replied and tugged on his bottom lip with my teeth. "One last fuck, Jude. Consider it a parting gift."
When I kissed him fully on the mouth a second later, he exploded. It was like having rough waves of his passion breaking against my shores. I took all of it and gave back just as strong. It wasn't long before our clothes were off and tossed aside and he was on top of me in bed while I writhed against him, both of us panting like a couple of animals in heat.
"I want you to say it," I gasped as I licked the side of his neck and he plunged his cock inside me, raw and hard. Just the way I wanted. "Say you want this pussy, Jude. Say
you love this cunt."
"Yes," he growled in response, setting a rough, fast pace with his thrusts and revealing his desperation for me. "I love this cunt. I fucking love your teenage cunt okay. Fucking take my cock."
I laughed and moaned alternatively as he fucked me, thrilled, crazed and ecstatic at getting that confession out of him, even if he had only said it in the grip of lust like almost any guy would during such moments.
"Come inside me," I whispered and bit his earlobe.
Jude groaned and crashed his mouth onto mine, bruising my lips, taking everything he could from me.
"Come inside me, Jude," I whined, digging my heels into his taut ass and he finally did, letting himself go completely. Like always.
"Fuck," he grunted and didn't stop kissing me the entire time he climaxed.
When I reached my own orgasm, I scratched his back with my nails, knowing that I had drawn blood when Jude hissed in pain. But his cock throbbed in me still and his assault on my mouth only deepened. Once I was gone, as long as those scratches stung, at least he would remember me.
As he pulled out of me and rolled on to his back, as we tried to get our breathing back to normal, as we lay there saying not a word, silent tears fell down my cheeks and I wiped them off, turning away when I felt his gaze on me.
He already thought I was a psychopath. He'll only think my tears are another way to manipulate him. Wordlessly, I looked for my clothes and put them on, not daring to glance his way. I'd never been inside a police station or even in a police car. A false sense of calm slowly settled over me. If he didn't want me, I was better off dead. I'd find a way to end the agony I knew would come when I was forced to live my days and nights without him, forced to endure the pain of having lost him.
Instead of focusing on the reality of my situation, I took my mind to a place where contemplating death felt like another task I needed to accomplish. How would I do it? A knife to my throat? Poison? Maybe a bottle full of sleeping pills? All of those options felt so bleak though.
Why did death have to be so clinical and lonely? Why couldn't it be dramatic, an exclamation of freedom, an ecstasy? I could picture myself standing at the edge of a cliff somewhere out in the wilderness, nature and the call of birds and animals around me my steadfast companions. Witnesses to my freedom from this agonizing existence.
"Wynter? Wynter!"
Jude was shaking me, frowning down at me as I stood near the door. I stepped away from him and bent to retrieve his phone, which he had dropped on the floor earlier. Silently, I handed it to him. Permission to send me towards what he believed was considered justice. I didn't have it in me to fight this anymore.
He'd pulled on his jeans again but his chest was bare and I fixed my gaze on it rather than his face.
"Get out of here," he told me in a rough voice. "Go as far away as possible. And don't ever try to contact me again. I won't be so forgiving next time."
Something shattered inside me at his words. Jude was letting me leave. He wasn't going to get me arrested after all. But the way he made me feel like his forgiveness was a benevolence after he'd fucked me to his heart's content was too much for me to bear. I'd thought my Jude was different. I'd been wrong.
I turned to leave, not even bothering to question him about why he had changed his mind. Was my pussy really that convincing? I walked out of there with my shoulders straight and my chin up, letting the crushing pain guide me but refusing to allow him to see me that way. I was going to find that cliff and set myself free soon. But first, I needed to find my courage.
Chapter 27
Jude
I knew as soon as Riley…Wynter left that I had made a mistake. The bleakness in her eyes stayed with me, along with the lingering scent of her body on mine. I sat on my bed and stared off into space for almost an hour, replaying the past few weeks in speed mode. The night she had first messaged me, the day she had arrived for her interview, the dinners we had gone to, me giving her rides, our growing attraction during work and the most passionate affair I had ever indulged in. The kind of intimacy I had shared with her and the vulnerability she had revealed to me had felt…so special. Somewhere along the way, this girl had gotten under my skin.
I ran my hands through my hair and gritted my teeth, trying to shut out the thought of her out there, struggling to find a way to start afresh. She was only eighteen.
And a criminal, Jude, I reminded myself but the words felt hollow.
