Page 9 of His Daggered Heart

My eyes fly open, and I look to the side and see her coming out of the restroom, adjusting her top around those perfect tits. She isn’t wearing a bra. Of course, she isn’t. I watch her body move as she makes her way down the hall in the opposite direction of me. Her skirt sits right under her ass, the little cheeks just peeking through subtly. Goddamn, I want to bite it. I bite my knuckle instead, drawing blood. I want to walk over to her so badly, calling to her like a sailor at sea is called to a siren on the rocky shores. If I go to her, I will only end up shipwrecked.

I don’t think there’s anything left to damage, but it’s Alex Monroe we’re talking about here. She will pull out the daggers of broken glass she left in my heart so that I can bleed out. I don’t even know if she will bat an eye. Fuck it, I miss her, and I need to know why the fuck she hasn’t reached out.

I walk in her direction and then I fucking freeze. My blood starts to boil, the beast inside me growling, “Mine.” She is mine and he can’t have her. He doesn’t deserve her. Has he put in the work to show her how she deserves love, making her see her worth? No, that was me. I broke down every fucking wall and tore down every layer of protection she had, and she still fought me at every fucking turn.

It looks like he has it so easy, effortless, that he gets to reap the benefits of all the work I did. Me. Fuck that.

I walk straight up to them. She must see me in her peripheral vision because she says my name, and instead of calming me, it enrages me more. Levi’s eyes go wide, but I’m pretty sure it’s because he recognizes me from the gym and not because he’s scared. Because let’s be real- we are almost identical in size.

I go straight up to the Paul Walker wannabe motherfucker and before I know it, we are throwing punches at each other. I’m drunk but I still hold my own. Alex screams for someone to help her as she attempts to pull me away from him. She’s trying to protect him. Her small but mighty frame is not enough to succeed in separating us from each other. She does find a way to squeeze in between us, though. To my surprise, her hands find my face, her palms laying gently on my cheeks. I calm instantly. I don’t want to hurt her and he must feel the same way because he backs up, wiping the blood from his face as the shot slut from earlier gives him a towel to clean up with.

Alex’s soft voice brings my attention back to her. My siren, my Angel.

“Kohen, look at me. Please stop.” Tears stream down her face and I feel warm ones wetting mine as well. Our pain swirls around us, tangible between our bodies. I feel it rushing through my body, like a living breathing thing.

“You’re here with him,” is all I can manage to say.

“I’m sorry,” is all she says as she removes a hand from my cheek to wipe her own. I grab her wrist a little rougher than I mean to because she winces, and he steps forward. She turns to him shaking her head and he stops in his tracks. What a little bitch, following her every command like a lovesick puppy. I place her hand back on my face and nuzzle into it, closing my eyes as I take in her scent. Her favorite perfume lingers on her wrist so subtly you wouldn’t even be able to tell if you didn’t love her like me.

I open my eyes and look at her. “You already said that.”

“Said what?” she asks, confused.

“That you’re sorry.”

“I am, Kohen. I am so, so sorry that you are hurting.”

“But you’re not. That’s what you’re really sorry for, right? For not giving a fuck.”

She tries to yank her hand away but I don’t budge. The entire party must be watching this delusional interaction but I don’t care. They have all melted away. I only see her.

“I did give a fuck, Kohen, but you left. You ran away this time. Not me. Now you have to accept that and take the loss. Don’t get me wrong, I miss you and it’s a loss for me, too.” She says that last part quieter than the rest, almost a whisper. She pauses and her eyes bore into mine as she continues. “But I’ve moved on, and you should, too. I have never seen you this drunk or behaving like this. I don’t even know who you are right now.”

“This is me before you, the monster Xzavien warned you about.” I throw her hands down and away from my face, and her little cowboy comes to her aid like a knight in shining armor.

“I’ll be seeing you, cowboy,” I say in a mock Southern accent.

“And I’ll be seeing you,” he says back, his jaw clenched as our eyes meet.

“I can’t wait.”

And before they exit the room, I yell across it. “Oh and, Alex?” She freezes, her body tense. “Make sure when he fucks you that you teach him exactly how I make you come. I know you have a hard time with that.”

She turns to look at me, mascara running down her face and a tinge of guilt floods my stomach. Why the fuck did I say that? He leads her by the waist and out the door as I stumble my way to the restroom. I need to throw up.

Chapter 10

Alex

Icouldn’tsleeplastnight. Seeing Kohen like that was devastating. Every time I see him it’s like a little more of the man I love is just gone. He’s an empty shell. I unblocked him and his socials were pretty empty. The fun, carefree, confident guy who posted every single detail of his life on social media hasn’t even been active on it since we broke up.

I truly didn’t think he cared at all. I mean, I heard that girl answer his phone. Then why would he look so broken? My icy heart melts a little and the rubble I pieced together to protect it begins to crumble. He loves me. He cares. What the fuck do I do?

My best friend’s name flashes across my screen and I answer in excitement. “Hello?”

Cora doesn’t respond with a hello. “Kohen said he saw you last night.”

“Yeah, and…?” My defenses go up at her tone.