Lights Out: A Dark Stalker Rom-Com, page 21
No, I didn’t want to be like my father, and no, I didn’t think I was in danger of turning out like him anymore, but sometimes, I still worried there was a risk of being overtaken by urges that led to me falling down a dark rabbit hole and becoming a monster-adjacent person. Like Dexter or Joe. Someone who did terrible things but found a way to justify them to themselves.
Aly lifted off my chest enough to frame my chin with her hand and turn me back toward her. “I wish you’d barged in.” Her eyes roamed over me, taking in my black fitted tee and the way my dick strained against my jeans, even as we discussed violence. I was worried she’d be repulsed by my arousal, but instead, her lips curled in a wicked grin. “Watching you beat the shit out of him would have been the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.”
“There’s still time to make that happen,” I told her, only half joking.
She sat up in my lap, and I nearly groaned at the way her robe gaped open. As I watched, she reached down and tugged the end of the fuzzy sash barely holding the garment on. She glanced down and kept pulling, torturously slow, biting her lower lip in a way that had my dick straining against my fly.
“Aly,” I said, a hint of warning in my tone. This wasn’t what I came here for. She’d had a terrible night. We should discuss it more and dig deeper into her compulsion to put everyone else above herself.
Her eyes rose to mine, and without breaking my gaze, she tugged the sash free, letting the robe fall open. My mouth watered at the sight of her perfectly rounded tits, the globes just big enough to fill my palms, her nipples a dusky pink several shades darker than her skin, already peaked with desire. She lifted my hands and placed them on her breasts, and it was only with monumental effort that I stopped myself from rolling my thumbs over her nipples.
“We should talk more about what happened tonight,” I said.
She blew out a breath. “I don’t want to talk anymore. I’ve been thinking about it for hours, and I just want to turn my brain off for a while.” She leaned forward, rubbing her tits into my hands. “I want to be bad,” she said. “I want you to make me forget about Brad and all the awful shit I’ve seen. I want you to use my body like your plaything.”
Unable to hold out any longer, I dragged my thumbs across her nipples.
She shivered and ground her hips down, rolling her bare sex over me. “I want to be dark.”
I jerked my eyes up from her tits and found her watching me with an intensity that had my balls tightening. “How dark?”
“Darker than the other night. I know you held yourself back.” She reached a hand between us and palmed my dick through my pants. “Don’t.”
I groaned. “Aly, fuck. Do you know what you’re asking for?”
Christ, did I even know? I’d come here wanting to comfort her, but she’d just set that plan on fire with her declaration. There was so much terrible shit in my head that I couldn’t figure out where the line should be, how far I should drag her into the darkness with me.
“I know I want you,” she said. “And I know I trust you enough to put myself at your mercy.”
I panted as she squeezed me through my jeans, remembering how good her mouth felt wrapped around my cock, the way her tits bounced as I fucked into them. So far, most of what happened between us had been about me and my desires. Here she was, brave enough to trust me with her pleasure, brave enough to tell me what she wanted. The least I could do was deliver.
Calm descended like a second skin. Gone was my desire to tease her. Gone was the man she thought was cute and funny and safe, who hid from the world for fear of recognition. What was left behind was the part of me that stripped off clothes and covered himself in blood so I could horrify and titillate millions of strangers on the internet. This side was all ego. I wanted Aly on her knees for me, humbled and worshipping. I wanted to watch her crawl to me, naked, before kissing my boots and licking the flat of my knife.
She dragged in a breath as the change came over me, watching my eyes as the humanity bled from them and my need for her took hold. Her pupils widened with a mixture of anticipation, lust, and a small hint of fear. Good. She should be afraid. I felt like destroying something.
I wrapped my hands around her thighs and stood. “No safe words.”
She clung to me, sounding breathless when she responded. “No safe words.”
