Delilah
I hear the echo of the library doors slam, and I rip my gaze from my book.
“Jesus,” Christy jumps, startled by the noise.
“Right? Who enters a library like that?” her boyfriend, Caleb, leans his elbows on the counter and watches the person in question.
I turn my head, and my eyes widen when I see Carmine coming straight toward me. Rage doesn’t even begin to describe the look on his face. His chin is tilted down, and his dark eyes are pools of toxic poison as he stares me down.
“What’s wrong?” Ethan, my friend since freshmen year, places his arm on my chair, which makes it appear that his arm is wrapped around me.
Carmine’s eyes slide to Ethan, and I watch the murderous veil drape across his face. I don’t know what gets into me, but I run without looking at any of my friends. I hurry through the library, dodging people in the aisle grazing the bookshelves.
“Sorry, I’m sorry,” I say after running into someone, knocking the books right out of their arms. I stumble, righting myself before I crash into a bookshelf.
“What the hell?” Another person says as I duck right before bowling over another guy.
I don’t say anything. I’m too worried about Carmine finding me. I look over my shoulder and don’t see him, but people are giving me odd stares. When I get to the staircase, I hurry down where most people don’t go because it’s darker and the books are older and less interesting.
“Excuse me. Excuse me, sorry.” I wiggle my way through a couple. The guy had her back against the wall, his hand above her head, leaning down and trying to charm the pants off her.
When I get to the basement, a sea of books becomes the only thing I see. The lights flicker. The smell of musty old books assaults my senses. I hurry down the main aisle, finding an empty row.
I dip to the right, pressing my back against the shelf, and take a deep breath. It’s hot. Sweat sheens my forehead. I sidestep to the left, sinking further into the darkness of the aisle, so he can’t find me.
Placing my hand against my chest, I try to settle the rapid thud of my heart thumping against my breastbone. My chest heaves from running, and the more I try to calm down, the more dust tickles my nose. A burning begins, but I try to hold the sneeze in. My eyes water. I cover my face with my arm and muffle the sneeze the best I can.
Then listen for any sign that Carmine is here and if he heard me.
Silence.
I let out slow breath, feeling ridiculous for running away from him. I should have confronted Carmine, but if there’s one thing I know about him, it’s that he is possessive. He has taken this agreement seriously, to the extreme.
“Bless you, Sweetling.”
A scream catches in my throat when one hand comes from behind me, through the shelf, and wraps around my mouth. I try to pull away from him, even with my hands against his, but he’s too strong. Books upon books clatter to the floor at my feet as he drags me to the end of the row.
When we are there, he lets my mouth go for less than a second, and I take that second to try to run. He grabs my shoulder and pushes me against the shelf.
His eyes get lost in the shadows surrounding us, and he stays quiet. Only our raping breaths make any sound. Carmine leans forward, one hand gripping the middle shelf and his right hand grabbing the shelf on the other side of me. Carmine has me caged in.
He presses his body against mine, and the memory of him pulling me close this morning lives in my mind. I’m reminded of what’s underneath the pristine clothes.
And I was right-that purple blazer on him looks fantastic.
The weight of his body shouldn’t feel so good, right and safe. The last thing I should feel is safe with a man, a killer, such as Carmine.
The heat of him, God, it’s like a drug.
One hand drifts up my body slowly-painfully, achingly slow. The callouses of his fingers scratch against my skin. He places his hand on the side of my neck, wrapping his fingers around my nape. His thumb pressed against the middle of my throat. I feel the pressure as I swallow. He leans in, his head tilting to the side. I part my lips, ready for his kiss.
“You. Left.” The words are bitter as they are bitten out.
“You wouldn’t have let me come otherwise.”
His knee presses between my legs, and his thumb rubs back and forth over my bottom lip.
“Where you go, I go,” he states, staring at my mouth and completely ignoring what I have to say.
I lick my lips. The tension between us stretches and twists, just waiting to snap.
“You wouldn’t have let me come to school, and you know it,” I muster up the courage to say. “And I’ll remind you every chance I get that while you might own my body, you do not own my mind.” I think of the day when the contract will end, and we will be able to go our separate ways. “One day, I won’t need you.”
He growls, tightening his hand around my throat.
But I continue. “I’ll be damn if I’m left with nothing because of you. I’ll be somebody other than the woman you owned. I’m more than that.”
I press my hands against his chest and attempt to shove him away.
“Is everything okay here?”
We turn our heads to see my friend, Ethan standing at the end of the aisle. His arms are crossed, showing his muscles. He’s a big guy, in shape, and on the football team. I’ve always known he has had a thing for me, but I don’t return his feelings. He’s my friend, and I want to keep it that way.