Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44774 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 224(@200wpm)___ 179(@250wpm)___ 149(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44774 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 224(@200wpm)___ 179(@250wpm)___ 149(@300wpm)
“Afraid not. I wasn’t altogether for it. Neither was Cain. But we both realized she needed it. I think she might need this, too. Though, last time was almost too much for her. This time’s gonna be worse.”
“You know I’m standin’ right here. Right?” Jolene frowned, pushing away from me again. “I know what I want to happen to every fuckin’ one of ’em. And I can take it.” She lifted her chin, meeting Thorn’s. “I will.”
I could see Thorn knew there was no way he was winning this battle outright. But I could also see that he didn’t intend to let Jolene anywhere near my kin. I was with him on that. Mainly because I knew that whatever Jolene wanted to do to them would ultimately break her. She was fierce, but she had a tender heart. I’d nearly lost her to grief after she’d killed her father. I wasn’t about to get that close to losing her again.
“Come on, baby,” I said, taking her hand. “Let’s get ready. If we’re going to fight, we need to be rested. Been a long drive.”
“I’m goin’ with you, Styx. Ain’t hidin’ in my room like a coward.”
“You’re the bravest person I know, Jolene. Don’t ever think otherwise.” I scooped her up into my arms, carrying her. She wrapped her slender arms around my neck and buried her face there. I didn’t think she really wanted to be part of this, though she tried to convince herself she did. But I’d give her what I could. If she needed to face Avery again, I’d make sure she got to. But she was absolutely not going to be there when he died. I was sure she needed something from her father when he died, but it had taken something from her. Far more than she could afford to give at the time. I was pretty sure I’d given her love to fill in the gaps he’d stolen from her, but she still wasn’t whole.
As I carried her to my room, she settled against my chest, nuzzling my neck and kissing softly. Once inside, I took her straight to the bed. I didn’t even bother with our clothes. Not yet. She needed love more than sex, though the sex would come later. I settled myself between her legs, my arms wrapped tightly around her. Her arms wrapped just as tightly around me.
“My beautiful, sweet Jolene.” I stroked her hair and kissed her softly. “You are everything to me.” My words were whispered but as fierce as I could make them. I needed her to understand and believe in me. “There’s no one in this world who means as much to me. No one in this world I’d protect as viciously and violently as I’ll protect you. You… are… everything good in my life Jolene.”
She let out a small sob, tears leaking from the corner of her eyes to streak down her temples. When I kissed her, I took her cries inside me. I could almost feel her pain as sharply as I imagined she did. Jolene put up a brave fight, but the coming battle was more than she could handle. I knew it as well as I knew my own name.
The longer I kissed her, the more she responded until she was consumed by the need inside her. She cried out several times, begging me to let her come, but I wouldn’t.
“Not yet, baby. You’re not nearly ready enough.”
“You’re killing me!” Her cry was anguished. More tears flowed from her eyes, and I kissed them, lapped at them gently before kissing her some more.
“I’ll never get enough of your kisses. When you kiss me, Jolene, nothing else in the whole fuckin’ world matters.”
“Styx.” She said my name on a sigh, and she surrendered to me. Her legs came around my hips, and she held me to her. We still kissed, but it was more for comfort than to arouse. She needed it, but I thought I needed it more than she did.
We stayed like that for a long time. Just… kissing. Holding each other. Not thinking about anything but being in each other’s arms. I praised her. Told her how much I loved her. How much I admired her courage. I bared my heart and soul to her and did my best to comfort her when I knew she didn’t want it. Not really. As I saw it, my job wasn’t just to give her what she wanted. Sometimes, I had to find a way to give her what she needed.
“What are you trying to tell me, Styx?” she said, cupping my face in her tiny hand. Before answering her, I kissed her once more, taking my time so she knew it really meant something to me. That what I was about to ask of her was important to me.