Page 50 of Burn for the Devil
She hiccupped as the tears started to flow. I took a long stride, stopping in front of her and went to cup her face with my hand. Her arm darted out, slapping me away. My blood heated and I grabbed her, her skin slick from her tears. I swiped them away, gathering them in my palm, before releasing the tiny sapphires to fall, pinging against the hardwood floor of her bedroom.
“I told you before,” I growled. “I won’t hurt you.”
Her eyes flashed. “You told me before that you’d make me a necklace from the bones of my enemies. That’syou. And you told me you’d kill me, remember?”
Her nails were digging into my forearms as she still tried to get away. “And I will do that for you, make you that necklace.” I’d meant what I’d said. I would do anything for her, give her anything she asked for. She would be mine, even if she didn’t know it yet and considered me the enemy. The subject of killing her, I wasn’t going to broach that.
Letting go of Samantha, I scooped my shirt and vest off the floor and put them on, watching her as she stood there, shoulders hunched forward, her lips trembling. She was completely shut down, her essence wrapped protectively around her. Satisfyingly, I detected the sadness and hurt surroundingher, tinting her aura with a faint dark blue hue. I’d have her simply because it would become unbearable for her to stay away.
I'd felt the connection, and surely, she did as well. It was so strong that a tether had begun to form, a glistening thread I could detect between us. It made the necklace I’d gifted her unnecessary; we were attached no matter how far we should separate. She could fight it all she wanted; she was just wasting time railing against the inevitable. She was mine and I was hers.
When I finished buttoning my vest, I sat on the edge of the bed putting my boots back on. Samantha maintained her vigil in her doorway, surprising me. Normally people in her position would have retreated and ended up in the fetal position on their couch—but not my woman. I smirked, biting back a laugh.
She caught it and narrowed her eyes at me. “I’m happy you find this amusing,” she snarked, before her voice trembled all over again. “What are you?”
I stood up and grabbed the glass sphere. “Do you really want to know?”
Samantha bit her lip and nodded, meeting my gaze.
“I’m the devil.” I snagged the blood wine with my other hand, cradling it beside the ball as I left the room.
29
Samantha
Ramone left without another word, flicking his hand at me, leaving me with the sensation of being wrapped in a soft blanket before it fell away. I shivered at the ghostly contact and watched as he waved his hand at the front door, opening it as he strode through. I could’ve sworn there’d been another time when he’d been here and simply vanished in place. He was angry with me, and his dramatic exit displayed that fact.
With him out of my house, I sank onto the floor, my back sliding down my door frame. I’d felt so close to him, and I’d let him completely ravish me twice, today. It’d just seemed natural to do so but after the fact, what the hell was I thinking?
It was hard to remember he was the man who’d imprisoned me for a year. A whole year. I was prepared to overlook that fact, against my better judgement, until I saw what the crystal ball had to show me. There was no doubt its message was valid. Ramone had moved me between worlds and transformed my tears into pretty blue gemstones. I knew my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me when the color of his eyes would change.I’d realized that was an unnatural oddity after his miraculous transformation of my tears.
He’d told me more than once he’d kill me, while also telling me he existed only for me and would never let me go. It was romantic in a strange, psychopathic way, but I didn’t want to die. Watching the woman in the vision the glass ball had given me some insight and I realized how close I’d come to that very same fate.
But God did it feel so good skirting death.
My nipples had hardened, turned on by the memory of his touch. I had thrown on my shirt after we left the bed, and my skin was overly sensitive, screaming for him to come back. The unfamiliar tug in my heart was discomforting; I’d never craved a man the way I craved Ramone. The connection between us was breath taking, the chemistry so devastating I didn’t know it was possible.
His last words to me were that he was the devil. I was used to pompous millionaires and billionaires, and the ever-present arrogant CEO, but this was a first. Taking a deep breath, I got myself up off the floor and checked the time on my cell phone. I placed it back down on my end table and picked it back up again, panicking.
Two whole days were gone. I had several missed phone calls and messages from Toni, and from my mother. I quickly sent text messages saying I had fallen ill, along with an apology, and took a hurried shower right after. Toni’s messages were full of concern for my well-being while my mother’s were reminders of the obligations my parents had stacked up for me. I’d answered Toni’s first before begrudgingly typing out vague answers to my mom.
Two whole days.I wanted to blame it on the mental illness I’d thought I’d had but that option was an impossibility now. My whole world had changed in a fundamental way, and Icouldn’t deny it. There was nothing wrong with me but there was certainly something wrong with the person I’d been falling for.
I couldn’t fall for the man who’d told me he’d kill me. I could pretend it never happened and put it behind me and just forget about everything that occurred. Ramone hadn’t even had the grace to threaten me with death, he’d essentially promised me that fate.
Ipushed open the door of my shop and scanned the interior. There were only a couple shoppers browsing the sales floor, everything was normal. I could see Toni on the other side of the counter and was filled with gratitude that she’d been covering for me in my absence.
“Hey!” She smiled when she saw me. “How are you feeling?”
I walked around the counter and set my purse down. “Much better, thank you. I’m just a bit tired,” I answered, returning the smile.
Toni started lining up some candles she had rolled in a fragrant herbal mixture and lowered her voice. “You do look pretty tired. Are you sure you’re okay? I can take care of everything here like I told you.”
That was all it took to release the wave of exhaustion that then overwhelmed me. Crossing the space, I sat in the chair where I worked on my essential oil mixtures. Blinking back tears, I stared at all the little empty glass vials I had lined up, waiting to be filled. "I'll be fine, thanks.”
Knowing I was extremely blessed to have such a great employee, I turned and said, “Thank you so much for covering and taking great care of this place. You’re the best.” Toni smiled back at me in response. My friend was one of the very few peopleI knew who were genuinely kind and caring, there was nothing superficial about her and it was one of the reasons we got along so well. We both truly cared about others.
My head was still buzzing over what I’d just gone through, and I questioned my own sanity at coming in to work. There was no way I was comfortable sitting at home ruminating, but I wasn’t comfortable being here, either.