Fragile Sanctuary (Sparrow Falls, #1)

by Catherine Cowles

My back teeth ground together so hard I’d probably need a root canal. “Go back to your room,” I gritted out. A little furrow appeared on her brow. “Why⁠—?” “Because I’m holding on to my last shred of humanity, and if you stand here in those goddamn shorts for another ten seconds, it’s going to snap.” Rho’s breaths came quicker, her chest rising and falling with each one. Every inhale brought those curves closer—to my hands, my tongue. “What happens if you snap?” she whispered. “I fuck you so hard you’ll feel me for weeks. I’ll ruin you, Reckless. You think I can’t taint you with my pain and the darkness that lives inside me, but you’re wrong.” Defiance swept into those witch eyes. “One.” She licked her lips. “Two.” “What the hell are you doing?” I snarled. “Counting down to the snap,” Rho challenged. “Three.” Everything about her set my blood on fire, from her strength to her beauty to her fearlessness. “Four…” she goaded, slipping one strap of her tank top down. “Five.” The other fell free. “Fuck it.”

“You can’t truly live without some sort of hurt. If you’re so focused on avoiding discomfort, you end up living a half-life. You might get to skip the lowest lows, but you don’t get the highest highs either.”

“I’d go to hell and back for you.”