Page 68 of Wrecked By a Devil

The confession is followed by silence. Riley doesn’t say a word, but her eyes continue studying my face, as if she’s waiting for me to say more. A part of me regrets telling her all of this. I might have just ruined something that was becoming very important for me.

“There is more,” I’m the one to break the silence.

“Oh, I bet there is,” Riley laughs. “You keep painting yourself as this big bad guy who does cruel things and kills people…”

“Because that’s who I am, Riley,” I look down at my drink. “That’s what I am, a monster.”

“Don’t you see it? Even in the stories you just told me, there was always something humane about your actions,” she moves closer to me on the sofa. “You’re so much more than that, Zeke.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because I see you.” The smile never leaves her lips as she speaks. “I know the things you’ve done for me, I see the way you treat your brothers and the other employees at the Eden… Well, the loyal ones at least.”

“That doesn’t prove I’m not a monster,” I point out. “I can respect the people around me and still take lives.”

“Yes you can, but I wish you could see yourself through my eyes, Zeke.” She places her hand on top of mine. “Then you’d understand how great a guy you actually are. And maybe also why I’m starting to fall for you.”

“You what?” That last part almost makes me drop my glass of whiskey.

“I like you, Zeke,” she smiles. “I’ve been trying to brush it off, label it many different things and find a way to justify why youwere the first person I wanted to share the news about my exams with.”

“Riley, I?—”

“I can’t run from it anymore, I like you,” she leans in closer, the warmth of her breath gracing the skin on my arm where the sleeve is rolled up. “And I know you like me too.”

Without saying another word, I reach out for her face with my free hand and pull her in for a kiss. The moment our lips meet, everything I have been trying to ignore, every tucked emotion, spills over and I feel free, maybe for the first time in my life.

The kiss is desperate, the symbol of everything I’ve tried to lock away breaking free. She tastes sweet, and I wonder if she’s had something sweet to eat on her way here, but beneath that she tastes like safety, which is something I have no right to claim.

“No,” I suddenly pull away. “You need to see all of me before you decide whether or not you like me. And you haven’t seen it all.”

“You’re still trying to convince me?” Riley smiles, moving even closer to me.

“I’ll show you what I’m capable of,” I set my glass of whiskey down on the side table and then pull her in again for another kiss. My hands slide down her waist, gripping her tightly to pull her up with me as I stand. She gasps into my mouth, her feetbarely touching the floor as I carry her a few steps across the office toward the full-length mirror leaning against the wall.

I put her down and turn her around to face the mirror, her back pressed against mine, as I set aside her hair and kiss her back. She releases a loud moan, tilting her head back to rest against my chest. Instead of leaving her, I move her gently so she faces the mirror again.

“Look at me,” I command, catching her gaze in the reflection when she opens her eyes. “I want you to look at me and see the monster that I am.”

She opens her mouth to speak but I turn her head to me and shut her up with my mouth, my tongue sliding into her mouth. Grabbing both of her wrists, I bring them together behind her lower back, wrapping them with my silk dressing gown belt tightly around them and knotting it secure. Without her hands for balance, she’s entirely at my mercy, her hips arched back toward me.

“Zeke,” her breathing accelerates as I pull her body to me. “If this is your way to prove me you’re a monster, maybe you should try harder.”

“Don’t move,” I step back just enough to take in the sight in front of me. Her robe is loose and underneath she is only in her stage clothes, a very tiny G-string and a see-through bra.

I unzip my pants and slide them down my hips, my dick thanking me for setting it free. All along my eyes never leaveRiley’s in the mirror and by the way her body is twitching, I can see how badly she wants this.

“You’re driving me crazy, Riley,” I whisper in her ear.

I lean in close, my chest brushing her bare back as my hands slide under the edges of her lose robe. I palm her hips, my fingers digging into her skin to anchor her right where I want her. Her eyes meet mine in the mirror, wide and hungry, and I let her see the predatory smirk on my face as I show her exactly what she asked for.

Slowly, deliberately, I move my hands up her torse, dragging them over her ribs until I cup her breasts through the sheer lace of her bra. My thumbs press hard against her nipples, twisting just enough to draw a sharp, breathless gasp from her lips.

“This isn’t nearly as convincing as you might think.” She tries to lean back into me for balance but with her wrists knotted tightly behind her, she can only arch her spine, thrusting her chest deeper into my welcoming palms.

Before she can draw another breath, my hand flies up, wrapping securely around the front of her throat. I press her head back against my shoulder, my thumb anchoring firmly under her jaw to cut off her smart mouth.

“Shhh…”