Total pages in book: 181
Estimated words: 181613 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 908(@200wpm)___ 726(@250wpm)___ 605(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 181613 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 908(@200wpm)___ 726(@250wpm)___ 605(@300wpm)
Putting the two drinks down on a table, I scan the room, looking for his hoodie, those red eyes, but I can’t see him anywhere. The music blasts in my ears, distracting me, and I wish I could tune it out so I could focus better.
It doesn’t help that the only lights on the dance floor are flickering beams.
He could be anywhere right now.
Maybe even right behind me.
Sweat rolls down the back of my neck as a finger slowly slides around, and I reach into my pocket for the small knife I carry with me everywhere, but another hand in my pocket stops me from pulling it out.
The familiar whisper makes my skin prick. “Try, and I will make sure it ends up in your boyfriend’s neck.”
Oh God.
CHAPTER 28
Aspen
“Ghost,” I mutter.
He leans in, whispering, “You thought you were alone all this time, didn’t you? I have always been watching you.”
I attempt to turn around, but he’s got a hand slipped around my throat, keeping me in place.
“Pretend you’re dancing with me.”
He sways us back and forth to the music, hips locking into mine as though it comes naturally.
“How did you find me?” I ask.
His hand slips into my pocket, and he steals my knife right out of my hand. “You make it so easy for me with that bright green dress …” His hand slides up my thighs, the knife a cold reminder of the power he holds over me as my dress slowly begins to creep up my skin. “I can’t wait to tear it off this body.”
“You’re insane if you think I’m going to do that again,” I reply.
“The only one insane here is you for thinking you could escape my grasp after I already told you I was coming back for more,” he retorts.
I step on his foot, but he doesn’t give a peep.
“You can’t hurt me, Aspen. Didn’t I already tell you that too?” His tongue darts out to lick the rim of my ear. “I’m a ghost. Nothing can hurt me.”
He’s not a ghost. He’s a man hiding behind a mask, and any man can be wounded. You just have to find his weakness.
“I can hurt you if I take myself out of the equation,” I reply in a moment of clarity.
I’m the one he wants. If I deny him, it’ll hurt right where it’s supposed to.
He smiles against my skin. “Fine, you think you can hurt me more than I can hurt you?”
The knife rises where it meets my eyes, and he uses it as a pointer until we find my friends in the middle of the dance floor, minding their own business.
“You wouldn’t,” I say through gritted teeth.
“Keep taunting me, and I just might.”
The knife slowly lowers to my neck, and I swallow as he brings it between my breasts, settling his hand inside my dress in full view of all the people dancing.
“What do you want?” I ask.
He licks my neck, and the groan that follows makes goose bumps scatter on my skin. “You and only you.”
“You already had me.”
“I told you one time wasn’t enough.” His fingers find my nipples, and he twists them until a moan escapes my mouth.
“You haven’t held up your end of the deal. I gave you my body in exchange for—”
“Murder,” he fills in, squeezing my nipple so harshly I have to put my hand to my mouth to keep the squeal from coming out. “And I will bring you death … when I’m done having my way with you.” He smiles against my skin. “Now come and find me upstairs where the real fun begins.”
Before I can even turn around, he’s already disappeared into the crowd. I push past some people standing in my way, but he’s quicker on his feet, and by the time I reach the end of the mass of people, he’s gone, along with my knife.
Goddammit.
I head up one of the wooden staircases with intricate designs on them, the wood itself, carved with skulls, instilling a chill in my bones as I grasp the railing and make my way to the top. These poorly lit, old Victorian hallways still give me the creeps, but I push on and knock on every door I pass, waiting to hear someone say something, but there’s not one sound.
I slowly open each door I come across, glancing inside to see if there’s anyone there, but it’s just one giant metallic red room filled with a ton of strange-looking objects, ranging from a wooden pillory to a Saint Andrew’s cross to an actual metal cage in the back.
Holy shit.
Curiosity gets the best of me, and I step inside to have a quick look at everything that’s on the wall and in the cabinets. Rows and rows of whips, paddles, and chains, and all sorts of toys line the cabinets, from plugs to actual dildos and vibrators, and anything else one could think of.