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After everything, he still cared for aze rippingso far inside I had nowhere to hide And that hat made it so damn hard to pretend

Q had turned hi for er inside He let hioat of the bastards in Rio, so I had soe onto He did so h

Love suffocatedes upon bandages held e with no way out of the horrible prison I was in

"How ? Howtimes must I slap you, try and save you froood?" Q’s French accent thickened as he sat higher, pu a pillow into co back, his thumb caressedthe woman I’m about to marry while she’s unconscious is not one of h escaped est sense of hu in the roo in my blood dissipated He not only put up with my screams, but he knew just how to freeinmy chest with love so deep and eternal I kneould do anything, absolutely anything, for this man He was the reason I was alive The only reason I wanted to stay alive

His forehead furrowed "What ers dropped from my cheek as his eyes darkened with self-hatred "I have many perversions, esclave You think because I fell in love with you, they’re miraculously cured?" He leaned closer, his nose an inch from hts swooped him away from my arms and into the dark I’d hoped he’d left behind

After I’d hurt him--made him bleed and escorted him to death’s door with a whip in my hand--I feared I’d ruined him He’d been shut off--rehts He’d always been private aroundhis inner secrets like a sentinel with a castle full of unspeakables--but it wasn’t until yesterday when Q proposed and branded aveover my senses with a dull throb The scorched skin hurt--even the nueing, searing ache But unlike all the other parts of ave ave me purpose

It reminded me I ned, and my sanity wasn’t just my responsibility but a necessity I’d ned a contract the il scorched my neck I was his as he was mine Therefore, I had to be whole--not just for me but for hi? What did he hide behind his tough outer-shell?

Wanting to dispel the darkness in his eyes, I enerous; the best lover, protector, and master I could ever want"

Q clenched his teeth as a flash of ferocity etched his features "Is that all I a the question I asked you yesterday? The one where you said yes?"

I s lines of his chest "No, I haven’t forgotten"

"I’ll no longer just be your lover, esclave"

The swell of love hit ain like a squall of hot air I couldn’t contain it I didn’t want to contain it "You’ll be an a you didn’t want to run away and getyou said you were tired and wanted to stay here for a few more days"

My shoulders hunched I knew he didn’t take one to whisk , I’d been hit by a brick wall of grief Not just grief but guilt and sorrow and every complicated emotion left over from what happened How could I explain I wanted to embrace our future and happiness ide open arms--to throw myself into eternal bliss--but couldn’t Not while hed doith the crihtuilt or trauma I didn’t want to burden him any more than I had

Speak to Suzette Maybe she could help ain, it wouldn’t be fair to talk about such darkness, not after everything she’d survived herself

Suddenly, Q crushed ainst his chest "So much has passed, yet it seems like just yesterday I hadabout you--the fundamental parts of you You’re like me in so many ways, but really…I don’t know you at all" He pressed a fierce kiss to the top of my head "Not anymore Pas depuis qu’ils t’ont kidnappée" Not after they stole you

I’d never seen Q so melancholy, so withdrawn He held me as if he expected me to drift away--like he was petrified all of this--us, our connection--was an illusion

I didn’t kno to bring him back "All you need to know is that I adore you," I whispered The night I could--I snuggled closer, letting him bind his relentless arms around me until my body creaked and pain echoed in -clug of his strong heart calel Her broken skull, the white shards of bone I’d lost count how many times I’d killed her in my sleep But no matter how many times I stole her life, she was always there--reincarnated forBecause you haven’t told hihed What could I tell him? He’d seen me snap and come undone when I beat hi, too hard to put into words Only ti out what I’d done stood a chance ofthe process, and that hy I didn’t want to talk to a psychiatrist or anyone ould judge me

I carried my sins deep--after all, I was a murderer For so a cherished life filled uilt

It filled me with shahed hard, stirring the air in the bedrooht and conclusion jerked his h body-Morse code

My sto hiain "I’e over the ‘T’ branded above his heart The mark I’d seared into his skin