He was supposed to heal quietly… not fall for his savior. After barely surviving a bullet to the chest and the betrayal of the only person he thought loved him, Jeremiah wanted nothing more than to disappear and mend in silence and forget. But then Everett Blackthorne shows up. Sharp-eyed, too intense… and too interested. Unsettling Jeremiah in all the wrong ways and making him feel things he doesn’t understand and is too afraid to admit. When dark secrets start surfacing, their connection becomes dangerous, not just for their hearts, but for their lives. Jeremiah has already survived hell once. But this time, it’s not just his past chasing him. It’s something older. Something darker. And it won’t stop until it drags him back.
더 보기Jeremiah froze. The unmistakable sound of skin slapping against skin and breathy moans echoed through his girlfriend's room. His heart dropped as he stood, paralysed, unable to turn away. They were so into the pleasure that they didn't even notice his presence.
“Becca…,” Jeremiah choked out and silence fell instantly. “Who the fuck is that?” the man beneath Becca growled, his gaze locking onto Jeremiah first. Becca whipped her head around, eyes wide with horror. "Oh my God, Jeremiah," she scrambled off the man’s lap, grabbing a blanket to shield her body. “Why are you here? I thought you said you would be going to the library first!” she gasped “So this is why you refused to come with me?”Jeremiah didn’t move. His voice cracked through a sob. "How could you do this to me?" “Oh, is that the boyfriend?” the stranger scoffed, rising from the bed, completely naked. He reached for Becca, pulling her possessively against him. "It's nice to finally meet you, Becca has told me a lot about you." “Franco, don't,” Becca protested, struggling in his hold. “Jerry, please I…I can explain.” “Explain?” Franco sneered. “What else is left to explain?” Jeremiah watched in despair as Franco kissed Becca’s lips like nothing was wrong. “How could you do this to me, Becca? How long has this been going on?” Jeremiah whispered, voice trembling. “Did the last two years mean nothing?” Becca’s eyes filled with tears. “I didn’t want it to end like this… but you wouldn't touch me and I_,” “So you cheated?” Jeremiah laughed bitterly. “You should’ve just broken up with me.” “No!” Becca gasped, “I loved you. I still love you, Jerry.” “Great way of showing it,” Jeremiah spat, shaking his head. With one last look at his girlfriend_ no ex-girlfriend, he turned to walk away. “Wait, Jeremiah! Don't go,” Becca cried, lunging for his arm. “Please, I’m sorry. Let's talk.” “What the hell, Becca? What do you think you're doing?” Franco snapped, storming forward. “Didn’t you promise to break up with him?” “Stay out of it, Franco!” Becca shouted. Jeremiah paused when he heard her scream. He turned sharply, eyes widening at the sight of Franco with his hand in Becca's hair, yanking her backwards. “You’re hurting her,” Jeremiah gasped shockingly. “You think you can play games with me, Rebecca?” Franco growled. “Didn’t you say you loved me?” Becca sobbed, clawing at his hand. “Let me go! You’re hurting me!” Jeremiah’s body trembled. His breath hitched painfully. “What are you doing? You're going to hurt her, let her go Stop hurting her.” Franco sneered at him. “This is the wimp you want to be with? Bet he doesn’t even know how to work his dick.” Becca’s sobs grew louder as Jeremiah’s breath turned into shallow gasps. “Jeremiah, breathe!” she pleaded. “Sweetheart, I’m fine. Just breathe.” The fact that Becca was ignoring him only enraged Franco more. He released her with a shove and stormed toward Jeremiah, grabbing him by the collar and slamming him into the wooden door. Jeremiah yelped in pain, tears falling down his face instantly. “D…don’t touch me!” “Pathetic. You’re nothing,” Franco spat in his face. “She’s only with you out of pity. No one could ever want someone like you.” Jeremiah shuddered as Frank's stinky breath fanned over his face. He wanted to disappear. To curl into himself and vanish. He didn't like how close Frank was or the feel of his body against his. It made him remember. Many memories… ones he had desperately tried so hard to bury were surfacing. “Get your filthy hands off him!” Becca screamed, shoving Franco away. Jeremiah collapsed, trembling. She caught him, cradling him gently. “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’ve got you.” “Yo…you said it would be us against the world,” Jeremiah sobbed, pulling away from her, “How could you do this to me?” Becca brushed his curls from his face, “I’m an idiot... I never wanted to hurt you, but you never touch me, and I thought_,” she trailed off, "Please forgive me." Forgive? The word rang uselessly in his ears. How could he possibly forgive this? “I love you, Jerry,” she whispered. “He took advantage of my confusion. Please believe me, I never meant to.” Franco moved again this time picking a gun from the stand with an irritated look. “Franco, don’t.” Becca gasped, blood draining from her face. “Then come to me,” Franco said with a smirk. “Maybe I’ll forget the whole mess.” Becca glanced between Jeremiah and the weapon pointed their way. “Promise me you won't hurt him.” “I really don’t like repeating myself,” Franco warned. Jeremiah gulped, eyes darting to the exit. He needed to run but his body wouldn’t move. He needed to help Becca somehow. Becca stepped toward Franco, trembling. “Please. I will do whatever you want just leave him alone.” “Good,” Franco said smugly, pulling her close. “Now be a good girl and kiss me.” With eyes full of terror, Becca pressed her lips against his, whimpering into his mouth. Franco grinned, his hand tightening around her waist. “You should never have messed with