Total pages in book: 28
Estimated words: 26105 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 131(@200wpm)___ 104(@250wpm)___ 87(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26105 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 131(@200wpm)___ 104(@250wpm)___ 87(@300wpm)
A dangerous energy surrounds my feelings for Charley, threatening to unravel me. It’s a volatile mixture of infatuation and desperation, a constant hum vibrating in my blood. For her, I would pay a fool’s price.
Charley is the hit I’ve never been able to shake. The addiction I could never kick. The only reason I ever thought I might was because she was out of reach. I didn’t detox by choice—I just couldn’t get what I was jonesing for. Charley. The woman I craved. The woman I could never forget. I fooled myself into believing I could be free of her, but I was wrong. So damn wrong.
Charley is the high I’ve been chasing all these years, the phantom limb I kept reaching for, the impossible ideal. It’s why nothing ever felt good, why every other woman seemed to dim in her shadow. Why every drug dulled my senses instead of allowing me to see in technicolor.
It’s hard to go back to the mundane when you’ve tasted utopia. She says she’s here with me now—a promise whispered in the wind—but I could still mess it all up. I could still shatter this fragile peace with my self-doubt and insecurities.
My hands are clammy, and my heart pounds violently, a frantic drumbeat against my ribs. She says she wants one thing—a simple, almost terrifying declaration. But women say they want shit they don’t all the time, don’t they? What if she thinks I need something, a piece of her, and she’s offering it to me out of pity or a misguided sense of obligation?
The only thing I need is her.
Just her.
I need Charley to know that no matter what happens, I’ve got her. I don’t want her to believe for one moment that my words or touch during sex have anything to do with the way my heart fucking explodes for her.
I clear my throat, drinking in her perspiring face and damp hair. She’s the most stunning vision I’ve ever seen. “Was that okay? Did anything I said upset you?”
Charley’s lips turn up. “Nope. Um, you can be more aggressive. But verbally and physically, I liked it. A lot.”
I tilt my head as I look at her. We don’t speak. We just stare into each other’s eyes, waiting for something to break the silence that seems to have shielded us like an uncomfortable blanket.
“How rough do you want it?” I finally ask.
“I want you to fuck me like you don’t care if I want it,” she whispers, turning her head away.
“But… I want you to want it. I want you, every single part of you, to crave me the way I do you. I don’t know what you mean by that, Charley.”
“I want you, Liam. I want you very much. The only reason I can even contemplate sex like that with you is because I know I’m safe.” She takes a deep breath, her chest rising and falling. “I want you to fuck me like you hate me, Liam. I-I want you to fuck me like I’m a worthless piece of meat.”
I frame her face with my hands, my thumbs gently caressing her cheekbones. My fingers spread across her temples, anchoring her as I lower my head and press my lips to hers. This time, the kiss is consuming. I unleash all my emotions so she knows she’s my entire world. I pour all my feelings into this kiss, creating a vibrant canvas. I want her to know that she’s every sunset and sunrise.
Her lips part for me as our tongues dance to a rhythm only the two of us understand, a secret language whispered in the silent space between us. The world fades away, leaving only the electric current that surges between us, a bond forged in the sweet fire of our love.
“I love you, Charley. Remember that and never hesitate to use your safe word.” I curl my hand under her head and fist her hair, yanking her up from the bed. “Now, get on your stomach and lift your worthless ass in the air.”
She doesn’t move. She just lies there staring at me.
“What’s wrong?”
A smile plays on her lips. “I thought you were going to make me. I have fantasies, Liam. So when I say no, you need to remember that I don’t mean it.”
Jesus Christ.
“You’ll… pretend you don’t want it?”
Charley nods. “Yes. I want it to hurt.”
“Baby,” I breathe, sucking in breaths to control my emotions. “Okay, but I don’t have condoms. I’m clean. I haven’t been with anyone for over a year, and I’ve been tested.”
“I’m on the pill, and I haven’t been with anyone in years. It’s kind of hard to get out when you’re raising a kid by yourself.”
“Okay, but remember, I love you.”
Charley smiles. “I know. It’ll be okay. Please don’t worry.”
Without a word, I yank her head and force her onto her stomach. “Get that worthless ass up in the air or I swear I will shove a baseball bat in your ass and tear it apart.”