CHAPTER 5LILYThe sky had faded to a pale gray by the time I opened my eyes. My body felt ruined—every muscle aching, skin sensitive, thighs sore and sticky.Jeremiah’s arm lay heavy across my waist, his chest pressed to my back, his breathing slow and even against my neck. For one fragile moment, I pretended this was ordinary. That we’d woken up like this countless times before. That today wasn’t the day I was supposed to marry another man.Then reality came crashing down on me like a brick wall.I shifted, and pain flared between my legs—deep, sharp, impossible to ignore. He had kept his promise. Hours of it. On the balcony, against the glass door, on the bed, on the floor. He’d taken me until my legs gave out, until my voice was gone, until I’d sobbed his name while begging him to stop and never stop all at once.I hated him for it.I loved him for it.His arm tightened as I moved, pulling me closer. His hand slid up, cupping my breast, thumb brushing over the bite mark he’d left
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