Tainting Her Innocence

Should I Be Afraid?

Aniley

I woke up in a dark room slowly rising from the warm bed I was laying on. I pressed my hand against my head to ease the pounding in my skull. Not only did my head hurt like hell, but my muscles weren't feeling their best either. I sat still for a minute, trying to remember why I would be in my current situation.

Gradually, the scenes replayed in my head, one by one.

I remembered Jonathan dropping me off, and all the unwanted attention that followed. I remembered how I met, or more like stumbled into, an amazingly beautiful man, and his mesmerizing eyes.

But the one thing I was struggling to recollect was the rest of the day. When I tried to recall what had happened between then and now, I came up blank. My frustration grew, as did my fear. The sudden memory loss was unnerving.

The panic was building up inside me, my pain long forgotten as I stumbled to get out of the bed. Before my feet could hit the floor, a strong arm snaked its way around my waist, pulling me back down onto the bed.
I became stiff as a board, waiting for a knife to stab its way to my stomach, or for a string to be wrapped around my neck to strangle the life out of me, but none of that ever came. My back was pressed against a warm chest that rumbled as the man spoke behind me.

"Where were you going, mate?" He said with the same husky voice I heard in the hallway.

Oh my god I was kidnapped by Hot Hallway Guy. My mind was reeling with thoughts of as to why I was brought to be with him, in his bed. And I didn't like the scenarios I caught.

"Are you trying to run from me again?"

Almost as if a switch had been hit, my memories flooded back like a dam bursting.

I trembled as I remembered the burning in my lungs from trying to escape a nightmare come to life. In the midst of my inner turmoil my body was being maneuvered so that my face was against the stranger's chest.

The darkness swallowed up almost everything surrounding us except one thing.

His eyes.

His eyes glowed, and I mean they literally glowed, like two golden fireflies in the dark of night.

Although they were strikingly beautiful, it was hard trying to level the unevenness in my breath as I stared.

The panic was building again and I needed to leave.

No matter how hard I hit his chest and wiggled in his tight embrace, he still kept his arm around my waist. In all of my effort to pull away he had been quiet and calm. As if I hadn't been affecting him in any way what-so-ever.

I came to the conclusion that if I was gonna get out then I would have to conjure up a plan. My struggling ceased but the unevenness in my breath was still present.

The same eyes before me were the same eyes on the beast that had chased me. It wasn't hard to put two and two together. Call it paranoia, or straight insanity, but I could feel it in my gut that the beast and man were somehow one.

The hair on my arms rose from fear, yet I yearned not to delve into the coldness of the unknown. Instead I wanted to focus on the warmth that enveloped me in its sturdy arms. 

He pulled us to a sitting position on the bed. Haunting eyes the only thing visible in the dark. I looked away from them, afraid of a darker power that lurked behind the glowing irises.

"What's wrong? Are you hurt?" If I didn't know any better I'd suspected that he sounded concerned. But that's not right. Right? After a small debate with myself, I decided with not.

"Let go of me," I said quietly.

"I can't."

What the hell does that mean?

"I need space," I tell him quietly.

"I don't want to give you any," his voice was laced with amusement as the words left his lips.

We sat quietly, neither one of us speaking until I couldn't bear the silence.

"I know what you are," I said with a quiver to my voice.

"And what is that exactly?" I felt him lean in closer, as his breath gently fanned my face.

"A monster," I replied, tensing up at his closeness. He didn't say anything but he simply kept his distance. 

I had never wanted a flashlight more in my life than at that moment. 

There was a need to see his features, to see how he reacted to my words. If he was angry, hurt, angry, surprised, and most importantly if he was angry.

I wasn't sure if the urge to not upset him stemmed from my fear of getting hurt...or fear of hurting him.

It was so...weird.

While I was thinking, he moved closer. If that was possible.

Our noses touched as his hands gripped tighter around my waist. My heartbeat sped at a dangerously fast rate. It was pounding so hard against my chest that I was sure he could count the beats.

I pulled my head back and put my hands against his chest, trying to create at least a little space between our bodies because it was already way past the point of overwhelming.

Then he did the unexpected, really out of the blue.

He growled. A low growl that rumbled from his chest, and my spine tingled from its thunder.

Was I attracted or terrified of this man?

I couldn't answer my own question as his hand quickly found its way to the back of my neck, and pulled me forward. A surprised gasp left my mouth as he put his face to the crook of my neck. His nose and lips gently leaving goosebumps in their wake as he deeply inhaled, making my body shiver like a leaf.

Whatever logic and self control I had were thrown out of the window once his tongue darted out against my heated skin. My mind blank as he slowly brought his lips to my neck, kissed a trail from the top of my collar bone, to the tip of my chin. Then gently, I felt his lips brush against mine, expecting.

It was then that I grabbed onto a fleeting moment of clarity as I tried to pull my head back. But it was too late, his hand kept me restrained.

Suddenly his lips met mine in a passionate lock, stealing my first kiss.