Bait

by Jade West

Insane. Fucking insane. And I feel insane right along with her. This lunacy has been a long time coming. Maybe too long.

I smile at how two random strangers can be a million degrees of fucked up and still feel so right. “Come for me,” I hiss. “Come for your monster.” And she does.

I watch her all the way back to her car and out of my life. There’s a terrible knot in my gut as she drives out of sight.

And a terrible sense of regret that I’ll never see her again.

I met the monster and came out the other side. I met the monster and I loved it. He was everything I dreamed and more. He was everything, everything, EVERYTHING.

I’m brave now, so much braver than I was back there. Brave enough that I’d do it all again in a heartbeat. And then it hits me like a punch in the ribs. I won’t be doing this again in a heartbeat. Or ever.

Because it was my fucking girlfriend who died in that fucking fire. My fucking life that burnt up with her.

It’s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then. Lewis Carroll

But it’s not enough.

I think it’s the monotony that’s killing me slowly.

It’s all a lie. All I want is more of the monster. My monster.

All I want is another night with his breath on my neck and his terrifying cock inside me.

I feel the insanity churning in my gut as the idea hits me. If he won’t come looking for me…

Here. He was here. Right here.

Scott

Brothers Logistics. It’s big. Set back from the road.

Tr...

“I was clubbing last weekend, I lost my shoe. Shoes.” “Like Cinderella,”

“I’ll keep an eye out,” he says. “You got a phone number?”

“Sure,”

I scrawl my mobile number with Abigail over the top. “They’re black. High. Satin.”

“Ain’t seen a glass slipper, have you, boss?” he asks. “A what?”

He holds up his paperwork. My heart fucking thumps as I see

Abigail scrawled on the top. A mobile numbe...

“Some girl lost her shoes here. Was looking for them outside. Pretty thing she was. Wouldn’t mind finding them...

And I want her. Oh fuck, how I want her. My resolve shrivels to nothing. I need this too much to turn back.

Her shoes are still in my glove compartment. I consider handing them over, just like that. Asking her out for a coffee. A walk. A hunt in the darkness. Anything.

And then she registers my shadow. Her eyes move up slowly, from my boots to my eyes. Hers widen. Mine hold firm. She doesn’t know me, but she thinks she does. Some deep part of her knows she does.

My black swan’s mouth drops open as she sees the back of my hand.

She drops her sweets with a gasp. They literally tumble right out of her fingers. They crash to the floor and I’m straight down after them.

It’s him. It has to be him. I know it’s him.

He’s as dark as I imagined. Dark hair, dark eyes, heavy brows. His hair is long on top, just as I remembered. His beard is fucking perfect. He looks fierce, wild. He’s dressed in black. Black jacket, black t-shirt, black everything. My legs are quivering and I don’t care. My whole body is thrumming, and it feels like life itself.

The tattoos on his neck are obvious. Glorious. He’s fucking glorious. And he’s staring right at me. “It’s you,” I tell him, even though my voice is weak.

“It...

I remember him. He takes a step forward and my breath catches in my throat.

“What’s me exactly, sweetheart?”

“It was you…” I whisper. “I know it was you…”

“So you came looking for him?”

“I couldn’t think of a better option.”

“Must’ve made quite an impression, this stranger,” he says. “You could say that.”

“He’s all I can think about.”

“Should be careful what you wish for. You might just get it.”

“I’m counting on it,” I...

“Goodbye, Cinderella,” he says and my heart stutters. My shoes. He remembers I lost my shoes.

You’re pretty reckless, hunting down a monster in a strange town. You’d better hope the monster doesn’t creep up on your tail.

I need to see you again. Please.

Be careful what you wish for. This beast isn’t tame. It’s wild. Dangerous. It fucking bites.

I wish for everything, I type. Scare me. Chase me. Hunt me down. I don’t care.

You brought me to life again. Being with you gave me hope when I had none. I can’t go back.

This is crazy. Dangerous.