A Pale Shadow by Heather Crews

Author:Heather Crews [Crews, Heather]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-02-10T05:00:00+00:00

PART FOUR

BECAUSE YOU’RE MINE

2013

21

The clean, woodsy scent of Adrian’s skin woke her. Annice lay half across him, her parted lips stuck to his chest—she was pretty sure she’d drooled on him.

“Good morning, rabbit.”

Oh my god. Gingerly she pulled herself off him, turning to discreetly wipe at her mouth. She didn’t look at him as she retreated to the tiny bathroom to brush her teeth and pretended she couldn’t see him reflected in the medicine cabinet, watching her. After rinsing her mouth she shut the door to use the toilet in private, and she sat there hugging her elbows, staring at the wall inches from her knees.

She wondered, as she often had since leaving Rakewell Falls, how things would have turned out if she hadn’t given in to Adrian so easily that night in the woods. He’d taken advantage of her obvious fear and used it to manipulate her for years.

And she felt, guiltily, that she’d let him do it. She could have fought harder, but she hadn’t, because even though he often made her feel bad, she’d enjoyed the attention. She’d liked when he fucked her back then, and last night had proved she still liked it now.

Whore.

Her face colored as she washed her hands and dried them on the towel hanging by the sink. She paused by the door before going back out to face him.

What if she’d been smart enough to reject his offer in the first place? He might have retaliated, but he might have let her go. Adrian was cruel, his upbringing having warped him in some ways, but he wasn’t outright evil.

I was in no place to make good decisions that night. Sometimes she had to remind herself it wasn’t her fault. At only fourteen years old, reeling after seeing some horror movie scene come to life, she didn’t deserve any blame.

But she always ended up blaming herself in the end anyway. Him too, of course. The bad thing had happened solely because of her association with Adrian. She might have been better off altogether without his protection, and she would never have fallen captive to such a stupid adolescent crush that had its claws in her even now.

Taking a breath, she emerged back into the main room, though she kept her gaze off him as she grabbed some clothes. God, she was still wearing his shirt with no underwear, and it didn’t conceal much from his proprietary gaze. She needed a shower to wash him off her.

“I’m not going back,” she said, finding the bra she’d tossed into the closet.

He lay back on the futon in silence, one arm behind his head. The sheet lay across his hips, so low the faintest tug would expose him. She felt the cold brush of his gaze on her skin, prickling under his scrutiny.

With a quick sigh, she looked at him. The longer strands of his slightly waving hair were rumpled across his forehead, and one fell into his eyes. Bed head wasn’t supposed to look so good.

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