Page 69 of Redeeming the Villain
Falling through the door, I catch myself on a poor passerby.
With the next breath I take, I realize I know exactly who it is, the one person I was trying to avoid tonight.
But we can never seem to stay apart from one another as hard as we try.
We are the same in the end, two tragedies in the universe, forever tethered by our souls.
“Malik?” she murmurs, my name on her lips sounding like pure ecstasy.
“Yes, baby?” I trail my fingers down her hairline, caressing her cheek as my other hand slides down her back, stopping above her waist.
Her tongue darts out and swipes her bottom lip. I pull her tighter against me.
Placing her hands on my chest, she pushes away, but I don’t want to let her go. She stays in my grasp, looking away from me with upturned eyes.
She groans, her eyes pinching shut. “You’re so goddamn confusing.”
Running my hand down over her blonde hair, I memorize how soft it is, how far it flows down her back. How pretty it looks, tangled up with the tattoos on my hand as I lift it off her.
“I can’t get you out of my head.” I swallow hard, wanting that to be an internal thought, one that stays there. “You’ve taken up permanent residence, and I can’t get rid of you.”
Her gaze falls to my lips. “Do you think you’re the only one who feels that way? The only one fighting their own feelings? I question my sanity every day when the first person I wake up thinking of is you.”
My breath stills in my throat, and my mouth dries at her confession. She can’t feel that way … she just can’t.
“This isn’t good for me. You’re not good for me. And I’m certainly not any good for you. There is no world where we would ever belong to one another.” I crush her hope with my harsh words.
Her bottom lip trembles, and a dagger slices into my chest, carving this image into my flesh so I’m forced to relive the anguish I cause her.
“Will you tell me one thing?” She bites down on the inside of her cheek.
I nod, hoping I can give her what she wants so she can walk away from me for good.
She leans forward and lifts her hand, sliding it up my jaw. My body fucking explodes at her touch. She is the sun, and I am Icarus, burning up, ready to fall for her.
“Why do you hate me, Malik?” She nervously bites down on her bottom lip. “What did I do to you?”
Her question oddly sobers me up, enough for me to realize that I’ve yet again gone too far. I can’t tell her. I know her and her father might not be close anymore. But I can’t risk her mentioning it and that somehow getting back to my uncle.
Her eyes start to water, and I feel the thorns around my heart constrict tighter But I didn’t even notice the hold loosening.
She’s dangerous, bringing my guard down without my knowledge.
She’s my one weakness in this world.
Leaning forward and standing up taller, she closes some distance between us, and my emotional fortress locks back down.
Her gaze is intense, too passionate, too overwhelming. She’s looking at me like she wants me to kiss her, to claim her right here and now with abandon.
“Don’t look at me like—” My voice cracks, surprising me as I feel a burn sting the backs of my eyes. Forcing the choking warm sensation as deep as it will go, I look anywhere but at her.
“Like what?” Her voice is almost inaudible.
“Like you’re starting to not hate me.” Lifting my other hand to her face, I drift closer to her. My forehead slowly rolls against hers as a pain I’ve never felt shreds my chest apart. My eyes flutter shut. “I can’t handle that. Cut me. Hurt me. Do anything you want to me. But don’t fall for me, Alora.”
A teardrop wets my thumb, and I clench my jaw.
“You wanted to ruin me, Malik?”
