Page 88 of Good Girls Beg

He lifted his gaze, staring at me like a child who regretted coming inside with mud all over their shoes.

"Yeah, they were. But you saved my life. Now you belong to me. And even better." He grinned more broadly than he had up until this point. "I belong to you."

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

TEDDIE

I should be running, but I had a shower and got dressed in the clothes he left me. An old, soft Wolf Venom T-shirt, and what looked like a well worn kilt. It would have fallen to just above his knees, but it fell below mine. Along with my sneakers, the outfit was almost cute.

I stepped out of the bathroom, fully intending to find a door and make a run for it. Instead, I stepped right into his broad chest.

He grabbed my arms and smiled down at me. "You look adorable in my clothes."

"Why do you have a kilt?" I asked. Why was that the question uppermost in my mind?

"Sometimes I like fresh air on my balls." He grabbed my hand and tugged me along a corridor to the front of the house. Stopped as we reached a set of wide windows that overlooked the ocean.

"This is beautiful," I whispered. The moonlight glittered on the waves, like something out of a movie.

Right before the crazed murderer stabbed everyone in the throat.

"You're beautiful." He stood behind me and wrapped his arms around me, resting his chin on my shoulder.

I stiffened.

“You know I'm not really yours, right?" I asked. "For one thing, I hardly know you." That was only a minor detail compared to a bunch of others.

He nestled his face on the side of my neck. "We have plenty of time to rectify that."

"Are you sniffing my hair?" I asked.

"Of course. Isn't that what boyfriends do to their girlfriend? I don't know, I haven't had a girlfriend before."

"I wonder why," I said dryly.

"Sometimes I wonder the same thing, but then I remember I can be a handful and I'm a one-woman man kinda guy. I just had to meet my woman. And now I have. I'm sorry about not sending flowers sooner. I should have sent them before they locked me in the basement. Sometimes I get caught up in big things and I forget the little things, even though they're important, you know?"

"I don't need flowers," I said. "What if I don't like you?" After all, he'd killed someone. Why was I not terrified of him? Wary? Yes. Going to make sure my food was sealed before eating anything he offered me? Definitely. But not scared.

"Then I'll have to do everything I can to make you like me.” As if that was perfectly rational.

"Haven't you heard that song?" I watched the waves crash onto the sand. The windows must be double glazed, because I couldn't hear them. Would anyone hear me scream if he decided to kill me?

"The one where the singer says he can't make someone love him?” he asked. “Sure I've heard that, but that's them. I'm me. Besides, you and I are meant to be together."

"Because of that basement rule?" I asked.

"That and other things," he said. "The minute I saw you, I said to myself, ‘Victor, that woman is your girlfriend. You should go over there and introduce yourself to her.’ And I did. I'm sorry, I should have explained who I was better. I thought if I walked up and introduced myself as your boyfriend, you might have been confused. I mean, you hadn't met me before that."

"Confused is one word for it," I said dryly. He was definitely unhinged.

"Also," Victor continued, "Oak had walked away. You looked like you needed a bit of time to process. I know when a person needs their space."

"Do you?" Since the front of his body was pressed against the back of mine, I doubted it.

"Absolutely," he agreed cheerfully. "Lots of people aren't good with strangers. But then, when they're not strangers any more, it's easier. Wouldn't you say?"

"I'm not sure I would," I said. "Don't they say familiarity breeds contempt?"