I strode into her room and threw her on the bed. She let out a strangled yelp of surprise as she bounced across the mattress. I left her to grab my bag and ensure Fred was still minding his business in his felt house and hadn’t snuck into her room while we’d been distracted. What I was about to do to his mother, no child should see.
I yanked the knife out as I strode back into the room, throwing my bag to the side and pulling the blade free as I kicked the door shut. We were dropped almost entirely into darkness, but Aly must have sensed the danger in the room with her because she scrambled away as I stalked toward her, fear edging out lust.
I raised the blade high.
She threw herself to the far side of the bed. “What are you –”
I stabbed the knife down.
Straight into the corner of her mattress.
She clapped her hands over her mouth to muffle her horrified scream.
I crooked a finger at her, beckoning her forward.
“Come here, Aly,” I said, wrapping my other hand around the knife handle so there would be no mistaking my intent. “I want to watch you ride it.”
Chapter 15
Aly
My heart beat against my ribs like it was trying to break free from my chest. Holy shit, for a second there, I thought Josh was going to kill me. I needed to remember that this man took me at my word. Online, I’d begged him to break in, and he had. Now I asked for dark, and he was delivering. I should have known it would come at a cost.
I dropped my eyes to the knife handle sticking out of my bed. My beautiful bed that I’d paid so much money for.
“Your new one gets here tomorrow,” Josh said, his voice deliciously low in his continued effort to disguise it.
I jerked my gaze up to his.
He tilted his head, indicating my mattress. “This one is too small for me, so I got you the same frame, headboard, box spring, and mattress in a California king.”
My breath came out in a rush. He called my cat his son. He bought me a bed for both of us as if he planned on spending a lot of time in it together. When I needed him, he came to me, held me while I cried, helped me work through my issues, and listened without judgment when I confessed to wanting to kill someone.
I couldn’t remember the last time anyone had been there for me like he was. Definitely none of the men I’d slept with or dated lately. They’d all bailed when I got busy at work. What had Josh done? Watched me on shift instead, unwilling to let me out of his sight even when I asked for space.
Twice now, he’d assured me this wasn’t just a kinky hookup for him, but he must have known that words only went so far because he was doing a hell of a job showing me, too. It was time I started believing him instead of waiting for the other shoe to drop. Yes, he might end up breaking my heart, but if I didn’t give this a chance, I’d be breaking my own heart instead, and possibly his along with it.
I sat up and slipped my arms free from the bathrobe, letting it fall to the covers behind me. His eyes roamed over my body with feverish intensity, like he didn’t know where to look, so he tried to drink all of me in at once. I would never get sick of being looked at this way: like I was someone to be cherished and lusted after at the same time. It made me feel safe with him, even though he still managed to scare me sometimes.
And yet, the slight fear of never knowing what he would do next only had me wanting him more. It made me want to be brave for him, but I still had a few concerns about his request. The knife handle was long and wide, with a rounded head and a slight undulation more suited to a kitchen knife than a hunting blade. I didn’t think it would hurt me, but that still left the risk of infection or slicing myself open.
He reached behind him and dragged his backpack closer. Keeping his eyes on me, he pulled what looked like a disinfecting packet out of it. “If you think I would ever let something happen to that perfect pussy,” he said, gaze dropping to the apex of my thighs, “you’re not paying attention.” He tore the packet open and tugged out a wipe, rubbing the knife handle down. “Get over here, Aly. I’m losing my patience, and you’re not ready for that to happen yet.”
My inner muscles clenched with anticipation. Oh, fuck, why was the thought of him going off the rails so hot?
I slid from the bed and rounded the side toward him, stopping so close that I had to tilt my head back to meet his eyes. I hoped he saw the same thing I did when I looked at him – desire paired with genuine affection. Yes, I coveted his big, gorgeous body, but his personality turned me on just as much.
“I want to kiss you,” I said, the words tumbling from my mouth as the thought entered my head.
“Then turn around,” he rumbled.
