Page 57 of His to Keep
Callum drags himself up from the ground using the bedpost and stumbles over to the basket, taking out three plates covered with foil. He gives me one first, and then Maisie with his jaw clenched. But she doesn’t notice as she rips off the foil, revealing a potato and salmon dinner with a mixture of green veg.
Even though the fish is dry and the potatoes are difficult to swallow, we eat in silence. The only sound is our chewing as we stuff our faces. When we clear our plates, our grumbly bellies are still unsatisfied, but at least it’s something.
That night, I shut myself inside the bathroom to have a hot shower. As I undress, I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror, cringing by how visible my bones are. No longer able to stand the sight, I get into the shower. Lathering my skin with sweet-smelling soap, I wash. I do it again. Three times. A fourth. Shutting off the water, I dry myself with the towel. As I start dressing, the door softly opens and closes behind me.
It’s Callum.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, but he says nothing.
Gliding across the bathroom, he cups my face with both hands and kisses me. I melt into him but then pull away. “M-Maisie.”
“She’s asleep.” I bow my head, gripping onto the towel. He notices. “What is it?”
“I…I look awful,” I say, cheeks flaming with embarrassment.
“You do not. You’re beautiful—you don’t even know how much.” He kisses me again, backing me up against the wall. My heart thumps hard and fast as I let go of the towel and put my arms around his neck, kissing him back. His breathing shakes as I press my naked self against him, taking delight in teasing him as he clenches his teeth, his erection poking my stomach.
Once again, I’m overcome with emotion. I missed this. I’ve missed him so much, and I think he’s missed me too.
“I hate this,” he whispers, rubbing his thumb against my cheekbone. “I hate not being able to come near you.”
Standing on my tippy toes, we kiss until our lips feel bruised. Running my fingers through his hair, I grip onto him as he kisses and sucks my neck, sending multiple shivers through me.
“Fuck’s sake.” He pulls away, and I know we have to stop even though neither of us wants to. With a groan, he grabs my nightdress and dresses me. Holding the comb, he turns me and gently runs it through my hair.
“It’s gotten long,” he says, unknotting my hair so gently it relaxes me. Closing my eyes, my entire body pulses, and I have visions of pushing him down on the floor and—
My face burns hotter than fire. There’s no way. Not with Maisie in the other room.
Putting the comb down, I sense him coming closer once again. Sucking my bottom lip into my mouth, I groan when he places a kiss on my collarbone.
“I want you so bad,” he whispers, his breath hot on my skin.
“I want you too.”
But we both know we can’t, and it only makes it worse.
Chapter Thirty
Summer comes fast, and with it comes a wave of heat that sweeps the room we’re trapped in. Every movement is sluggish in the confined space of the bedroom. Though, outside is a different story. Trees burst with dark green leaves, and wildflowers cover the forest floor surrounding the house.
Maybe it’s the suffocation of the sun beating down on us, but things have calmed down some. For one, Maisie is behaving, which Callum’s suspicious of, convinced she’s planning something.
Though she’s nice to me, and I’m learning more about her daily. She’s eighteen and originally from Europe, which explains the diluted accent. She has an older half-brother who she never sees living in New Zealand with a wife and a bunch of kids. She was prom queen and loves dancing and Starbucks. Riding around in her baby blue beetle with her friends. She’s the type of girl I envied in school, and I know we will not be best friends. Maybe we’re not even friends. Just a result of a situation that has been thrust upon us. But having someone besides Callum is different, especially since my last friend, who was a girl, was Melissa years ago.
Then a day arrives that I’d forced myself not to think about. My seventeenth birthday. Thanks to Father Aaron coming to the room at noon, I wouldn’t have known I’ve been in this house for almost a year.
“Happy birthday, Ava,” he says, putting his hand on the top of my head. Callum immediately turns away, but from the corner of my eye, I see his fists are clenched.
I gulp. “Thank you, my Lord.”
“You will have a treat tonight.” From his light tone, it’s hard to know what he means. Either way, it brings a ball of dread to my stomach.
When he leaves, Maisie mutters a happy birthday to me before saying she’s going to shower. Sitting on the end of the bed, I run a hand through my hair and try not to break down. How has it been a year already?
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Callum suddenly says, his back still to me.
My eyebrows draw together. “About what?”