Page 10 of Fire in My Blood

Almost a minute goes by before she speaks. “Yes, I’m sorry. That was my fault. I didn’t mean to crash into you like that.” She looks down at the floor and lets out a sigh.

Several seconds pass before her eyes come back to mine. “Thank you for not taking advantage of the situation. You’re a good man.”

My brows draw together in a deep frown. “I’m a good man because I don’t take advantage of you? What kind of men are you used to?”

She looks away and swallows. I let the question hang in the air for a while, but she doesn’t make any attempt to answer it.

This woman has been hurt badly. Someone has taken advantage of her, perhaps even assaulted her.

Rage builds in me like an inferno. How can anyone hurt someone as good as her? All I want to do is find that person and kill them slowly. Painfully.

***

Erica

“If you tell me who hurt you, I’ll be happy to punish him for you.” His voice is low and dangerous. There’s no mistaking the rage in it.

I lift my eyes and look at him. His eyes are narrow, and his lips form a thin line. His whole body is tense like he’s ready to pounce.

I’m speechless. He’s a prisoner who’s being treated worse than an animal. But without even knowing the details of what happened to me, he’s ready to avenge me. Not even David acted like this when I told him what happened. He was angry but not like this.

After swallowing down the lump in my throat, I try to speak. But my voice fails, and my words come out no louder than a whisper. “Thank you, that’s nice of you, but it won’t do any good.”

“Leave him, whoever he is. You’re better off without him. I’ll protect you.” He stares at me, his eyes blazing.

I can’t help but smile at his protectiveness. It makes me feel warm and…safe. But how can a stranger make me feel safe? It’s strange, but that’s how I feel. “It happened a long time ago. It’s too late. You can’t do anything about it now.”

I look down and spot the water bottle that I dropped when I stumbled. It has rolled across the floor and is lying next to his mattress.

I point at it. “Do you want the water I brought you? The bottle is over there.”

He glares at me, before blowing out of breath, like he wants to push the issue but decides against it. “Okay.”

He backs up before picking up the bottle. After draining it, he moves forward slowly and stretches out his arm to hand me the bottle.

I push my shoulders down, only just realizing how tense I am. Then I close the distance between us and look up into his eyes. I’m well within his reach, but I don’t care. I’m not scared of him anymore. Because I know he won’t hurt me.

I take the bottle, before I put my hand on top of his large one. A tingling sensation moves up my arm from where I’m touching him.

“Thank you.” I let myself drown in his blue eyes. He doesn’t know that he just healed a small part of my soul, and I don’t know how to put my deep gratitude into anything more than a simple thank you.

His smile is warm and soothing. “Thank you for the water. And the company. Will you come back tomorrow?”

“Yes.” I nod and smile up at him. Then I tear myself away before I can do anything stupid like kiss him.

Chapter 7

Lucas

Rage simmers in my veins. Someone hurt her. It might have been a long time ago, but it obviously still affects her.

At first I thought she was afraid of me because I was chained and appeared to be some kind of criminal. But her actions and words soon made me realize it was more than that. She was surprised I didn’t assault her, and I’m certain it has nothing to do with me being chained and everything to do with me being a man.

I let out a growl of frustration. I have to find out what happened to her. It’s a need so strong I don’t know if I’ll be able to deny it.

Sitting down, I put my elbows on my knees and rest my head in my hands. How can I persuade her to tell me what happened? I can always use my ability to pull her mind to me, but the idea of deceiving her like that doesn’t sit right with me. But I’ll do it if she leaves me no other choice.

I can still feel her hands on my chest, like they left a brand on my skin, pulsing with heat. Her beautiful brown eyes are imprinted on my retinas, and the skin on the back of my hand is still tingling from her soft touch.