I frowned, an argument on the tip of my tongue – because how could we kiss like that? – but something in his gaze told me this wasn’t the time to play fuck around and find out, so I turned and was left to wonder what he planned when I heard rustling from behind me.
He stepped close, his chest brushing my back, and then dropped what felt like a satin sleep mask over my eyes. My world went black as he tied it in place. Okay, this was fine. I could deal with being blindfolded if it meant I got to kiss hi –
I yelped as he jerked my hands behind my back. A little warning would have been nice, but then again, nice wasn’t what I had asked for, was it? I felt the bite of steel on my right wrist, and, yup, he was handcuffing me. Still fine. No need to panic over the thought that I had never been more vulnerable in my entire life.
Please, God or Buddha or whoever the fuck might be listening, do not let me be wrong about this man, I prayed.
“You’re breathing hard, Aly,” he said, a hint of amusement in his tone as he used the handcuffs to tug me into him. His arousal dug into my lower back, and I had to stop myself from rubbing up against it like I was in heat. “Are you scared?”
“Yeah, but I like it,” I confessed, and speaking those words felt freeing in a way I hadn’t anticipated.
I’d expected to feel guilty for it, dirty, but when Josh let out a tortured groan and wrapped his large hand around my throat, all I felt was horny. Images of what he could do to me while I was trussed up like this flashed through my mind. He could tie me to a bed rail and edge me until I passed out. Or bend me over and fuck me doggy style, using the handcuffs to yank me backward into every brutal thrust.
Yes, please.
He tightened his hold on my neck briefly before letting go and trailing his fingers lower. I held my breath, anticipation coursing through me as his fingertips bumped over my clavicle. With my vision obscured, my other senses came to life. My skin became hypersensitive to his touch. The soft exhales stirring my hair sounded like whispered sighs. We were pressed so close that I felt his heart beating against my back, just as fast as mine, the only sign that he was as affected by this as I was.
As one hand slid down, the other started trailing up, and they met in the middle, cupping my breasts just like they had on the couch. The difference was that there was no hesitation this time, Josh’s thumbs stroking over my nipples, back and forth, off tempo so that each peak was stimulated before I even processed the pleasure radiating from the other. It went straight to my core, making my knees weak and my pulse trip. I wanted him to feel good, too, so I shifted my hands higher and tried to reach for his erection.
He made a tutting sound and tilted his hips back, denying me. “This is about you,” he said, gently pinching my nipples one after the other. “You’re going to sit. I’m going to play.”
I squirmed within his hold. If he kept this up, I’d be sitting sooner than he intended. On the floor at his feet. My legs weren’t going to last much longer against this sweet torture.
One hand left my breast and slid lower, and he was so much taller than me that he had to lean down to reach between my legs, bringing his lips to my ear. I held my breath, waiting for that first delicious stroke, but it didn’t come. Instead, he traced a teasing line down my upper thigh and then sideways, stopping just shy of where I needed him.
“I want to kiss you too,” he said, his lips ghosting over the shell of my ear.
I shivered and turned my head toward him. This wasn’t a great angle for making out, but I was so desperate that I was willing to risk a permanent crick in my neck if that’s what it took.
He let out a low laugh. “Not on your mouth.”
My head spun as he turned me around. I heard a thud like he’d dropped to his knees before me, and, oh, god, if it weren’t for the handcuffs, I would have ripped the mask off to see such a thing. I was left panting as I awaited his next move, and I had a feeling that he was well aware of what he was doing to me and reveled in making me wait for it. It figured that even now, he was trolling me.
Somehow, I managed to keep my mouth shut instead of cursing him or demanding he touch me, and my anticipation only spiraled higher with every passing second. What was he doing? Where was he looking? How much longer did he plan on dragging this out?
I jerked back in surprise when his hand touched my ankle, nearly stumbling because the stupid handcuffs left me off balance. He grabbed my hips, steadying me as his low chuckle echoed through the room.
