Page 122 of Make You Mine

There’s a beautiful, shy smile, tainting her lips. It’s unplanned. It slides in sneakily, for a microsecond.

“You’re delusional.”

“Oh, yeah? You can’t escape your fate. You’re my wife.” I tuck in and fix my pants. “It’s time to make that cunt of yours mine with more than temporary ink.”

I don’t let her react. I bend down and grab her, lifting her naked body off the ground and onto my shoulder.

“We didn’t agree to this.” Small and weak taps hit my back.

“Oh. But we did. I told you I was going to make you mine.”

“Let me go,” she says.

But she stops hitting, and that’s a response.

See, the thing with Madelyn is she will tell me that I’m out of my mind, that what I’m suggesting will never happen, and it’s all excuses. She doesn’t say no. She doesn’t flee.

She stays there for me. She wants me, even if she won’t admit it.

“I said, let me go.” She gives a lame attempt at trying to force herself down by kicking her feet in the air.

“Oh, my wife. Don’t be silly.” Never. “I’m never letting you go.”

34

MADELYN

My stalker is carrying me over his shoulder to the first floor, leading me through the same path of decorative lights I saw before, and I know what the endgame is.

He’s going to fuck me.

He’s going to take my virginity, and I’m biting my bottom lip and squeezing my legs together, because, God help me—I’m so sick for wanting this. For the heat pooling between my thighs with thoughts of it.

As much as I hate this guy, no one’s ever been this way with me. So focused, so attentive, showering me with gifts, trying to give me what I want, what I need, in such a peculiar way. Fixated on me and nothing else.

There was one once—who made my judgment foggy, gave me mixed signals when we were younger, made me wonder about what ifs—and then disappeared for seven years.

Even if it was me, the one who pushed him away—he never fought back, he just left. Every single man I met in my life, starting with my father, left me, but not him.

Devon won’t leave, even if I beg him to.

And I’m well aware I’m being the biggest whore in history by letting Devon do this to me while Kayden is God knows where. He promised me he’s alive, and I’m choosing to believe that.

Maybe in fact, I’m helping him, because if he’s somewhere safe for now, if he didn’t leave me, I’m delaying this psycho from going to him and harming him. Maybe I’m doing what’s best for him, too.

It’s time for me to stop denying myself this one thing. Devon will never let me go—he said it. So I stop fighting. I let him take me and enjoy the ride.

My gaze fixes on the ground now, where, unlike before, my eyes catch on a mysterious dark stain.

Is that…blood?

A chill transpires through my naked spine.

Why didn’t I see it before?

That’s not Kayden’s. No. I won’t let that ruin this moment.

Ignore, ignore, ignore.