Page 25 of The Awakening
“I will, Dean,” I whisper back to him. My voice is shaky as I stand up to him. I’ve been told what to do my whole life. “This is the only way I see that we can get Colson back. If that means I have to put myself in danger, then I’ll do it.”
“No! I won’t let you.” Dean steps up to my face, looking down at me with ferocity in his eyes. Gone is the sweet Dean, and here stands the Dean with darkness oozing out from within.
Standing on my tiptoes, I gently place my hand over his collarbone and glide my hand up to the side of his neck. I stop at the side of his face and slowly rub my thumb along his jawline. His eyes close to my touch, his once heavy breathing finally coming to a regular rhythm.
“Why don’t you show me your love for you?” My words come out in a whisper as he leans his head into my hand. Not opening his eyes, he responds to my question.
“I can’t lose you too.” My heart aches at this comment. Besides Everett and myself, Dean has lost everyone he has ever been able to call family. We are the only ones he has. Losing Colson was the hardest thing he and Everett ever had to endure. The thought of losing me is too painful. Not allowing me to go is his way of protecting me, showing me he loves me.
“You won’t lose me; I’ve been trained by the best. You have to trust in your training skills that you’ve prepared me enough to handle myself. I trust you. Now you have to trust me.” When his eyes open, sadness stares back at me. The pupils that swirled with shadows and fury are now hollow empty orbs, allowing me to see straight into his soul. I lean in and kiss his soft lips, holding my face to his for a long moment. As I release my lips from his, I pull his head to mine until our foreheads meet.
“If throwing myself to the lions ensures we get Colson back, I’m doing it. I’d do it for you, I’d do it for Everett. Why? Because I know without a shadow of a doubt the three of you would burn this world down to rescue me.”
“You better fucking believe we would, baby girl.” Grabbing my ass, he lifts me from the floor and throws me onto the bed. Before I can raise up on my elbows, his hard body is on top of mine. He spreads my legs with his knee, settling himself between my thighs. I groan as he grinds himself against my aching center, the bulge in his pants rubbing against my leggings. There is suddenly far too much clothing between the both of us. I want nothing more than to be stripped away from the confines of these fabrics. I reach for Dean’s jeans button, but he pulls away from me again.
“You have to promise me something first,” he says, giving me a devilish glare. I raise an eyebrow at him, wondering what he has planned, when all I want him to do right now is help satisfy the throbbing between my legs.
“What’s that?”
“If I allow you to go in as a decoy, we do it my way. No exceptions.” I can see there’s no other way around this. Dean won’t let me do this alone. I never thought he would. Instead of saying anything, I give him a single nod of my head.
“That’s not good enough, baby. I need to hear you say it. Say ‘I promise’.” This man is insufferable. I get where he’s coming from, I really do. I hated watching my men leave me at the castle, not knowing if things would go south. Spoiler alert—things did. But if he’ll let me do this with a few stipulations, so be it.
“I promise, Dean.” With that, Dean’s hands slide up my shirt, pulling the fabric up and over my head. His lips trail down my front, kissing his way between my breasts and down my abdomen. When he reaches the top of my leggings, he stops, grabbing the sides and yanking them down my legs. He moves fast, like a feral animal pouncing on his prey. As I pull my legs out of the prison of my leggings, Dean freezes, staring down at my body until his eyes reach mine.
“If heaven is a person, it’d most certainly be you, baby girl.” Crashing his body against mine, he kisses me again, inhaling me with every swipe of his tongue. The bed dips beneath me, and the warmth of Dean’s body against mine is suddenly gone. He stands, quickly making work of his pants, freeing himself from the confines of his jeans. As he stands beside the bed, I stare at the man before me. Dean has never missed a day in the gym. It’s evident with every move he makes, his muscles flexing beneath his tight skin. He’s beautiful. He takes pride in his health, his work, and being ready at a moment’s notice to carry out whatever mission the corporation assigns him. He went from being a broken kid on the streets to throwing himself in this world in hopes of being a part of something, being a part of a family, a family he never had.
