Series: Willow Winters
Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 50025 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 50025 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
Relief hits me harder, shocking my heart. There she is. She’s alive, her heart still beating. She’s still my Ella.
“Go away, Z.” Her voice shakes as she tells me to leave. The sorrow shifts to something else as I close the door behind me. It shuts with a foreboding click.
I take a step toward her. And then another. All the while she stares at me, not daring to command me to do a damn thing.
With every step, a piece of me returns that she desperately needs. It’s for her. Every fucking thing I do is for her.
Ella clutches the towel tighter to her chest. I take another step, reaching out a hand until my fingertips meet her skin.
Her strength begins to crumple at my touch. Ella’s shoulders curve toward me, and I fold her into my arms. This is all I wanted when Kam was blocking my way in the hall. Ella in my arms where she belongs.
Cold droplets from her hair soak through my shirt, but her warm body molds to mine. She leans into me, letting me hold her. I can’t help but kiss her temple, telling her in as soothing of a voice as I can, “That’s better.”
“Z, what are you doing here?” she questions, her face still pressed to my chest.
“Did you think I wasn’t going to come?”
She pulls away slightly, enough to look up at me and whispers, “It might be better if you go.”
“Who am I to you?” My voice is harder now, and it’s exactly what she needs.
Ella’s breathing grows ragged as her eyes shine with new tears. I knew she’d be afraid. I knew she’d question whether I was going to come for her. It’s what caused her to melt down at the party. Her uncertainty is something I have to be patient with. Something I need to tame.
“Who am I to you?” I ask again.
Ella’s expression falls. “You should go—”
“Ella, answer me. Who am I to you?”
I emphasize each word, leaning closer. The heat between us is intense enough to burn my skin. She takes a rough breath but doesn’t answer.
Ella’s shoulders tremble. It’s a sign her walls are coming down. It’s what I’m waiting for. I’m not going to back off until she’s okay.
Sadness, hurt and guilt coat the back of my throat. I did wrong by Ella. I should have stopped her or stopped myself. I should never have let us reach the point where she felt like this.
I know now. And I will fix this. If it’s the last fucking thing I ever do, I will fix this.
She meets my eyes, and Ella’s softening now. Giving in.
“Z,” she says softly. Her heart is broken. I can hear it in her voice.
“Who am I to you?”
“My Dom.”
“That’s right. Act like it.” She stiffens.
My heart pounds viciously as I gentle my tone to add, “I’m sorry.”
Her eyes widen as we stand in our embrace. “I should have caught you and stopped you from running. I should have been stricter and transparent at the party,” I say, lifting her chin with my forefinger, forcing her to look at me when she attempts to look away.
“Tonight was my fault, but you shouldn’t have run and you better not push me away.”
She swallows thickly.
“Who am I to you?” I ask for the final time, running my hands down her shoulders in a soothing motion. She’s fragile right now. Far too fragile to punish how I’d like.
More tears glisten in her eyes, and she releases a heavy breath. The horrible distance I felt when I came into the room fades. I’m relieved as all hell. I couldn’t have lived with myself if Ella put up more walls or, God forbid, ran away from me again. I’ve survived plenty of things, but that’s the limit.
“You’re my Dom,” Ella says confidently and calmly.
Those words out of her mouth are all I need to know it’ll be okay. At least for tonight.
“Are you done, jailbird?”
Ella steels herself. “You … you should probably go. I don’t want you to see me like this.”
“It’s my wants you should concern yourself with. Let go of every other thought. I want you right now. Fuck, no. I need you right now. I’m not leaving, and neither are you.” The confidence comes easy now. We’re in the roles we’re meant to play. I’m her Dom, and she’s not going to send me away. “You’re going to get into that bed, and I’m going to hold you until you close your eyes. You’re going to sleep off the alcohol and every other messed-up thought you just had. And when you wake up, and I make sure you’re all right—”
“Z,” she says, her voice nearly breaking into a whimper.
“After that.” I lower my voice and pull her face close to mine. I want my jailbird to hear every word. She might not be certain of us right now. She might be too shaken to realize that I’m never leaving. But for tonight, she’s going to know exactly what’s coming next. “You’re going to pay for what you just did, Ella.”