Unleashing Sin - A. M. Wilson Page 0,34

already an asshole.”

I try not to grin as she picks up her water, looks away, and takes a small sip. I give her a moment to get back to the couch. I don’t want to make her trip with my surprise comments.

“You think I’m an asshole,” I tease even though it’s not really funny. She thinks I’m an asshole because I’ve been nothing but one since the moment she arrived. “You gonna pick a movie or scroll through the titles all day?”

“Um, maybe you should—ˮ

“No.”

“Sin.”

“Alex.”

“Alex!”

“You want to watch a movie, blossom, you pick.”

“Fine.” With more attitude than I’ve ever seen from her, she picks up the controller, presses the button a few times, and picks her movie.

“Fuck me, really? Could you have picked a more girly movie?” Even through my bitching, I settle back on the couch.

“You made me do it. Now shut up and watch.”

My lips twitch at her fire. “That won’t happen. I cannot and will not watch A Walk to Remember. I’m takin’ a nap.”

“Here?” She tries to mask it, but her voice still comes out high-pitched and wobbly.

“I’m too comfortable to move, so I guess so.”

“Okay, Alex.”

Okay, Alex. There it is again. Her sweet voice responding in a way that implies trust and gratitude. All for what? Sitting on the couch with her while she watches a damn movie? This girl has been through unmentionable horrors. Things most grown adults can’t even fathom. Yet she’s simply happy to have a companion while she watches a movie that she got to pick. The simplicity of it all sends a warmth spreading through me, and drifting to sleep is as easy as breathing.

Chapter Nine

Sin

When I woke, she was gone.

Elias must have come back for her during my nap. The lingering effects of my withdrawal made me sleep like the dead. I woke up on the couch this morning with my body screaming at me for falling asleep there last night. Now I’m in the shower letting the hot water do its work on my aching neck.

Something is happening to me. Something big.

I don’t know how, but the little princess has gotten under my skin. She makes me think and reevaluate my life choices. She pushes my buttons without even trying. I’ve moved one step up from wanting to wring her skinny neck, and I might actually care about her.

I live in a small circle. For the longest time, it only had Molly and Elias. When Molly disappeared, my father redeemed himself by helping to search for her. The three of them existed as the sole people I could trust for so long. Then my pop died. It broke me more than I care to admit.

Who am I kidding? The scalding water pounding on my back elicits a groan from my chest as I give myself a dose of reality. I was already well past shattered, but the pieces were still held together. His death was the catalyst for ripping me apart again.

The dark path I followed after Molly went missing beckoned me back down its twisted trail and brought me to the cliff face. I nearly jumped. The thought of ending it all was sweet.

The drinking.

The fighting.

The drugs.

The women.

It was only a matter of time until I got on my bike shit-faced, without a helmet, and crashed. Or OD’d on heroin. Or picked the wrong guy to kick my ass.

I’d brought a knife to a gunfight too many times, and my reckless behavior was more than a tough-guy persona.

Shelby brought that to light. She put it into perspective with the horrified look on her face as she stared down at my drug paraphernalia. I feel like I owe it to her now to help her out. Put her on a path to a better life.

I run my hand down my body, spreading soap along my colorful chest and down the black trail of hair on my stomach. My hand drops to my dick, and the damn thing surges to life as her face comes to mind. Those blue eyes and red, puffy lips stand out like a cherry on a sundae against her porcelain skin.

My fist wraps tight around my cock, and it feels so damn good. I give it two pumps, feeling a rush of pleasure. Closing my eyes, I rest my forehead against the cold tile.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

Horrified, I release my dick as my heart pounds in my chest. I’m filled with shame. Utter, sickening, self-loathing.

I can’t be another man who does that to her. Fantasizes