Chapter 31: 31

NADINE’S P.O.V

I didn’t say a word as Rowan took out the glass shards from my skin.

He gave me a little sock to bite on to muffle whatever sounds would come out and at first, I thought he was just being dramatic but I didn’t realize how much pain that tiny glass shards could cause, especially once he poured rubbing alcohol over the wounds.

There weren’t a lot of deep cuts, most of them were surface level that would heal in a few days- at least, that’s what Rowan said to me. I didn’t respond, I just stayed silent and watched him the entire time, not because I couldn’t speak, but because there wasn’t much to say and because I could feel his annoyance.

He tried to hide it but I could feel the frustration radiating off him as he attended to me, I could feel the anger rolling off him in waves. I knew that one wrong move would cause him to snap so I reined myself in.

To his credit, he had a good sense of self-control because he said nothing for the next hour after he was done. We just sat cross legged on the ground in silence and I took the time to take in the room we were in.

It seemed like some kind of break room. There was a coffee machine on the counter along with a tray that I knew would have held snacks, a dispenser stood in the far corner of the room and there was a couch so large that it could serve as a bed.

The drawers were pushed against the wall as some sort of barricade and the windows were barred.

“I think the monsters are gone,” I began slowly as I made my way over to the window to peek. “We can start heading out-”

“No.”

“No?” I asked, turning to Rowan but he wasn’t even facing me. “You said you wanted to leave today.”

“And you have cuts all over you. They will get worse in the woods. The answer is no.”

“Rowan-”

“Are you insane?” he finally exploded. “I have spent the last hour trying to figure out if there is something wrong with you or me because I don’t understand it. You are the most reckless person I have ever met.”

What made his anger scary was the fact that he wasn’t screaming at me. His voice was perfectly levelled but his eyes held liquid fire as he stared at me. I tried to look away, tried to avoid his eyes but they seemed to bore deeper into my soul, keeping my legs rooted to the ground.

“I’m sorry-”

“Sorry?” he ran his hands through his hair. “You have been held at knife point twice and you could have been killed by Max. if he didn’t die when he did, you would have died. There was a knife in your hands.”

“He was a child,” I whispered, hating the way my voice cracked. “I couldn’t kill him.”

“Not even to save yourself?”

I stayed silent.

There was no use responding to him because he knew the truth and he already knew the answer.

“Why? Why do you have such little care for your own safety? You wanted to save two strangers that turned on you the first chance they got.”

“She was fighting for her brother.”

“Stop making excuses for them!”

Sometime during our argument, he had backed me up into the wall. I hadn’t realized until my back hit the cold concrete and there was nowhere else to go.

He stood directly in front of me and due to the proximity, I had to crane my neck to look at him. His eyes were wild and his hands caged me to the wall in front of him. There was nowhere to run even if I tried.

“I’m sorry that I put our lives in danger but you could have gone. You could have ran away.”

“I could have.”

“But you didn’t, why? And don’t give me the bullshit about enjoying my company. If I am so much trouble then why do you keep me around? You would do so much better on your own.”

“I fucking would,” he agreed. “If I was on my own, I would have covered more ground and I definitely would not have trusted the girl who almost got us killed.”

“Then why aren’t you on your own?”

“Because-” he cut himself short and let out a sound of pure frustration.

He took a step back and tugged at the strands of his hair with a sigh. He didn’t say a word but I could see the internal struggle in his eyes as he paced the length of the room.

For someone who seemed so tortured by his own thoughts, he still seemed somewhat stable. Perhaps that was why I had the brilliant idea to push him.

I knew better. I knew that I should have stayed silent ad stayed away but it was like he said, I had no concept of personal safety.

“Because isn’t an answer,” I crossed my arms over my chest. “You don’t get to make a speech like that and walk away.”

“Leave me alone, Nadine.”

“Oh it’s Nadine now,” I took a bold step towards him. “You’re many things, Rowan, but a coward is not one of them. Why don’t you tell me what the real reason is? Are you scared of being alone? Do you need some entertainment?”

“No.”

“Then why-”

He turned to me and the look in his eyes floored me. It was pure carnal want like I had never seen before. It lit up a fire inside of me, one that I knew I couldn’t smother on my own.

I took a step back but he was following me. I tried to side step but he was faster, his hand curling around my bicep to pull me to a stop as he pinned me to the wall with his body.

I swallowed deeply, forcing my eyes up to him.

I should have stayed silent but my stupid mouth started moving before I could stop it.

“Trying to intimidate me won’t make me forget that you didn’t answer my question.”

He stared at me for a moment.

He blinked once.

Then twice.

“Fuck it,” he muttered before tugging at my strands and forcing my lips to his.

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