I want her bad enough without having her throw herself at me. I don’t need to be tempted any more than I am.
“You still seem mad though.” She rolls her bottom lip between her teeth. “I didn’t do it to make you mad.”
I tense. “No, you did it to see what I would do, but next time, I can’t promise you that I’ll stop myself from taking you. I’ve spared you this far, don’t make it harder than it needs to be for me. I’m only human, and I promised myself that when the time came for me to claim your virginity, I would do so as you deserved, but you make that harder every single day.”
Dove gives me a shocked look. “How do you know I haven’t had sex before?”
It’s too early to do this, but what the fuck, why not? It’s either now or in five minutes. Turning to face her so I can see her eyes fully, I say, “Because I made sure no one would get that far. You were always going to be mine.”
Her mouth pops open, and her eyes widen in shock. For a moment she just stares at me, processing the information I just gave her. “W-what do you mean?”
“You’re a smart girl. You know what it means.” I let her draw her own conclusions.
“You scared them away?”
I shrug, deciding not to tell her that I murdered a few of them. “I mean, you could say that, yes. I made sure they didn’t come back for another date. Some I even made sure they never made it to the date to begin with.” Yes, I’m a fucking asshole, but nothing and no one is going to touch or taint what’s mine.
Dove is pure white snow, and I wasn’t going to let some fucking asshole piss all over her. The guys she went on dates with were pigs and only wanted to get between her legs. No way was I going to watch that shit go down.
“All this time, I thought there was something wrong with me…” Sadness coats her voice, but quickly her eyes turn to fire, and she shakes her head angrily. Her statement brings my own anger down a couple of pegs. “I thought they didn’t want me. That I was ugly and unlovable. I thought there was something wrong with me!”
Fuck me. Shit, I didn’t expect it to turn into this. The hurt in her words, it’s like a knife piercing me in the chest. Reaching for her, all I want to do is comfort her, but when my fingers graze her hand, she pulls away. She’s looking at me like I’ve ruined her life, but doesn’t she see that I’ve only made it better?
With a tight chest, I say, “I’m sorry, Dove. I only did it to protect you. I wasn’t trying to hurt you. You aren’t any of those things. You’re perfect.”
She moves off the bed, putting too much distance between us.
“Don’t lie to me! You did it because you’re selfish and didn’t want me to fall in love with someone else before you had the chance to kidnap me. You wanted me alone because if you can’t have me, no one can? Isn’t that right?”
It takes every ounce of self-restraint I have not to grab her and throw her back onto the bed. To tie her up and keep her bound to this bed with me. Yes, everything she just said is true. No one can have her, only me. Yes, I’ve been selfish, and yes, I wanted her to be alone in a way. I never intended for her to feel as if she was at fault though, but there isn’t anything I can do about that now. Nothing of the past matters. She’s mine.
Anger fills my voice when I speak. “It wouldn’t have mattered if you had found someone. I would’ve disposed of him and took you anyway. You’re mine, don’t you see that?”
Dove’s tiny hands form into fists, and her body vibrates with unbridled anger. I wonder if she’s going to punch me, act out on her rage?
“I’m not yours! I’m a human being with feelings. Not a pet or a thing. I am not, nor will I ever be yours!”
As soon as the words are out of her mouth, I’m off the bed and across the room. My heart races in my chest, and I don’t think. I just react. Gripping Dove by the back of the neck, I hold her