Danny walks me to where heâs staying after the military police arrived and I filed a report. His room is more private, more spacious, and more secluded than mine. He has government furniture just like the rest of us. Yet his room looks more elegant. The way the room was built, itâs more modern and feels more cozy. White walls with dark gray colored doors. Bright ceiling lights illuminate the bedroom. His bed is covered in plain white bed sheets and two black pillows.
He has only three photographs pinned to a bulletin board as decoration. As I walk closer to see them, I see one photo of Danny and his mom. The second one is Danny hiking in tall mountains on a snow-covered trail. The third is a group picture with Kane, Paul, Gabriel, and Rooker all in their Navy uniforms, holding rifles. Itâs weird seeing Gabriel, in uniform.
I smile looking at the photographs. These photos gave me a little more insight into Dannyâs personal life. His mother was beautiful and tall, fit, with blonde hair. The photo was from his Navy boot camp graduation day. It looks like the day he officially became a Navy SEAL. And I wondered where his dad was in these pictures. His dad hadnât abandoned him like mine from what I can remember.
I turn around to search for Danny but I bump into a black shirt instead. I look up to meet Dannyâs eyes and I immediately regret it. I feel like my chest drops to my stomach as if itâs anchoring down deep into an ocean.
ocean blue eyes. His gaze was as if he was starving and I was his meal, his lips curled up in a small smirk.
I gulped, trying to do anything to relieve my emotions. He had left me in his room when we just got here so he could go smoke a cigarette.
as he likes to say.
I break away from our eyes locking and look down instead, letting my side bangs fall into my face.
âWhereâs your father in these pictures? Wouldnât a day like becoming a Navy SEAL interest him? â I point to the photographs on his bulletin board, turning around.
âHe was there that day.â
âSo why isnât there a picture of him with you and your mom?â
âWhy do you like to ask so many questions?â He walks closer to me.
âIâm inquisitive.â
He groans frustrated, running his hand through his hair as he stares at the bulletin board.
âWe donât talk. I stopped talking to him when I found out heâd been fucking one of his employees while my mom was pregnant with their IVF baby.â
My mouth hangs open as Iâm digesting the news of a cliche work affair. I canât imagine how his mom felt when she found out her husbandâs been having an affair while she was carrying their child.
âOh⦠Iâm, um, sorry.â I stutter over my words, stopping myself from asking further questions.
He watches me and I can feel his demeanor completely change from the protective Danny moments ago to a man hardened with anger.
âDanny, I think⦠I think we should talk about what Kane insinuated about you and my brothersâ death.â
Danny stiffens when I say .
âIâd rather revisit this conversation later. Iâm tired. Iâve been up all night dealing with work and you havenât slept either.â Danny grumbles, sleepiness laced in his tone.
No I havenât, butââ
âAnother day then⦠maybe. Iâm not allowed to disclose anything about that mission. Kaneâs an imbecile who canât keep his fucking mouth shut about things he knows nothing about.â
I bite my lip thinking of what to say.
âI donât knowâ¦â I shake my head. Danny gets closer to my ear.
âAri. Go. Home. I canât protect you here and on top of that, Iâm leaving. I wonât be here if that person comes looking for you again. Look what just fucking happened to your room. Why canât you trust me? Listen to me.â
âI donât need your protection.
. Why do you even care?â Iâm not backing down. He huffs out a breath and gets closer to me.
âBecause I made a promise.â
I flinch.
âWhatâre you talking about? What promise?â He ignores my question and that just infuriates me even more.
âI hate you.â
My heart drops and my eyebrows narrow inwards. Iâm confused and thrown off by his words. It came out of nowhere.
âWhat? Why do you hate me? What have I done to you?â
âExist.â
My mouth goes dry and Iâm trying to remain calm.
