The Sweetest Sting

10

WARNING:  This is 28 pages (12,522 words) of mostly-smut. I could have made it much, much shorter, but I didn't. Anyway,  If you've made it this far into the story... you're a trooper and you deserve this. Rora deserves it too. 

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Rora wrapped her arms around herself, unsure what to do or say. Everything was crashing down around her. She'd been a monster. She'd been Amelia, going after someone she's not even sure she liked that much. Because he'd been flattering. Because he made her feel special. And if he chose her, it would have made her feel like a girl worth holding on to.

Tears clogged her throat and the room became tight, the walls pushing in. She needed air. Without a word, she clutched the towel wrapped around her and rushed past Marshall and Lewie. Blindly, she stumbled to the terrace.

The night had grown colder and her still-damp skin burned from the chill. Maybe that was what she needed. There had been a fire inside of her but now there were ashes. Warmth never belonged there. Because Amelia made the rules. She shaped reality. Always had. And she'd cast Rora as the ice queen and cursed her to a life where everything she reached for froze and crumbled beneath her touch.

The door creaked behind her. "I'm sorry, darling." Marshall's voice was rough, his words slow and even. "I wanted Ozzy to be honest, but I didn't plan for it to happen like that."

She nodded but didn't turn. "It's fine."

"No, it isn't." His steps were cautious, as if he were approaching a feral kitten and feared he'd scare it away. With shockingly gentle hands, he turned her to face him. His eyes were soft as he ran his thumb beneath her lashes, where tears had gathered but hadn't fallen. "Don't cry over my brother. He's an idiot."

"I'm not crying over him." A part of her wanted to pull away but she couldn't reject the only person who'd been honest with her. Who never lied about what he wanted and never wavered in that desire. "It's not that. I–I..." she couldn't find the words. "Why am I always...never...I just–" she took a pained breath. "I just want to be the only one for once. Just me. Why can't it be just me?" The words ripped from her soul, the question she'd held there finally free.

He looked down at her, his brow furrowed. Then without a word, he shoved her against the side wall. There was no preamble, no teasing. He kissed her, deep and rough. She moaned against his demanding mouth as he gripped her braids. When he pulled back, she wanted to scream with frustration.

"Since I stepped foot in this place," he said. "You've been the only one I wanted. But I'm not the type to give you more than this." His grip tightened in her hair and he kissed her again. "There's something about you. You make me wish I could commit to just one girl. But I can't." His eyes glittered with a pain she didn't fully understand. Before she could react, he spun her around, her back to his chest so she was facing the doorway, where Lewie stood frozen. "He can, though."

Lewie couldn't seem to settle on an emotion. It was like he felt everything at once. But he didn't move. She watched him warily, unsure what was happening. It was all a jumble of pain and heartache and she couldn't latch onto what Marshall was playing at. All she knew was that she wanted Lewie to move. To do something. Say something.

Behind her, Marshall kissed and gently bit the side of her neck, making her whimper. "She needs this," he said, his voice rough as sandpaper.

Lewie swallowed and did nothing. God, she was so tired of men who did nothing.

"Just leave." She hated the way her voice trembled. "Go find Amelia and make her promises you can't keep."

That seemed to snap him out of his inertia. He took a few steps closer. "I know that situation looked bad, but I swear nothing was going to happen. Amelia fed me a bunch of shite about you and Ozzy, and then started crying and climbed on top of me. I didn't–I wouldn't ever do that to you. That's not who I am."