Page 85 of Vexatious Queen

My legs shook, and I leaned into his touch. I was so close. Just as I was cresting the final peak, Liam kissed me hard. His lips were demanding, and I whimpered into his mouth as I came. My body arched back, and I would’ve toppled over but for Liam’s hand. It was as if I was floating in a sea of darkness, yet I saw an array of colors behind my eyes.

As the wave passed, I rested in his grip. Liam nipped my bottom lip, sucking it into his mouth. He removed his fingers, and even without being able to see him, I knew by the moan that he was sucking them clean. I blushed, the heat not dying out, but burning like kindling in my gut just waiting to be ignited again.

“You taste so sinfully sweet. I can’t get enough of you, Little Rabbit.”

I smiled, loving how even with all his control, he still made me feel like I was the one giving the orders.

“I hope you don’t think we’re finished.”

I felt him smirk as he chuckled, and I swallowed hard.

JANUARY 28 – WEDNESDAY 5:30 PM

Liam

The new night vision contacts that Nash was testing out for Mr. Genovese were incredible and Ren had never looked so beautiful as she handed herself over to me.

“I hope you don’t think we’re finished,” I said, loving the mixed flash of emotions that crossed Ren’s face.

Pulling the blindfold out of my pocket, I draped it over her shoulder and dragged it along her soft skin. Smoothing down her hair, I placed it over her eyes.

“Isn’t this overkill? I already can’t see,” she said.

“It will make sense soon enough. Patience, Little Rabbit,” I said, tightening the knot.

Taking her hand, I guided Ren into position and smiled as she took my subtle cues. She lowered herself to her knees with her hands behind her back.

Leaving her there, I walked over to the stereo and turned on the sounds machine that was set to a thunder storm. The rumble and falling rain started and was as rhythmical and calming as a heartbeat. Ren looked around as the small speakers placed beside the makeshift bed area came to life.

Picking up the paint brush, with the orange UV body paint, and a torn piece of material from one of my t-shirts. I walked over to Ren and took a moment to gaze at her. Theo had forced me into her orbit, and I’d been so focused on the negative of having her in our lives that I’d been blind to the possibilities. One of these days, I would have to thank him properly.

Ren licked her lips, and I could tell that she was getting nervous, kneeling here in the dark, unable to see. I draped the material over her shoulder, and her body jerked slightly with the contact.

I loved how the crisp, white shirt allowed for so much symbolism to be emphasized in her life. Taking the orange paint, I swirled it in circles on her neck like a point of origin.

“Tell me, Little Rabbit, what follows you when you close your eyes,” I asked, stepping out of the camera’s view.

Ren’s head tilted slightly to the left as she thought. I pulled the remote off the tall stand and pressed the button that activated both the UV light and the camera. Ren startled, looking up and around.

“Ignore that and answer the question.”

“My mother’s last look. She stared at me with such love, and what I think she knew was goodbye. I didn’t recognize it for what it was. I’ve spent every night analyzing that moment when she ordered me into the safe room. She stared directly at the camera before the men burst through the bedroom door. That’s what I see when I close my eyes. Like a horror movie playing on repeat with no end.”

Laying the orange brush down, I picked up the pink one and made my way back.

“Take my hand.”

As soon as she reached for me, I helped her stand.

“I want you to stand relaxed and comfortable.”

I shifted the torn shirt so it draped over her other shoulder, falling like a waterfall between her breasts, covering just one. With a steady stroke, I dragged the paint from her collarbone across her heart. The wide bristles fanned out, creating broken lines and gaps in the application.

“Good girl. Now tell me, what part of yourself do you hide from, including when you look at your reflection?”

She lifted her head, looking up as if she could see the sky, and I hit the camera again. Ren didn’t jump this time, making me smile. I turned to my workstation and prepared the aqua paint as I waited for her to answer.

“The part of me that doubts I deserve peace or really any of this. The school, all of you, my father. It feels…it feels like a glimmer of something special that will never truly be mine. Despite how we feel or what we want, the perfect words, an infinite amount of money, or the contracts that are signed…it can all come crumbling down with one wrong move. It’s like I’m living inside a deadly game of Jenga that could not only take my life, but all that I love.”