Page 13 of Ethereally Redeemed


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He is here. He has come for us. He knows we killed Arthur Grimhill, and he’s here to get revenge.

Grey takes a step toward me, strong arms capturing hold of me. “Who is?” The puzzled expression transforms into one of dread, sensing the distress on my own.

“Emilio,” I breathe out, eyes wide as I desperately attempt to breathe through my nose.

I never told him of the figure I thought I saw earlier in the night.

His sapphire eyes scan our surroundings, the soft luminescence catching his irises and accentuating the gravity of the moment. The night is eerily silent, save for the occasional rustle of branches in the wind.

“Stay here,” he orders sternly, before foolishly striding toward the edge of the forest where my gaze kept darting. I try to protest, fear gripping me and tightening like a vise until there is no life left.

His eyes are soft as he turns to me. “There’s no one there, little doll.”

“IswearI saw him.”

“We’re both tired. There’s no chance Emilio can be here. We escaped, remember?”

When he utters those words out loud, my head spins, thoughts whirling.Did I hallucinate again?

My face pales in comparison to his, and he takes a step closer to me, reaching out his hand. He hesitates mid-way, as if unsure if he should touch me or not, and I grab his hand, initiating the touch so he won’t feel hesitant.

”I’m going crazy,” I murmur, squeezing my eyes shut with the truth that I’ve known all along.

”Then I will be here. All the way through the end. Until we canget out of this hell.”

As we arrive inside the motel room, Grey makes sure to properly lock the door by putting a chair underneath the handle. He turns to me with a smirk.

”How about a shower? I promise I won’t peek…much.”

The corners of my lips threaten to tug up into a smile of my own, but I’m not in the headspace. ”Not right now,” I murmur.

As if sensing my train of thought, he nods, eyes gleaming with understanding. I just need to be alone, to sort through my thoughts and the lingering panic of emotions that presses heavily on my chest.

When he enters the bathroom, I make my way over to the window, settling down on the larger frame. With my knees pressed to my chin, I dare pull back the curtain, holding my breath as I stare out at the motel around and the forest on the other side. It’s eerily still, with the moon still casting its silvery glow, but there’s no sign of a moving shadow.

I close my eyes, breathing deeply.I’m going fucking mad.

A loud thud reverberates through the walls, causing a yelp to escape my throat, and I fling my head to the side, almost expecting to see Emilio Ricci there, or worse—the Grimhill brothers.

Grey emerges from the bathroom, steam billowing around him like ethereal clouds, giving him an almost mythical presence. He casts me a concerned glance, his towel tied low around his waist, exposing his sculpted V-line.

As I admire the contours of his muscles, the sheer strength and beauty that he is, it’s as if all my dark thoughts dissipate, leaving only a peaceful semblance in their hold. His mere presence silences the demons in my head, slaughtering them as if they have no right to be in my mind.

My mouth waters at the sight of him shirtless, looking so composed, yet at the same time not, with water cascading downhis body. When he sees me staring, a smirk erupts on his lips.

“Don’t be arrogant,” I say, standing up as the shirt I wore underneath the hoodie falls over my hips and reaches high up on my thighs.

He stalks toward me, hand lifting my chin so I stare into his eyes, straining my neck while doing so since he’s so much taller than me. He looks ravenous like this, water dripping enticingly from him, making his appearance mouth-watering. At first, he leans closer to press his lips against mine, feeling out if it’s okay to kiss me or if I will recoil. When I kiss him back, that gentle kiss transforms into something brutal, making sparks fly around within me until I feel like I can get high on the emotion of it.

“We’ve survived so much, Naya, and we can’t let them ruin our lives anymore,” he says, his voice full of vulnerability. “You’re the strongest woman I know, and if there’s someone who can make it through this, it’s you.”

His hands grip my hips possessively before he continues talking, meeting my eyes, and emotions clog my throat. “Now, let me take care of you like the goddess you are.”

This man before me is a fatal car crash that drives me to the point of madness, yet he’s the only thing that feels real in this world. He understands me in ways no one ever has; he protects me like no other.

Pushing me toward the king-sized bed in the middle of the room, he continues kissing me while gripping the back of my head.

The kiss is feral, nothing reminiscent of sweetness, only filled with a toxic need for each other, as if we are each other’s antidotes.