LOGINPearl Sleep had turned into something cruel. It came in thin, fractured pieces, but never deep enough to rest in, never light enough to escape from. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw hospital lights, and I heard the doctor’s voice repeating words I didn't want to hear,, over and over again. Deteriorating. Urgent. Deposit.They echoed over and over again, threatening to drive me crazy, but somewhere in the blur of it all, I vaguely remembered Zander carrying me back to bed after I’d cried myself empty in his arms. His hand had moved slowly through my hair, his voice had been low, steady as he muttered sweet nothings into my ear. I hadn’t caught the words, just the promise in them and for a little while, that seemed to work a bit. When I finally dragged myself out of bed the next morning, if it was still morning, my body felt like it weighed twice as much. My head throbbed, my eyes burned and I'd never felt like the world was on my shoulders like I did right now. The space beside
Pearl The buzz had stopped, but the words hadn’t. They burned behind my eyes long after the screen went dark.I lay there for a full minute, staring at the ceiling, Zander’s arm heavy over my waist, his breathing slow and even against the back of my neck,but it still didn't feel real. None of it did. I didn’t wake him. I couldn’t. No, I shouldn't, but in the grand scheme of things, it really wasn't any of his business. This had nothing to do with whoever had it out for me, so in a nutshell, I was all alone. My new reality hit me square in the chest, and I quickly told myself that if I stayed in that bed one second longer, I was going to fall apart right there against his chest.So I moved carefully, lifting his arm and sliding out from under it. The air hit my skin, cool and sobering. My body still ached in places he’d claimed hours ago, but that warmth felt distant now.I grabbed the first clothes I could find, his shirt from the floor, a pair of shorts, and pulled them on with
Pearl I was a boneless heap in his arms, my muscles twitching with the fading echoes of a climax that had rearranged my entire body system. Zander didn't let my feet touch the floor. He kept me hooked around his waist, his hands supporting my weight as he navigated the dark hallway toward the bedroom I'd claimed as mine. My head rested on his shoulder, the scent of him, salt, musk, and pure, unadulterated man, filling my lungs with every ragged breath.Even though my legs were aching, in the best way possible, I wouldn't mind remaining here forever. He didn't take me to the bed first. Instead, he carried me straight into the massive bathroom. A part of me was about to protest, but I shoved whatever I had to say back down my throat. The marble was cold against the soles of my feet when he finally set me down, but the air was quickly replaced by the roar of the shower and the rising plumes of steam.Zander stepped behind me, his body a wall of heat against my back. He didn't say a w
Pearl He didn't give me a chance to breathe, let alone apologize. His hands were like iron manacles on my wrists, pinning them above my head into the cushions of the couch. He moved with a brutal, single minded focus, his body a heavy weight that anchored me to the present. The air in the room seemed to vanish, replaced by the scent of his sweat and the terrifyingly hot aura of his rage."Say my name," he growled, his voice vibrating against my collarbone as he bit down on the sensitive skin there. I let out a sharp cry, half pain and half pleasure, as I felt his teeth graze the bone. "I want to hear you scream it until that other name is burned out of your throat."He didn't give me a chance to breathe before he entered me, not with the reverence from before, but with a deep, punishing thrust that made my toes curl and my breath vanish.With each thrusts, I knew he wasn't just fucking me; he was colonizing my senses, and erasing every memory I had of anyone else."Zander," I gaspe
Pearl I didn't give him a chance to change his mind. The adrenaline was still humming through my veins, but the exhaustion had been replaced by a cold, sharp focus. I wanted him to feel exactly what he’d been putting me through, the lack of control, the desperate need, the sheer weight of someone else’s will. Everything. "Sit," I commanded, my voice steadier than I felt. “Now.” Zander’s eyebrows shot up, a ghost of a smirk playing on his lips, but he did as he was told. He leaned back against the cushions of the couch, his long legs spread, his body still glistening and beautiful in the low light. He looked like a king who had voluntarily stepped off his throne for me and boy did I take him all in. He was dangerously sexy, and I had a love hate relationship with his much he was turning me on, and he didn't even have to try too much. I crawled over him, my skin dragging against his, until I was straddling his lap. I didn't sink down onto him yet, even though I could feel him h
Pearl The silence that followed my climax was brief, butbheavy with the scent of sex and the electric charge of what was coming next. Zander didn't give me time to recover. He stood up, his breathing ragged, and began stripping with a brutal, efficient speed. I watched, my vision still slightly blurred, as he shed his clothes. His body was a map of hard muscle and old scars, a silhouette of raw power in the dim light. I also didn't miss the black ink swirled around his chest, and for a quick second, I allowed myself imagine a scenario where I was asking him about each one of them. Seeing him like this, completely unmasked and lethal, made my pulse spike with a different kind of fear. The kind that felt like a craving.."Look at me, Pearl," he commanded, his voice a low, dangerous rumble.He didn't wait for an answer. He stepped back into the V of my thighs, his hands anchoring on my hips as he dragged me to the very edge of the couch. I had to wrap my legs around his waist just t
Pearl I didn’t turn the light on, and while it probably wasn't a big deal to someone else, it was to me. I didn’t check my phone again either. I told myself the reason why because it wasn't necessary, but deep down, that tiny voice at the back of my head just wouldn't let me pretend like fear w
Pearl The hospital discharged me with a paper bracelet still biting into my wrist and a list of instructions that read more like suggestions than safeguards. Drink fluids, rest, and return if symptoms worsen appeared on the list more times than I could count, and believe me when I said I was alr
Zander The air outside the hospital tasted like disinfectant and rain, sharp enough to scrape the back of my throat raw. Usually, I wouldn't care about things like this, but right now, I didn't so much as have a choice. The damned sir followed me everywhere I went, and honestly, I was too stru
Pearl I learned the shape of the house by sound, and when I said that wasn't an ideal way to live, you just had to believe me. Like that wasn't enough, I learned more about the house by the way the floorboard near the hallway clicked when Vienna crossed it, by the soft whine the fridge made ev







