Page 42 of Haven

I got to a red light and pulled out my phone. My nerves were a little less shot, but my anxiety was still running rampant. There were multiple messages and missed calls from Widow, Vesper, and my sister, but I didn’t want to deal with any of them. They were worried someone was going to take me and kill me, or worse, but I didn’t have it in me to care. Not right now, anyway.

VESPER

Mariposa, we need you to come back home. We want you safe

CINDER

Get home now.

Please.

WIDOW

You need to come home, phoenix.

Phoenix. I scoffed at the nickname. She didn’t get to use that anymore. I locked my phone, took a deep breath, and put my helmet back on. There was only one place I wanted to go to right now, and that was to my red-headed vixen, enemy territory be damned.

My mind was racing as I entered Crestview, but I didn't care. I wanted only her, and I was going to have her. A few hours of orgasms would distract me long enough from the issues at hand. I didn’t want to deal with reality right then, but I knew tomorrow I had to face the fact that someone from my past was back.

Hades wasn’t home when I pulled up to her doorstep, but I had no other plans, so I sat at her entrance, waiting. This was a dangerous game. I still didn’t know anything about the black Jeep from my last endeavor. When I went to Hades’s last time, I didn’t see them again, but that didn’t prove anything. It might’ve been a coincidence that someone was waiting for me to leave, or maybe they wanted to watch a show.

A car door slammed, and I jumped up. Her eyes lit up when she saw me. “Rory? What ar—” I wrapped my hand around her slender throat and pulled her to me, slamming my lips to hers in a scorching kiss. Holy hell. She shouldn’t make me feel this alive.

“Stop talking and fuck me, baby.”

She listened beautifully. Hades pushed her door open, only to kick it shut just as fast as she pulled at my clothes, her touch frenzied. She got annoyed with my shirt and ripped it, which would suck when I left, but I’d worry about that later. Her hands slid up my torso, groping my bra-covered breasts, and she deepened the kiss. The world disappeared, a collision of hunger enveloping the two of us as our bodies molded together. I was lost in her taste, craving the pleasure she could give me, needing her to calm the storm in my mind. I didn’t like the way she made my chest feel, but goddamn did I love the way she made my body react to her, to her touch.

Hades pulled away, fingers tracing the edge of my jaw. I wanted more. My fingers skimmed beneath her shirt, pushing it up her body until it was off her shoulders, then fumbled with the button of her leather pants. I could stare at her ass in leather all day, but I preferred her naked. I growled in frustration when her pants didn't come off fast enough.

“Baby, what’s wrong?”

“No talking. Just fucking.” She remained silent, but I could see the lingering hurt in her eyes. I couldn’t handle any more pity or another person being concerned about me.

She pushed me towards her couch, tossing me onto it. Hades straddled my hips and grasped my hands, pinning them above my head. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” I grumbled, annoyance lacing my tongue. I wanted her to fuck me, not talk to me.

Her eyes narrowed on me. She wasn’t pleased with me, but I didn’t give two flying fucks. I came here for one thing, damnit. “That’s a bold-faced lie. I can tell when people are lyin’.”

“Hades,” I hissed, bucking my hips. “I didn’t come here to talk.”

She cocked her head to the side, waiting for an answer. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

I wiggled, trying to get away from her, but she had me in a vise. “If you won’t fuck me, I’ll go somewhere else.”

“You won’t make it out the door. Talk to me.”

Thirty-Five

Hades

Rory was miles away as I watched the fight in her eyes dissipate. She came here wanting a distraction, but I refused to continue with her if she wasn’t fully here with me. At first I was taken aback by seeing her at my place, but as I got my head on straight, I stopped everything. Rory thought she wanted sex, but she needed an escape. I wanted to be her strength, just not like that.

“I’m right here when you’re ready to talk.” It was a simple line. I would still be here regardless, whether she was or not.

“I need something to make it stop,” she whispered.

“Rory, I am not touching you when you are in this state. You deserve more than that.” I grabbed her hand, giving her that reassurance. “I’m not going to be a way for you to avoid the pain, but I will be here to help you. Just talk to me. It won’t change anything.”