me,” he whispered into her mouth. What happened next felt like a dream. Everything except the pain. Jeremiah clutched his chest. Something burned. He looked down, confused, then horrified, seeing something warm soak through his shirt. Blood. “Jeremiah!” Becca screamed, trying to break free. “No! Please, let me go!” Franco laughed darkly, holding her in place. “Consider it a lesson.” Without warning, he kicked Jeremiah’s body through the open doorway and slammed the door behind him. Jeremiah crashed against the wall, clenching his chest. He was going to die. He never thought things were going to end like this for him. Everything blurred out. His ears were stinging. Was this really the end for him? Jeremiah thought sadly and then darkness.Jeremiah’s eyes fluttered open, his hurting eyes assaulted by the harsh sunlight streaming through the window.A deep, throbbing pain pulsed in his chest, dragging a quiet groan from his lips. The sharp ache reminded him that yesterday wasn’t just some twisted nightmare.His ex-girlfriend had cheated. And her crazed lover had shot him. Yet he was still alive. Somehow.Voices filtered through the door, low and animated and he couldn’t make out the words. Jeremiah's memory of what happened was foggy at best, but one thing stood out crystal clear, piercing blue eyes. The one who claimed to be Xander’s brother. The one who’d hovered over him with too many questions and an intrusive intensity.Was he still here?Jeremiah swallowed hard, slipping out of the room and into the hallway. It wasn't hard to spot Xander in the living room, but his focus was fixed on the broad man who made Xander's 5’8” frame look almost childlike in comparison. The man's dark hair was slicked back out of his face
“What the hell did you do?” Xander snapped the moment Everett slammed the door shut.“What do you mean?” Everett echoed, eyes flaring. “What makes you think it's my fault?”“Because I know you,” Xander's eyes narrowed, folding his arms. “And I know Jeremiah. Whatever happened had to be your doing.”Everett scoffed. “All I did was ask questions. Since when is that a crime?”Xander’s gaze flicked toward Jeremiah’s closed door. “What kind of questions?”Everett growled, defensive now. “I just... I was curious to know I didn’t expect him to panic.”“Of course he panicked, you idiot,” Xander hissed. “You’re a stranger. You can’t just show up demanding he begin trauma dumping.”Everett’s fists clenched. “What was I supposed to do? Pretend I didn’t just find my mate covered in scars and choking on his own blood?”Silence. A long one.“What?” Xander gasped. “He’s human and your mate, he already died, remember?”“Thanks, bro. I couldn’t tell,” Everett sassed, rubbing a hand over his face. Xan
Jeremiah was trapped in a nightmare.Again.Reliving every horror he longed to forget, every memory he buried deep but never truly escaped.He saw himself. The boy he used to be. The boy who died the day his father shut the door quietly, like he was nothing more than an inconvenience. A mistake.He kept asking himself what he had done wrong to deserve abandonment. Why did his father dispose of him like he was a useless pair of mismatched socks? Home had never been a place of warmth for him. It was only filled with cold memories. And pain.When he pleaded for help, desperate and terrified, the adults just brushed him off and always chose to look the other way. No one had ever done anything for him. No one noticed when the shadows swallowed him whole. Or maybe they did. Maybe they just didn’t care.No one had tried to stop the monster from taking him. The monster with dead eyes. The one who spoke in growls and carved suffering into his skin. The man who shattered him. No one tried to sa
Xander Blackthorne paused the music, nose wrinkling as the sharp scent of blood pierced the air. It was thick and fresh, someone was hurt and losing a lot of blood, and from the faint groaning outside, the fucker was dying right at his doorstep.He muted the movie and stood up reluctantly. Thankfully, Jeremiah wasn’t home, his sensitive roommate would’ve lost it if he saw anything too gory.Peeking through the window first, Xander’s eyes narrowed. A body was crumpled beside the dumpster. He cracked open the door cautiously, the metallic scent intensifying. But then something else hit him_familiar beneath the blood.His breath caught.“Jeremiah? Oh fuck_,”He bolted forward, his chest constricted as he turned the body gently. “Jerry,” Xander whispered, shaking hands hovering over the gaping wound in his friend’s chest. He fumbled for a pulse. Relief hit him like a wave when Jeremiah whimpered softly.“I’m going to lift you now,” Without hesitation, Xander scooped Jeremiah into his arm
Jeremiah froze. The unmistakable sound of skin slapping against skin and breathy moans echoed through his girlfriend's room. His heart dropped as he stood, paralysed, unable to turn away. They were so into the pleasure that they didn't even notice his presence. “Becca…,” Jeremiah choked out and silence fell instantly. “Who the fuck is that?” the man beneath Becca growled, his gaze locking onto Jeremiah first. Becca whipped her head around, eyes wide with horror. "Oh my God, Jeremiah," she scrambled off the man’s lap, grabbing a blanket to shield her body. “Why are you here? I thought you said you would be going to the library first!” she gasped “So this is why you refused to come with me?”Jeremiah didn’t move. His voice cracked through a sob. "How could you do this to me?" “Oh, is that the boyfriend?” the stranger scoffed, rising from the bed, completely naked. He reached for Becca, pulling her possessively against him. "It's nice to finally meet you, Becca has told me a lot abou
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