âYour existence alone brings me to my knees and I hate you for that. I hate that youâve invaded every part of my mind. Before you, I was a Work, train, sleep, eat, repeat. I didnât have to fucking worry about anybody else. I hate that ever since Iâve got a taste of you, all I want to do is devour the rest of you. I hate that youâre Paulâs sister because it makes it even more fucked up to want you. â Danny snarls at me, his voice raising louder in my ear. I jump every time he says the word, âMost of all I fucking hate that I â His palm collides with the wall behind me, causing me to flinch.
Dannyâs breathing intensifies.
âWell, I hate you.â I snap back. Looking at him ferociously, I push him with my palm away from me but he doesnât move a centimeter.
âYouâre so fucking confusing! You make me feel things that I never thought were possible. Then youâre making me feel horrible⦠for what? Working at this hospital, as a nurse? I wonât apologize for trying to do something to honor Paul. You become this asshole every time Iâm near!â I say, walking closer to him, closing the gap between us attempting to intimidate him but failing miserably.
His jaw clenches and I wince. My eyes shuttering closed then opening them again.
âYou canât be here and Iâm going to make sure of it. Tomorrow Iâm going to make some calls to have you transferred back.â
My eyes bulge.
âYou canât do that to me. You donât get to do that to me Danny! Iâm helping people and you need to accept that.â
âWhat you witness at the hospital is only a small fraction of the evil that awaits past this military post. You canât be near me. Youâre a distraction.â
He pauses and licks his lips.
âI know you, Ari. I know deep down youâre fucking aching to feel what itâs like to indulge in the sins that plague your mind.â A smug look on his face and I know he has more intentions than heâs leading on. Heâs trying to distract me from this heavy conversation. I understand itâs painful for him but I deserve to get some answers.
âI want to know what Kane was implying.â Iâm silenced, unable to finish my sentence.
âI. Canât.â
âYou canât. Funny. Just like you promised you wonât touch me again?â I challenge.
He scoffs. The sound was deep and mouth-watering, it sends shivers down my legs and between my thighs. God, even his noises just arouse me. I clench my thighs together trying to relax the throbbing pulsation in between them. I can feel myself getting wet.
âExactly. Iâm a man of my word. I wonât touch you. But I know you want me to. I know the way you tremble when I say your name. The way you blush every time you look me in the eyes. Or when you bite your bottom lip when you get so flustered around me. I promise you that if I touch you again, if I give in to all the things Iâve thought about doing to youâ¦
He growls. I stand there taking in his request. Every hair on my body stands up with arousal and curiosity. Danny on the other hand is not moving an inch and I couldnât understand how.
Was I really going to give all of myself to him? The way he looks at me with such desire. His hot and cold behavior towards me thatâs always so damn infuriating. The way Iâve always felt safe with him since the day I met him in that bar. Itâs unfair. Itâs a sin.
For the first time in my life, I donât want to think too hard about this. Every single decision Iâve made has always been well thought out and calculated. Iâve been raised to fear sex. To fear being naked around any man that wasnât my husband. To feel insecure about embracing sexuality which Iâve come to realize is a normal thing to experience at my age now. These kinds of things were engraved into the way I function like a permanent tattoo. For once, I refuse to think.
I clear my throat.
âYouâre wrong Danny. I think if I give all of myself to you, that wonât be able to He huffs out a breath, smirking so wicked, licking his teeth. He lifts his palm over my head, leaning on the wall behind me.
âAri⦠This is the first and only chance Iâm going to give you to run away from me. Iâm growing impatient. My way of fucking isnât sweet. It isnât nice. It isnât soft. If you let me, I will break you but trust me, baby, youâll keep wanting me to, begging me to. I donât care if this is your first time. This is who I am. I like to blend pleasure with pain and fracture boundaries.â
My eyes widen.
My heart quickens as Iâm trying to understand what he means by his kinks. This is a new leaf Iâm turning over so if he thinks he can scare me away, heâs wrong.
âFear me now, little Angel?â He grabs my pink necklace, by the cross.
Instead of talking, I decided to act on my emotions⦠I grab his other hand and I bring his thumb on my tongue, then I close my mouth on it, hollowing my cheeks, and suck it gently at first then hard. Looking up at Danny now, my eyes rolling upwards, to watch his reaction. Danny stops breathing for a second as he watches me suck his thumb. He lets out a breath and hums.