“You’re a jumpy little thing this morning,” he said, and I could hear the smile in his voice – the bastard.
“You try being trussed up like this,” I shot back.
His fingers dug into my hips, hauling me closer. “If you’re the one doing the trussing, gladly.”
My brief annoyance evaporated. Josh blindfolded and handcuffed. Immediate yes. The possibilities were endless, but the thought that popped into my head and stuck was revenge for the edging he’d given me. I had no idea how to pay him back – I’d never edged anyone before – but I’d always been a good student, and I would spend my time until I got the chance studying up on all the ways to bring a man to the brink of climax and keep him from actually coming.
“I’ll take it from your evil smile that you like the idea,” he said.
I opened my mouth to respond, but he chose that moment to lift my right foot off the ground, and all my focus was suddenly on not tipping over sideways. The hand still on my hip clung harder, helping to keep me upright as he guided my leg over his shoulder. I had to press my heel into his back to find my balance, and it only pulled him closer.
I was just getting used to the position when his warm breath rushed over my sex, and the resulting shiver made my ankle wobble. If not for his other hand returning to steady me, I might have gone over. It hit me then, that if I felt his breath, he’d probably pulled the balaclava off.
“You’re soaked, baby,” he said, his words warm against my skin. “You should see the way you glisten.” I felt the soft brush of a kiss against my upper thigh and nearly moaned. “I thought I’d need to work you up to take the knife, but you got there on your own.”
“You got me here,” I said. “I’ve spent so much time watching your videos that the second I see you, my body is just…ready.”
He leaned his forehead against my lower stomach and let out a tortured sound. “Fuck, Aly. You can’t tell me things like that.”
“Why not?” I asked.
“Because every time I see you, I’m gonna know you’re wet for me,” he rumbled.
“It might be this blindfold, but I don’t see the problem here.”
He huffed a laugh and shook his head, the feel of his hair against my skin confirming the mask was gone. “We have the next two weeks off together. Now that I know that, all I want to do is keep you locked in this house, naked.”
“Smash. Next question.”
He shook beneath my leg as he chuckled, and I tottered again. He felt it and tightened his grip, pulling his forehead from my stomach and dropping a kiss on my raised thigh. “How do you do that?” he asked. “Make me laugh even as I fight the urge to take you to the ground and fuck you?”
Oh, good. So it went both ways. “It must be a talent we share. Also, you don’t have to fight the urge.”
“I do,” he said. “We’ll get there eventually, but I have plans for you before then, and I’m nothing if not patient.”
“A talent we do not share.”
“I see that,” he said, breath hot against my core again.
I felt him take a deep breath, all the warning I had before he let out another low groan and leaned in, fastening his lips around my clit. He swirled his tongue across it and then sucked. I shuddered, and he gripped my hips harder and slid his tongue lower, lapping at my entrance. From the slick sound it made, I was even wetter than I realized, damn near dripping for the man.
“You taste incredible,” he said, slipping his tongue as deep as it would go.
My body tried to clamp down on it involuntarily, seeking resistance, needing something bigger and harder filling it up. He angled it and stroked back out in a way that had my toes curling before he circled my clit again. Then his lips clamped down, and he sucked, and I dug my fingernails into my palms, probably leaving half-moons in my skin from how hard I was squeezing my fists. This was amazing, but I needed more. Shallow stimulation wasn’t going to do it for me right now. He either needed to keep those lips where they were or let me sit on that knife.
I blinked. Yup. I just had that thought.
As if he could sense my need, Josh sucked harder, and I lost the ability to think at all. My head fell back, cuffs digging into my wrists as I strained against them. I wanted to reach out and thread my fingers into his hair, hold him in place against me while I rode his face. Maybe if I used some self-defense moves, I could take him to the ground instead. Unfortunately, with my hands shackled, there were only so many I could perform right now, and none of them ended with me straddling his face.
