Page 104 of Grace

I get out and sit cross-legged on the hood of the car. Blinking, I watch the sunlight—the first rays touching the ground. Drops of dew glint like silver. Blood-colored flowers turn toward the light, slowly unfurling petals that cradle sleeping little bugs. Crickets chirp, grasshoppers hop, butterflies flutter, and bees buzz softly. The morning is like balm—the clear, fresh air and the barren beauty of the landscape feel cleansing after yesterday’s horrors.

Chase joins me. He leans his hips against the car in a relaxed posture, muscular arms crossed over his chest. His eyes are sharp and dangerous, like a predator’s.

I feel tingles between my shoulder blades and in the back of my head. Carefully, I glance sideways at Chase. He’s watching me like I’m a one-of-a-kind painting—priceless, unspeakable—something he’d like to hang on his wall and stare at all day without blinking. His dark brown eyes trap mine. He steals the peace from my soul, steals this perfect moment, his silent whisper drowning out the birdsong and the rest of the morning until it all fades into the background.

Only he and I exist.

This love is rotten and dirty—still, it’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever felt. Because when I’m with Chase, I feel alive. Everything I’ve been missing in my life has flooded my world the way a storm swallows the sky—painfully, mercilessly. My heart shakes with a thousand emotions, like a butterfly’s bright, brittle wings trembling in the breeze.

I bite back my smile, because I can’t let him see how good his attention and obsessive love feel to me.

The “room” in the corner of the barn—which is really just a tiled bathroom area without any door—should be a red flag. A shower head juts from the wall, and a shabby porcelain toilet sits beside it. A dirty, round mirror hangs from a nail, and there’s a small washbasin. Its tap is rusty—time has left its mark—but it’s clean. I suspect this barn is one of the places where Lucas tortures and interrogates people, which Chase sometimes uses for his own purposes.

I just shrug and let go—my bladder’s been close to bursting. And showering will feel good, too, to wash off the burning looks and the memory of the boy.

Chase

She broke my heart.

I only broke her life.

I’m daydreaming about touching her, kissing her… It’s just a daydream right now. I’m not trying to get closer to her yet. I let her get used to me—and to her guilt. Because she doesn’t understand how she could kiss me so passionately. Now she’s disgusted with me and with herself. Her mind rejects her deepest desire, but her eyes could never lie. She wants me. My gaze makes her skin flush, makes her face burn.

It was so hard to get to her. I waited four long years, stalking my beautiful butterfly as she hid in the tall grass. The more she tried to disappear into her surroundings, the more I wanted her. But now we’re here. Just the two of us.

I press my body against the rotten wood of the barn and look in through the tiny crack between the planks. I take in her sight as she takes off her trousers and laced panties.

My heart explodes in my chest.

I watch her gorgeous, tight body, and the way the water beads and slides over her muscular ass. The spray from the shower head scatters across her impressive curves softly. The air turns too hot, and my pants get too tight. I get hard but don’t touch myself, because I know she’ll open up to me. Those soft thighs will wrap around my waist, and those rosy lips will whisper nothing else, only my name. Only I will make her face burn with pleasure, only I will make the ice in her eyes glint. Her tight pussy will only tighten around my cock over and over again.

It’s only a matter of time before she gives herself to me again.

All I have to do is wait. Patiently.

Grace

We’re driving to the edge of town on the bumpy road. The car shudders as the wheels keep dropping into the ruts in the dirt. The heat is merciless. The sun beats down on my shoulders. I’ve felt his intrusive stare on me ever since we started off. It’s freaking me out. You shouldn’t watch anyone this long.

“You’re pretty quiet.” His voice is calm, stoic. It pisses me off.

“Should I be talking to you?” I snap.

“I let him go. You said you’d only come with me if I let him go. I did.”

I close my eyes. Irritation tightens in my chest—anger, and… sadness.

“When this is over, I’ll forget you forever, Chase. You’re a monster. You haven’t changed at all. I can’t forget your sins. I just can’t. Jason, Poppy, me…” My lips tremble, and a tear rolls down my face. I wipe it away fast and bite my lip. “I regret kissing you. I’m sorry I lost my composure at the gas station for a second. I don’t understand how I could’ve done it. What I saw yesterday—it wasn’t just disgusting. It was abhorrent. He was just a boy, and… you could do that to him.” I look at him through tears. “You need help. This can’t go on like this.”

The corner of his mouth twists into a scornful smile. He looks into the rearview mirror. I look back, too.

“Why are you smiling?” I turn back to him.

“Because we both know the truth, Grace.” He shifts into a more comfortable position, acting relaxed—natural—without a trace of guilt. My gaze flickers, against my will, to his bulge. “And…” His eyes bore into mine. A lock of dark hair falls across his forehead. My heart races, and my womb trembles. “Just count how many times you’ve kissed me since I got out. The one at the gas station wasn’t the first, and it wasn’t the only one. And even before, I’ve done things any decent person would despise—things that wouldn’t earn me a life sentence but the electric chair, at best. You should only think about it as much as it helps you process it.”

Anger spreads through my chest. My hands clench into fists at my sides. I’d love to wipe that arrogant grin off his face, but… He’s right. Hell. That kiss wasn’t the first, and it wasn’t the only one. It’s as if my mind kept erasing his sins, accepting him the way he is.

He is irredeemable. And crazy.