AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Let go of my sister,beast.” Sariah whacks him across the shoulders while I stab his flank.
He whirls around, scooping her up with one arm and dumping her onto the bed beside her sister.
“Save us!” they shout through a fit of laughter.
“Your move, slayer,” Marcus goads, raising a brow at my weapon.
I toss the sword onto the ground, readying myself before rushing him. “Game over, buddy.”
Tucking my shoulder, I barrel into his side with all the force I can muster. He grunts, making the girls screech with joy when he cants to the side. But soon after, one strong arm whips out, wrapping me in an unrelenting hold.
“Got ya.” He smirks, and we all shriek when he pins us beneath his weight, tickling the three of us until our voices give out.
A loudbang, followed by four more in succession, has our laughter dying in our throats and leaving us frozen where we lie.
The girls glance at each other before wiggling free from the Marcus monster.
“Fireworks!”
Their feet slap the floor as they race for the door, vanishing around the corner.
The room goes silent except for the occasionalpopoutside and the blood whirring in my ears. Marcus lies between my legs, staring down at me with the kind of adoration reserved for a lover.
“You’re a natural,” he murmurs. “I appreciate you talking to her.”
“Of course,” I say, running my finger over the tip of his nose. “Boys can be stubborn jerks sometimes, but then again, so can I.”
“Don’t sweat it.” His lips pucker, pressing kisses to any spot on my palm he can reach. “I shouldn’t have pushed you.”
When he rests his cheek flat on my chest, my entire body sags. Those icicles protruding from my heart gradually retract as his warmth melts my insides.
“My favorite color is blue.” My throat tightens. “I never sleep naked in case there’s a fire and I’m forced to run out to the street, and I sing in the shower—often and terribly. I want to foster as many kids as I can someday, because I know I can protect them.”
“Well,” he murmurs, “now I can’t stop picturing you in the shower.”
“You truly are the worst.” A soft laugh bubbles up as I sniffle. “I’m sorry I lost it on you earlier.”
“It’s okay. Really.”
“No, it’s not. What you said to me, about not trusting people is true. I have been, and probably always will be, a bitter ice queen who doesn’t let anyone get too close because I’m a big fat coward.”
He lifts his head, bringing his hands to my face before tenderly sweeping his thumbs over my eyelashes. “Slayer, you know that isn’t true.”
“How so?”
“Because, if you were as cold-hearted as you claim, then this house wouldn’t be full of people who care about you.” His eyes trace the planes of my face, making my stomach flip. “I think it’s you who needs convincing that you’re so much more than everything that’s holding you back.”
My chest squeezes around a sob, forcing it back down, but I’m losing the battle.
Marcus climbs further up, shushing me softly as he kisses my tear-stained cheeks. “I can’t stand to see these. Tell me how to make them stop.”
“I-I’m sorry. I can’t,” I whisper choppily.
“Let me make it better.”
He feathers his lips along my jaw, and more than anything, I want to believe he can. Marcus makes me feel empowered, needed, and cherished effortlessly, and it rattles my core, peeling back each of my layers until I’m fully exposed.
“I didn’t think we’d ever be here, like this,” he murmurs into the crook of my neck, “but I like it.”