I admire this man. Standing in the dark of the room, his silhouette stalks beside the bed, looking down at my body, at his own personal buffet.
“I can’t and will never lose you, Sloan. You’re mine and I’m yours. In this life and the next. No one is going to take you from me, you understand?” Shaking my head at him, he crawls back onto the bed, straddling my hips once more. Pinning my hands above my head, he awaits my response, his dark eyes burning straight through my chest, making my heart beat faster.
“I’m yours. Now and forever.”
* * *
DEAN
This woman—this insufferably beautiful, stubborn woman—will be the death of me. This, I’m sure of. Besides my brothers, I have never felt this strong of a desire to protect another human being as I do with her. She is my main and only focus. I want to put her in a cage, lock her in my room and never let her go. I can’t bear the thought of her being hurt, being tortured, or, dare I say, killed. I won’t let that happen. Looking down at her now, I want to strangle her for even suggesting she would be a decoy. Leaning down so my mouth brushes against her ear, I whisper, “Don’t think for one second you won’t be punished for this little hero stunt of yours. Everyone else may be okay with allowing you to walk into the darkness, but you forget who already resides in the shadows.” Her breath hitches as she takes in my words. I promise she will regret making that suggestion before the night is over. Darting my tongue out, I lick up the side of her face, the taste of her sweet skin sending my senses into a frenzy.
Holding her immobile, I reach beneath the bed and pull out my rope I’ve placed under Colson’s bed. Something I’ve done strategically for moments like these. Her eyes grow wide when she sees what I’ve retrieved. I don’t miss the slight twitch of her lip showing me just how much she likes being tied down. Wrapping the rope around her wrists, I make sure they’re extra tight, pinching her skin just a little tighter than necessary.
When I finish with her wrist, I latch back onto her neck with my lips, kissing and licking my way down her chest and spending extra time at her breasts. Taking her nipple in my mouth, I bite down just enough to make her back bow. She hisses through her teeth, and just when I think she may cry out, I kiss away the pain, her body melting back into the mattress.
“My girl likes the pain, don’t you?” I muse, already knowing the answer. A soft moan bubbles up from her chest, her head giving me a slight nod.
“That’s my good girl.” Kissing my way down her toned abdomen, I can feel her tensing muscles as I slowly reach the spot she’s dying for me to touch. Pulling away from her stomach, I hover my lips over her eager pussy, looking up at her face. I can see the neediness in her eyes as she peers down at me.
“You want me to relieve that ache for you, baby girl?” I taunt her, the look in her eyes pleading with me. I open my mouth, keeping my eyes locked on hers as I lower my face towards her core. Just when I’m about to lick the spot she wants me to most, I close my lips and blow warm air over her sensitive spot. Her thighs twitch, and she moans as the sensation sends shivers throughout her body.
“Ugh, please, Dean, please,” she begs me. I smile to myself, knowing how much she aches to be touched.
“You thought I’d make this easy for you? I told you; your little stunt will not go unpunished. I’m in control right now, and I say when you cum.” Just when she starts lifting her head off the bed to give me a death glare, I rise from the bed, grab another one of my stashed ropes, and begin securing her legs together. When I’ve successfully tied up my clever girl. I lean down to her ear once more and whisper, “Now, you’ll sit here until you’ve learned just how much you drive me crazy.” I kiss the side of her face and leave her tied up on the bed, locking Colson’s room behind me. As I’m walk down the hall I hear her scream, “Dean, don’t you fucking leave me here! Dean!” I chuckle to myself continuing down the stairs, her screams fading away behind me.
That’ll teach her.
Making my way to the guys downstairs, I hear their faint chatter in the kitchen as I enter the room. Both Everett and Arno turn to face me, their eyes darkening when they hear a faint scream coming from upstairs.
“Why the fuck is she screaming, Dean?” Everett asks me, his eyes fixed over my head in the direction of her pleads. My lips pull in a side smile as I make my way to the fridge, pulling it open and grabbing a beer. Popping the top, I turn to face them again, noticing the small smile Arno is trying to conceal but not doing a good job.