CHAPTER 2

Red’s words hit me like a slap. The tears stopped instantly. I pushed myself up from the bed and ran to the door. My fingers fumbled with the lock. The moment it clicked open, my legs buckled. Red caught me before I fell.

“Skye!”

Zara grabbed me too. They held me between them, arms tight around my shaking body. I started crying again, harder this time. “I’m sorry,” I kept saying. “I’m so sorry.” The words spilled out over and over, broken and wet.

They pulled me close. I felt their warmth, their tears mixing with mine. Zara eased me back after a moment. Her eyes were red, but her voice stayed steady.

“It’s not us you should be apologizing to,” she said. “It’s Zane. He loves you with every piece of himself. You need to go get your man.”

Red nodded. Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks.

“Go, baby,” Red whispered. “Go get your man. We know you love him.”

I looked at them both. My throat burned. “I love him so much. With my heart, my body, my soul. Everything. I love him.”

Zara reached up and wiped the tears from my cheek with her thumb.

“Then go.”

I nodded. I pushed past them and ran. Behind me, Red broke into sobs. I heard Zara murmur something soft to comfort her as I flew down the stairs.

I raced out of the building like I had lost my mind. Because I had. I could not lose him. But deep down I knew the truth: if I married him now, I would only drag him into the same darkness that took my mother. The killers were still out there, and they would come for him.

I jumped back into my car. The keys were still in the ignition. I started the engine and swerved into the street. I was going to get my man tonight, but I would not stop hunting my mother’s killers. Not even for him.

I turned onto the street of the rooftop, driving fast. When I reached the building, no one was around. No crowd. No one standing on the edge. The whole place looked dark and empty.

I got out of the car and ran up the stairs to the rooftop. The space was silent. Dark. No one in sight.

“Zane?” I called out.

No answer.

“Hello?” I called again, louder.

Nothing.

What was happening? This did not look like a suicide scene.

While I tried to make sense of it, my skin prickled. The empty rooftop felt too quiet. My heart raced faster. I turned in a slow circle, eyes searching every shadow. Nothing moved. My hands started shaking. What the hell was going on?

Then strong hands gripped me from behind.

I gasped, but I did not struggle. I eased into it. I knew those hands. I knew that touch. I knew that strength. I had felt it for most of my life.

“Baby… I’m so sorry, my—”

Before I could finish, Zane's mouth crashed against my neck. It was not a kiss. It was a claim. His teeth scraped my skin and he sucked hard, like he wanted to bruise me. Like he could erase what I had said by marking me instead. I melted into him and let out a soft whimper.

I tried to turn and face him. I wanted to wrap my arms around him but he would not let me. He pinned my arms to my sides and held me right where he wanted me. His breath came hot and heavy against my ear.

"Zane..." My voice cracked. "I'm sorry. I..."

He answered with another bite, this one sharper, right below my jaw. Then his hands moved down to my chest. He cupped my breasts through my dress at first, almost gentle. His thumbs brushed over my nipples until they got hard. But the gentleness did not last. He squeezed harder and twisted my nipples until the pain mixed with pleasure and made my pussy throb. I clenched around nothing, aching for him.

He tugged my earlobe between his teeth and sucked on it while his fingers kept kneading my tits. Like he needed to remind both of us that I was still his.

I twisted again, desperate to see his face, but he lifted me off the ground like I weighed nothing. In three steps he set me down on the edge of the rooftop table. Without a word he hooked his fingers into the neckline of my dress and ripped it open in one hard pull. The fabric tore loud. My tits spilled out.

Zane looked down at them, eyes dark. He lowered his head and sucked one nipple into his mouth. His tongue swirled around it before his teeth bit down. I arched my back and moaned.

"Fuck... Zane... they're yours," I gasped. Tears were already filling my eyes. "Bite harder if you need to. Please."

He switched to the other breast and sucked harder. A low groan came from him, the first real sound besides his breathing. I reached for his hair but he grabbed my wrists and pinned them down on the table. The way he held me only made me wetter.

He shoved my dress up around my waist and ripped my thong off with one yank. Then he dropped to his knees, spread my thighs, and buried his face between my legs.

His tongue licked me slow and deep, then sucked hard on my clit. I cried out and my hips jerked but he held my thighs open. He ate me like he was starving. His tongue pushed inside me then flicked and sucked my clit again and again.

"Zane... eat my pussy... yes... just like that..." My voice broke. "I love you. I'm so fucking sorry... don't stop."

The first orgasm hit me fast. My thighs shook hard as I came, squirting against his tongue while I screamed his name. He did not stop. He kept licking, a little gentler for a moment, then built me right back up. The second orgasm tore through me even harder. I sobbed and my back arched off the table as fresh tears ran down my face.

Only then did Zane stand up. He looked me in the eyes for the first time. His stare was stormy and intense. He unbuckled his belt, pulled out his thick cock, and thrust into me in one deep push.

I gasped at how full I suddenly felt. He started fucking me hard and fast on the table. My tits bounced with every thrust and the table started creaking under us.

"Harder," I begged, my voice raw. "Fuck me like you hate me. I deserve it. I love you... God, I love you so much."

He gave it to me. Deep, relentless strokes that made the whole table rock. A low groan finally slipped out of him. Then the legs gave way with a loud crack.

We fell to the ground. I hit the concrete first but his body landed on top of me and took most of the impact. For a second we just stared at each other, both breathless. His cock was still deep inside me. A rough laugh came out of him, surprised and almost angry. Then his mouth crashed down on mine in a messy kiss.

He started moving again right away. He spread my legs wider and fucked me harder on the ground. I wrapped my legs around him and dug my nails into his back. Tears were streaming down my face now.

"I love you," I whispered between moans, saying it over and over as another orgasm started building. "I'm yours. Only yours."

Zane's rhythm started to break. His breath was ragged against my neck. He grabbed my hand and laced our fingers together, the first gentle thing he had done all night. He thrust deep one last time and came hard, filling me with hot cum. He collapsed on top of me, his full weight pinning me down while we both shook.

I held him tight, still full of him, still crying softly into his shoulder. Guilt and love twisted together inside me until I could barely breathe.