“I saw you’ve kept yourself busy in my absence,” he says, twirling a lock of my hair between his fingers.
“What do you mean?”
“I saw a bunch of shopping bags on your living room floor when I got in. Nearly tripped over them since there were so many.”
“Oh, that. That wasn’t me. Well, it was, but I was forced into the shopping spree. Stone and Kennedy showed up at my doorstep the other day, demanding a girl’s outing together. Kennedy insisted that anything could be fixed through good old-fashioned retail therapy. And since she intimidates the hell out of me, I went along.”
“Yep, that sounds like Ken, alright.” He chuckles, amused. “She’s good people. You’re safe in her hands.”
Hmm. I’m not sure, so I keep that opinion to myself. Easton loves her like a sister, so I guess she’s going to be a permanent fixture in my life, too, whether I trust her or not.
“Since you left, both her and Stone have been on me like white on rice. Stone and Finn have walked me to every class I’ve had, too. Your friends really circled the wagons on me.”
“That’s because they know how important you are to me. They knew that, if I couldn’t be here to protect you, then they would have to.”
I feel my forehead wrinkling at his statement and ask, “Why would I need protection?”
His body stiffens under me, which only increases my sudden apprehension. Easton pulls himself up and leans against the headboard of the bed, mauling his lower lip.
“Easton, why would I need protection?” I repeat more forcefully, sitting upright.
“Because my mom’s sex tape being leaked online wasn’t just some asshole’s idea of a joke. It was a punishment—my punishment.”
I crawl onto his lap, wrapping my arms around him, waiting for him to tell me what’s going on.
“You’re right to think there are monsters in this world, Scar. I’m one of them. And because I am, karma is going to bite me in the ass. It’s only a question of time.”
“I don’t believe that. You’re not a monster, East.”
“Your heart clouds your judgment.”
“My heart sees you for who you truly are.”
With the back of his hand, he lovingly caresses my cheek. “Sometimes, I wish I could see myself through your eyes. They make a believer out of me, hoping that one day I could be good,” he whispers.
“You already are. To me, you are, and that’s enough.”
“So, you wouldn’t care if I were a monster to anyone else?”
“If you ever needed to be, then I know it’s because they deserved it. Because you are inertly good, Easton. Your dark side only comes out when provoked.”
“You are too fucking perfect, you know that?” he murmurs, grabbing the nape of my neck, so his temple can kiss mine.
“No, I’m not. And that’s okay, too. Because I just need to be perfect for you.”
“I love you, Scar. With all of my black heart, I love you.”
“And I love you,” I confess, leaning in to seal my vow with a kiss.
When he manages to pull away from our scorching kiss, Easton grabs my hips and slams me back on the bed.
“You are perfect,” he whispers, hunger burning in his eyes. “Let me show you just how perfect you are for me. Let me spend the rest of my life proving it to you.”
And before I can say anything else, Easton is already on bent knees at my altar. He worships me with his mouth, reciting his favorite prayer, only satisfied when the heavens part for me. When I scream out that I’m seeing God himself, he repeats his devilish assault, confirming that the sins of the flesh will always be the devil’s playground.
And what a lovely way to burn.
Chapter 30
Easton
“Are you sure you don’t mind that we won’t be spending Thanksgiving together?” my mom asks again for the twentieth time this morning. She stops folding her clothes and packing them in her carry-on suitcase, on the off-chance I might change my mind.
“No, Mom. It’s all good. I think Richard taking you to the Bahamas on a second honeymoon is exactly what both of you need. And besides, Kennedy is cooking up a storm over at Lincoln’s. She’d take the kitchen knife out on me if I didn’t show up.”
“It’s nice that you and your friends are going to spend the day there today. I know it must get awfully hard on him over the holidays. And I’m sure all of them are over the moon that you’re back.”
“They’re my family.”
She throws a loving smile at me with true happiness in her sparkling gaze.
“Okay, stop looking at me like that and finish packing. Dad said the car would be here in an hour to take you to the airport.”
“You know, he loves it when you call him that.”
“You’re doing it again, Naomi,” I tease.
“Fine, I’ll stop,” she laughs, going back to her clothes.
“Where is he anyway? I have to talk to him before you guys take off.”
“Downstairs in his office. He said he had a few calls to make before we leave. I still can’t believe he’s going to step down from the company. That bank is his whole life.”
“No, Mom, it isn’t. You are. And besides, it’s still his company. He’s just going to hire qualified people to do the worrying for him. He should have done it years ago. Don’t know if you’ve noticed, but he’s old as fuck, Mom.”
She succumbs to a fit of giggles as I make my way out of her bedroom in search of her husband. Just as my mother informed me, he’s in his office on the phone, ordering his minions to behave while he’s on vacation. I take a seat in front of him, waiting for him to hang up. The minute he does, he’s all smiles, looking ten years younger than when I saw him two days ago back in New York.
“I saw Scarlett Davis spent last night here. You two are getting pretty serious, huh?”
“Define serious.”
With a cocky smirk planted on the center of his lips he asks, “Are you denying it?”
“Nope.” I pop the ‘p’ at the end. “Scar and I are endgame. The minute I catch her with her guard down, I’m making her my wife.”
“Pretty bold move at just twenty-three,” he retorts, amused.
“Mom married your ass when she was twenty-four, didn’t she?” I remind him.
“She did.” He grins. “And I would have married her two years earlier if your mother didn’t make me work for it so hard. Hope you have better luck with your girl.”
“Don’t need luck on my side. Just her.”
The proud smile on his lips beams into my black soul.
“So, is that what you came here to talk to me about? You want me to work on wedding arrangements? Because I have to say, your mother would probably be a better choice.” He laughs out, but when he sees that my features have grown somber, his cheerful smile quickly disappears.