Heâs satisfied.
â
, Danny?â I stop sucking and it ends with a smacking noise. I donât know what I just started but I hope to God it doesnât end. My heartâs beating fast and Iâm wondering if Danny will retreat like last time. Can he hear my heart beating outside of my chest?
He pauses and laughs, a dark laugh that reverberates through his chest it sounds so good.
âNothing scares me.â
One of Dannyâs hands moves so smoothly around my neck and I flinch, remembering when his tight grip was on me a few days ago. He rips my cross necklace off of my neck faster than I can blink and puts it in his pocket. I gasp as I watch him rip it off my neck so easily. He moves to caress my cheek, gently at first but then he moves to the back of my head pulling my hair tight, making my head whip back as he brings himself crashing to me. Our lips collide with a never-ending passion and another feeling, that treads the definition of hatred and need.
His tongue immediately travels into my mouth exploring the depths of it. Iâm immediately taken aback. Unsure and not confident with myself, I do my best to make sure my tongueâs dancing and keeping up with his. Something inside me burns as the seconds go by.
really going to do this?
As our kissing heightens more and more, his hands explore my scrubs, untying my pants and throwing them down at my feet. I quickly kick off my shoes and step out of my pants leaving me in my soaked green panties and scrub top.
All I want to do right now is bury my sadness away in his arms. Thereâs no doubt in my mind this is where I want to be right now.
Danny takes off his shirt, throwing it on the floor beside him. His tattoos and scars are on full display. A sand clock on the left side of his chest, in my glossy eyes.
Soon after, Danny grabs my scrub top and yanks it over my head with such force itâs frightening. Heâs eager, impatient, and angry. His huge hands take up almost half of my shirt. Iâm way over my head. I donât know what to do to please him. A little voice in my head screams at me to not overthink and follow his lead. To just try and stay in sync with his movements. Danny seems to notice my hesitation.
âIâm going to go easy on your body this time baby, donât worry,â Danny reassures me, but I canât help but feel like itâs a lie. âNext time you wonât be so lucky. I wonât hold back like I am right now and youâll know what I really want to do to this perfect cunt of yours.â
I swallow. What did he mean by that? How much would he be holding back? And what would he be holding back?
Itâs six in the morning now and I havenât slept since the day before. Iâm going almost twenty-four hours without sleep and I know once this is over Iâm probably going to drift into a deep exhausted slumber.
I reach for his sweatpants untying it, I grip the waistband along with the lining of his boxers, about to push his pants down, but Danny stops me, gripping my hands tight with his calloused hands. Both of us panting with lust. I look at him with circled confused eyes. Did I do something wrong?
âOnce you pull down those pants, my cock will be the first and only cock that will ever be inside of you. Do you understand that Ari? If I find out any other man tries to take whatâs mine, heâll wish he hadnât.â He threatens into my ear. Something about his possessive threat has me even more drawn to him.
I freeze.
âOr what?â I challenge. I smirk and I donât understand whatâs gotten into me. I feel like the lust has taken possession of my body.
âOh, Cherry, I think you forget that Iâm the militaryâs most lethal trained killerâ¦â He smiles wickedly and at this moment I feel like Danny reveals a sadistic part of himself and Iâm not so sure I want to unravel it. âIâve sent way too many souls to hell, I wouldnât hesitate to send another if they even â I shiver at his threat, yet it sends me howling for more.
âKane asked me out on a date and I said yes,â I mutter through my heavy breathing.
Dannyâs smile is gone and heâs angry. His blue eyes turn dark and the brightness in them is long gone. He grabs the back of my head palming it, and the next thing I know, heâs pushing me up against the wall hard enough that it makes a loud thud when my body collides with it. Before I can react and question Danny, he grabs my legs throwing me upwards so Iâm now straddling him against the wall, I cross my legs around his waist securing myself.
âCancel it. Your Cherry is mine to take.â