God, but this was her game, wasn’t it? To get so deep in my head that I would start making excuses for her, doubting my own judgment. This was how people like her fucked with someone’s good sense.
After getting up to take a shower, I headed downstairs, deciding to put all of this out of my mind and focus on what I had to do for the evening. But every place in this house now reminded me of her. Not Jennifer, the woman I had shared this apartment with for almost seven months. But Wynnie, the duplicitous teenager who probably couldn’t tell the difference between genuine emotions and a sick obsession.
With hands that shook, I poured myself some coffee and frowned when I received an incoming call on my mobile.
“What?” I barked at Ella, not even bothering to be polite.
“Hey. Is everything okay?” she inquired in a concerned tone and I hated hearing that so much. She was the reason I had lost…
“Everything’s fine, Ella,” I replied curtly. “I’m sorry to tell you that Wynter escaped while we were in my office talking about her. I went upstairs and she was gone. I’ve alerted the police and I’m hoping they would catch her soon.”
“Shit,” Ella cursed and my frown deepened. “Jude, I’m so sorry. God, she could be anywhere by now if the cops haven’t apprehended her yet. I’m really worried about you. Do you want me to come over? She knows everything about your house-“
“I’m fine, Ella,” I snapped at her. “There’s no need to babysit me. I’m a grown man. Goodnight.”
I disconnected the call before she could ask me any further questions like her instincts were probably telling her to do. Standing there at the counter, I closed my eyes and tried to get a hold of myself. I’d lied for Wynter. Aiding and abetting was a crime as well so now I was a fucking criminal too. This was what she had reduced me to. Me, Jude Knight, believer of justice and someone who has always tried to uphold the law. This girl came in my life and ruined all of that just by existing.
Feeling bitter about the whole situation, I went into the living room with my coffee and sat on the couch to brood some more. I must have dozed off, exhausted after the travelling and ordeal of today because I woke up to a dark and empty living room and realized that night had fallen.
"Wynnie," I whispered and felt stupid for missing her.
It was normal. We'd been close for so many days now and her sudden absence was going to take a while to get used to. Rubbing my face, I sat up and the first thing I did was check my phone. She hadn't called or messaged me.
As the minutes passed, I began to feel worried about her again. Where could she have gone now? Shit, I was a lawyer for fuck's sake and I'd just told her to take the worst possible route when it came to dealing with her crimes. I'd been so shocked and angry, I hadn't sat her down and questioned her on anything. She had never hurt me or tried to hurt anyone close to me in the time I had known her. She didn't seem like the violent type at all although maybe that was part of her deception.
But I should've asked her. Why had she assaulted Joshua Andrews? She wouldn't be convicted if I didn't press charges for fraud and stalking but the fact that she was running from the law would prove to be a huge hindrance when appealing to the court. Still, she had a long life ahead of her and running away wasn't going to fix shit.
"Fuck," I cursed and dialled her number only to receive a drop call tone each time. She wasn't going to answer me.
I went online then, thinking of the only other method I could resort to in order to get her to talk to me.
Where are you? I sent a message to her
Twitter. Wynnie's Twitter.
She didn't respond.
Wynnie, please. I need to talk to you.
Leave me alone, Mr. Knight. I'm staying away from you okay. What more do you want? - @wynnie
I didn't appreciate this formality and detachment from her. I knew how perverse that sounded but I didn't like that she had given up so easily. What kind of obsessed fan/stalker/lover did that?
Where are you, Wynter?
She took a long time to respond and when she did, it was so cryptic, I almost hurled my phone in the fireplace.
A place between heaven and hell.
Chapter 28
Wynter
I wasn't sure how he found me but an hour after messaging me, Jude walked inside St. Philips church. The same church I had come back to that night to hear his speech. He joined me on one of the pews at the back and we sat there, not breathing a word.
The place was so empty and tranquil. Beautiful. I had come here to make peace with the fact that life didn't always work out the way we wanted and that it was okay to give up. It was okay to throw in the towel and not force ourselves to endure the pain and difficulties.
I ignored his presence beside me, not wanting him to weaken my resolve to find that blessed cliff tomorrow and leap off to my freedom. I even smiled a little to myself, suddenly realizing that my silent conversation with God seemed to have made me a braver person somehow. I wasn't going to bother Jude with my wretched obsession anymore.
Girl Obsessed: A Dark Romance Page 17
