Water’s Edge (A Series of Sharp Edges #1)

5. Mattie

CHAPTER FIVE

mattie

W ho the fuck does this guy think he is? He strolled into this bar, grabbed me, and then sat there like a creep watching me all night. His actions have the bloodlust in my bones stirring, even though I just satiated it. Now, he’s stuck in my web, and it’s time to wrap him up.

I don’t even know his name, but it’s better that way. A name is just a piece of information to form an unnecessary attachment. I’m sure I’ll see it on the news eventually; that is, if anyone even cares about this asshole going missing.

“I know a place.” Smiling, I curl one finger in a ‘come here’ motion. He gives me a devious smile of his own. I don’t make a habit out of inviting someone with a pulse back to my cabin anymore, but even I break my own rules sometimes. I want to play with my toy before I crush it.

I know I need to be more cautious, but something about him urges me to be reckless. My pulse quickens with every meeting of our eyes. The coil in my core tightens with every thought of him laid out before me. Heat pools between my thighs, and my body begs me to give in. I have a feeling this guy will give me the rush I’ve been looking for. I lock eyes with him, and an unreadable emotion flashes briefly through his gaze. It could be guilt, but maybe I’m just projecting on to him.

Each interaction with this man tonight has proved his disrespect for women, for me. It’s in the way he looks at me like I’m a prize he has already won. That’s something I can’t let stand, but he’s also the most attractive person I’ve ever seen in this bar—or anywhere. My body is craving a release from the tension that’s been building all night. I want to see what else he can do with that mouth besides cuss me.

“I’d love to, but I’ll have to catch a ride. I live nearby and didn’t drive here,” he says casually. I raise an eyebrow, because there’s no one around here who lives close enough to walk. Wiley lives around back, but I’m the next closest, and that’s still a ten-minute drive. Tally lives even further down yonder in Devil’s Nest, which is the closest town at thirty minutes away. The line he just used should ring all the alarms and raise every red flag, but I just bat my eyelashes with a coy smile. I’ll have to analyze what that says about me later.

Tally comes up from behind to whisper in my ear. “Are you sure, Mattie? I don’t want you windin’ up with your own Dateline special.” She’s worried about me, that’s cute. I’ll end up with my own TV special one day, but not for the reason she expects.

“I’ve handled worse, Tally.” I squeeze her hand and give her a reassuring look. Hopefully, she doesn’t see the glint in my eye. “I’ll check in with you and Wiley tomorrow if I decide not to come around.” If I don’t end up killing him tonight, I won’t leave a bound man in my cabin alone. I don’t want them to come searching for me either. I’m pretty sure I’ve never mentioned exactly where I live, but I wouldn’t put it past Tally to send a search party out into Hellsmouth. She believes all the stories about the creatures that crawled straight out of Hell and into the trees.

A symphony of wildlife out in the trees fills the car as we drive home in my little Pinto. Even from behind the panes of glass, it’s overbearing. My pulse roars in my ears, adding to the crescendo. I turn down the radio to quiet my mind as we roll down the back roads to my cabin. He sits stoically in the passenger seat. I appreciate his lack of small talk, but his silence is a constant reminder of what’s coming when we arrive home. Anticipation builds from my center and radiates out like tiny lightning bugs flickering in my nervous system. The pull of this man is undeniable, but so is the urge to hold his head under water.

I think about his fingers trailing up my spine and his breath against my neck. The last breaths he’ll exhale on this Earth will be given to me. A rush of adrenaline courses through my veins, incinerating any rational thoughts and leaving only the primal and needy ones. I tap my fingers anxiously on the steering wheel. A sly smile spreads across his face, and I’m eager to wipe it from him.

We pull onto the gravel in front of my tiny cabin. I worked hard to make it livable, expunging all the ghosts from my past, all the ones I don’t keep locked away inside myself. I have enough trauma floating around in my head to let anything in this godforsaken place remind me of what I desperately try to forget. The only ghosts filling the cabin now are my own.

As he steps out of my car, I realize just how much taller than me he is. I’m small at 5’4”, but he’s at least a few inches over 6 foot. I don’t normally choose victims with such a height advantage. Shit and possibly a strength advantage. I can hold my own. I have to. I know I can drag someone twice my size through the brush to Devil’s Pool. He’s not overly built, but I bet he could still easily pick me up and throw me onto the bed—or hold me against the wall.

I shift uncomfortably in my seat, trying to ease the growing need between my legs. My nerves rattle around inside me as I step from the car. I’m entirely amped up at the thought of the excitement we’ll have before my true fun begins. Everything about him pisses me off and turns me on in equal measure, including the arrogance he has getting out of the car. He continues to eye me like I’m some injured animal he has caught in a trap.

“So, this is home sweet home?” He grins, teeth flashing in the dark, and nods behind me to the cabin. He doesn’t wait for me to speak before taking a step towards the porch.

“This is it. It’s not much, but it’s home.” I grin back. I have no shame about how I make ends meet in this world. I won’t let a stranger mock me on my property, and letting this man trouble me will only place me at a disadvantage. He’s the stranger here.

Once we’re inside, it’s obvious I don’t entertain a lot of company. I don’t entertain anyone, actually. No one lives long enough to share or judge my simple existence. He looks around, and I follow his gaze. There’s only three rooms: a larger living area with a kitchen, my room, and the bathroom. The space immediately feels smaller with two people sharing it.

My stranger turns back to me and takes slow, deliberate steps in my direction. My breath catches as the energy in the room shifts, and my body shakes with uneasiness. Sparks shoot through my body as his warmth edges closer. The hairs on the back of my neck stand, sensing danger before I can process it. The rambunctious noise from the woods suddenly goes completely silent, making my ears ring. I realize he has backed me up to the wall. Then, he places his hands around my throat and squeezes.