Torn between fear and lust, our Iliana craves a taste of forbidden desire…
Iliana’s POV:Before I opened my eyes, the insistent buzzing of my phone tugged me from sleep. I stretched my body with a loud yawn, spine cracking, legs stiff.Another buzz.Eyes still clamped shut, I rolled over lazily, palms tapping blindly across the mattress as I searched my phone in between the sheets.As soon as my fingers touched the cold, hard surface, I gripped it tighter and dragged the phone toward me.My eyes fluttered open to a lit screen as another text rolled in. I blinked.5 missed calls and 9 messages. All from Thea.Rubbing my eyes, I tapped on the screen and started skimming through the messages.‘Yo bro, where are you?’‘Why aren’t you in the class yet?’‘Do NOT tell me you’re still snuggled up in bed while I’m suffering through this godforsaken lecture.’‘Oh God, don’t tell me your stalker has kidnapped you.’‘Do I need to alert the authorities?’‘Boring update: class has started.’‘Wait…was our Professor always this attractive, or am I just ovulating?’‘I guess
Iliana’s POV:I let out a loud gasp as he moved like a flash of lightning.Cloaked in all black. Masked. Unmistakable.My stalker.Wrapped in smoke and shadow, he screamed danger. My mind told me to run away but my body…it betrayed me as I leaned into him instead.He moved like a thunder, fast and jarring. My eyes widened as his hand shot upward and seized the back of my neck.Fingers digging into my flesh, he twirled me around, pressed my back against his front, and clasped his fingers around my throat.Through the mirror, I saw him...towering over me like an angel of death. Beautiful, hot angel of death, indeed. The one who didn’t even need to ask to take my soul away. I would gladly hand it over to him.A cold shiver ran down my spine as he brought his mouth to my ear and growled, “You have been a bad girl tonight." His voice, deep and rough, cascaded around me like dark velvet.And then his voice dropped to a low, feral whisper, “Letting another man touch you? Bad, bad move.”My b
Iliana’s POV: The weekend passed by in a blurry haze. I stayed buried in my bed most of the time and only got out for a shower or food. As for my stalker…there was silence from him. He wasn’t lingering in the shadows. I didn’t feel eyes on me. There were no break-ins. Everything seemed too quiet...almost like normal. And that should be reason enough for peace and harmony in my life, but my mind was anything but. Every time I closed my eyes, THE KISS would flash behind my eyelids. The forbidden, searing, and passionate kiss. And then I’d keep thinking about how perfectly his lips moved against mine, and then my body would get all heated up. It was a continuous loop, and I was stuck in that. For once, I was glad that it was finally Monday. I needed every ounce of distraction I could get to clear my head of the lusty fog I was spiralling into. Heaving myself out of bed, I hopped into the shower and stood under the cold stream of water when his words played in my mind for the hundr
Iliana's POV:The first thing I registered was the piercing headache. It was so severe that it felt like someone was pounding a hammer straight into my skull. The second was the taste, bitter and foul on my tongue.I peeked one eye open, only to snap it shut again. The sunlight filtering through the window was blinding and too bright to look at.Letting out a loud groan, I rolled over, and the sudden movement made my head spin. I rubbed my temples, trying to soothe the ache, when it suddenly hit me.With a deep frown, my gaze shifted from my clothes to the comforter pulled over me to the bed I was in to the familiar walls of my room.Home?I blinked several times. How did I get here? What happened last night?I bolted upright on the bed, wincing as nausea twisted in my gut. With my gaze fixated on the wall in front of me, I put pressure on my mind to retrieve the foggy memories of last night.And then, all of a sudden, my breath caught in my throat as the events of the last night star
Maddox’s POV:Her body was shutting down. I could feel it from the way her footsteps waggered, her skin trembled, and her eyes rolled back in their sockets – all in the same heartbeat.And then it happened, her eyelids drooped as her legs finally gave out.I lunged forward and wrapped my arm around her waist, catching her just before her knees could hit the floor hard enough to leave bruises.“Iliana,” I called her name dreadfully, but she remained unresponsive, collapsed in my arms.My pulse thundered in my arms as I realized how pale she had gotten. Fear–so raw, so foreign–gathered at the base of my spine.I’d witnessed wolves bleed out in warzones, I’d held countless dead bodies, hell, I’d even watched life seeping out of my father, but none of that ever clenched my chest the way this moment did.Wheels churned in my mind at full speed. Yes, she’d drunk a lot of alcohol tonight, but not enough to have this much effect. And then it finally hit me. That bastard, that fucking dipshit,
Iliana’s POV:He stopped behind me, and my knuckles turned white with the force with which I was gripping the counter to keep myself from collapsing.He didn’t move. Didn’t speak. Just stood there, eyes locked on me through the mirror.For the first time ever, he wasn’t wearing a mask over his face. I blinked, trying to focus, but my vision stayed blurred—spiked drink, adrenaline, and fear all muddled together.Still, I saw the way his chest heaved up and down with each labored breath. My stomach twisted when my eyes dropped to his tightly coiled fists at his sides.And then, he started moving closer until his front brushed against my back.His breath hit the nape of my neck, scorching and ragged, as he seethed with rage, “Why?”His voice was low, rough, and laced with something that sent a chill down my spine.My breath caught in my throat, and my heartbeat became a chaotic mess in my ribcage.He stepped closer, caging me between the counter and his body. All of a sudden, a loud gasp