“You don’t deserve it,” Roman snarled back.
Roman sank his teeth into Erik’s neck and thrashed, tearing his head from his body. The detached head fell with a sickening thud, the snow swallowing it whole. Roman looked down at the corpse with disgust.
“No one will take her from me again.”
As if nothing had happened, Roman picked up our suitcase with his clean hand and stalked across the clearing to our cabin. Silently, I followed, forcing my eyes ahead. I caught a glimpse of black leather in my peripheral. My insides battled between the urge to vomit and a deep-rooted satisfaction that there was one less disgusting man on this earth to hurt me.
Inside our cabin, Roman wandered off to bathe. I ambled to the kitchenette, absently searching for a drink. My throat felt swollen and dry. Water splashed onto the wooden countertop as I tried to fill the cup I found. It was only then that I realized my hands were shaking.
A while later, the washroom door opened, and Roman’s power twisted around my legs.
He stepped behind me, his hands brushing over my hips. “Are you alright?”
I nodded. “Just jarred.”
“You knew I was a monster before, Estrella. You shouldn’t be surprised.”
I spun to him, incredulity building in my chest. “You aren’t a monster, Roman.”
His gaze caught mine, and my breath was sucked from my lips. He towered over me, exposed except for the towel wrapped around his waist. Jagged coils of blackness spread from the tattoo on his chest and over his shoulders. They curled up his neck and to his black eyesthat were burning into me. He clutched the countertop around me, caging me in.
“I am a monster, Estrella. I’m the ruler of the most bloodthirsty creatures to ever curse this planet. I killed my own father to earn that title, and I have no remorse. I slaughtered an entire house of people to rescue you, and I haven’t lost a moment of sleep over it. I’d happily have burned the whole fucking country to the ground to find you. I’m glad I killed Erik. I could hear his thoughts about hurting you and decided he deserved to die. I’d do it again and again, each time with a fucking smile on my face because I can’t fucking lose you again!”
Panic coiled his muscles tight, his arms flexing around me and his jaw clenched. I understood then. He hadn’t stayed by my side every day only to comfort my fears of being alone. He couldn’t stand to be without me either.
What a pair we made. Our broken, jagged pieces had fallen together and mixed into something undiscernible and dangerous. I reached up and cupped his cheek. “Don’t you understand, Roman? I liked watching you rip his heart out, but I shouldn’t. I shouldn’t love watching you kill for me. My dark matches your dark, and that’s why I love you. Maybe that makes me a monster too.”
Time froze in the space between us. Roman’s eyes widened, and he released a shaky breath. “You love me?”
I nodded. I did love him with every fiber of my being. Not in the sweet way Solaris had dreamed of when we were little girls. No, this was a dark, twisted obsession that spread through me like the sweetest poison.
He understood too. Of course he would—he always did. His eyes ignited with a crazed flame, focused entirely on me. In a breath, his hand twisted into my hair, and his lips crashed against mine. I gripped the sides of his face, digging my nails into his skin.
He tugged me closer, his bare front pressing against me. This wasn’t a soft kiss; our souls were merging through our lips, igniting a flame that threatened to burn down cities in its wake.
He broke away, his breath coming in short pants. “Are you sure? Because there’s no going back from what I’m about to do to you.”
“Yes,” I breathed, my heart racing.
His eyes swirled with lust, doubt, and that self-hatred that never seemed to fade. “If you choose me, I’ll probably kill more. I’d set the whole world ablaze for you.”
“I want you to.”
Even though it was wrong. Even though the rational part of my mind screamed that I shouldn’t desire anything so twisted. The truth was that I wanted it all. I wanted him to pull me into his darkness and consume me whole.
He growled, a sound dark enough to send goosebumps racing up my arms. Before I had a chance to react, he lifted me into his arms and dropped me onto the bed, swiftly removing my clothes and leaving me exposed. I shuddered at the hunger in his eyes.
“Ass in the air, Estrella.”
I gasped at the demand but obeyed. His hand guided me down until my cheek pressed into the mattress. His chest pressed against my back, giving him room to work his hand between my legs. Without warning, he slid a finger inside me. I bucked against him, moaning softly.
“You’re so wet. Were you turned on by me killing for you?”
I shivered but gritted my teeth. “No.”
A rumble ran through him, vibrating up my back in a way that made me gasp. “You’re lying.”
He slid another finger in, pumping steadily. My entire focus homed in on those infernal fingers tormenting me. It wasn’t nearlyenough. I rocked back, but he just laughed, shifting his fingers back and refusing to give me more. His tongue glided up my neck, and a tormented moan escaped me.
