Page 85 of Everdoll

In response, I opened my eyes, still lost in a peaceful haze, my gaze lingering briefly on her lips.

“If I told you to die, would you die for me?”

A muscle in my jaw jumped, my lower lip began trembling.

“You… want me to die?”

Mina grimaced in pain, shaking her head in disapproval as I pondered.

Die for her… This wasn’t part of my plan.

Well, ever since I saw her in that bathroom, covered in her own blood, I had begun to devise a way to make her believe I loved her. That was her weakness. She loved living as long as someone needed, someone loved her. She might think she doesn’t deserve love, might blame herself for unnecessary things, but I would banish those thoughts from her mind. I needed to prevent her from turning into a shell. I would do anything to avert it. Anything. After all, Mina was the purest soul I knew. I had no intention of watching her lose her humanity and turn into a hollow creature.

If proving my love meant dying for her, I would do that. I would find a way.

“Will my death make you happy?”

The hands around my throat relaxed. Confused, she examined my face, searching for something.

“No… no. Why are you saying this?” Her soft tone dissolved into a helpless plea. “Why won’t you just leave me alone?”

“We both know that’s not going to happen. So tell me, will my death…”

“No, no! I said no!”

She screamed, then lunged for the knife on the rug. For a heartbeat, she hovered there, chest heaving, her gaze darting indecisively between the knife and me. Finally, she whipped her arm back and sent it clattering across the floor, hurling herself at my throat again.

I could not mask my amusement, I grinned, throwing my head back against the floor. She clamped her hands down with everything she had, but it was her hands that paled, not my neck. I reached up to stroke the cold hands choking out my breath, but my solace was lost upon her. Mina’s fury deepened, she leaned down and bit my Adam’s apple, sinking her teeth in as deep as she could.

My head jerked up from the carpet. A hoarse, muffled groan escaped me. I opened my mouth to speak, but she broke into another sob.

“I… don’t want this…”

She murmured, pressing a kiss to the veins in my throat this time. But I was already in another world, unable to comprehend what was happening. The pain in my groin intensified; my jaw clenched.

“I’m sorry… I don’t want to hurt you, really, I’m sorry, sorry… I’m not okay…”

Me neither, Mina, believe me.

“I’s okay. I… I’m sorry too… I pushed too hard.”

I gathered her to me, then put a long kiss on the roots of her curly hair, thinking it would calm me down. Well, it definitely didn’t, it burned me even more. Mina stirred upward on my chest, our gazes met. I tried to control my breathing, thinking about anything other than the throbbing between my legs.

“Please don’t love me,” she sobbed, burying her face into my shoulder, her warm breath seeping through the thin fabric of my shirt. Even that simple heat was enough to send a jolt of raw desire straight through me.

“Look at what I do to you… Why? You should hate me. Hate me! Please. Don’t love me. I’m not worth it, I’m not…”

“Hey, Mina…”

My breathing grew labored, my throat went dry. For the first time, I had no patience left to fight her insecurities. I was too consumed by the desire to take her into my arms and silence every doubt of hers. I reached out and caressed her chin, her parted lips remained frozen in astonishment, and I fought the urge to slip my fingers between them.

“Can we make love? Are you ready for it?”

As she stared at me in pure shock, I swallowed right away. “If we can’t, you have to get off me. Thanks to you… I’m not exactly in the best state.”

Her shocked face slowly turned red, now completely crimson. Without saying another word, I rushed into the bathroom.

Well… If tender confessions could no longer reach her, perhaps this could.