A Want So Wicked (A Need So Beautiful #2)(44)

“Then again,” he murmurs, “I can be quite a bastard.”

“Abe?” I say, my heart skipping a beat. “Let go.”

He looks at my arm, as if surprised he’d touched me, and shrugs sheepishly. “Sorry.” He takes his hand off, holding it up in apology. “What can I say? You bring out the devil in me.”

“That’s not a comforting thing to tell a pastor’s daughter,” I joke, trying to lighten the mood. I have no idea how I’m going to continue working with Abe. This is incredibly awkward.

“I don’t know how we’ll keep working together either,” he says, as if he read my thoughts. “I tried to be different with you. And now, well, now you’ve gone and ruined everything.”

“What are—”

Abe tears his dark gaze away and stalks toward the back room. Anxiety immediately begins to twist my stomach, the worry that Abe will never talk to me again. Whether it’s true or not, I feel like I’ve been cruel. I’m not sure I can leave without at least trying to work things out. Maybe salvage some sort of friendship.

I look for Abe, but he’s not at the time clock or the walk-in cooler. On the other side of the room, I notice the back door propped open with a bucket and go to peek outside. I find him there, leaning against the wall.

“Hey,” I say cautiously, sliding out the door. Abe glances over, his apron balled up in his hand.

“What?” he answers evenly.

“I was hoping you weren’t mad at me.” I take a spot next to him on the wall.

“Then that’s your fault for being stupid.”

Ouch. This is exactly the reason why I didn’t want to kiss him that night after camping. He hates me.

“Please don’t be mean,” I say quietly, looking down at my feet. He scoffs.

“You have no idea how mean I can be.” Abe drops his apron and grabs me by the upper arms, swinging to pin me against the wall. I gasp.

“Why are you even out here?” he murmurs, as if he doesn’t quite trust what my answer will be.

“I was worried,” I say. “I never wanted to hurt you.”

“No? You may want to rethink that.” One hand slides into my hair, pulling my face closer to his.

“Abe, stop.” I try to work my arms between us to push him away, but his expression changes to something sad. Crushingly lonely. I stop fighting, his sadness seeming to spread to me.

Abe moves his palm onto my shoulder, looking like he might cry. Against me his chest rises and falls, his pure desperation filling my heart. Then he leans in and kisses me.

Cold winds through my mouth, and I flinch, turning my face away from his. My lips are numb.

“Don’t—” I start to say, but Abe takes my chin and tries to kiss me again. I push him back as hard as I can, only succeeding in breaking our kiss. I’m still pinned. “Stop,” I whisper fiercely.

Abe puts a hand on either side of me against the wall. “This is getting really old, Elise,” he says. “You’re really starting to piss me off.”

“Abe. I—”

He puts his palm over my mouth to stop me. The darkness in his eyes is no longer inviting. It’s angry and sinister, and all at once I am very, very afraid of him.

“Look at that,” he says, almost to himself. “I finally got your heart racing.”

Although I’ve seen small glimpses of his anger before, it was never like this. This is cold, and dark, and void. Abe tilts his head as if thinking, lowering his palm from my mouth. My body trembles and I consider screaming for help.

Abe smiles. “No one will hear you.”

My eyes widen, and I try to push him, try to get away, but he grabs me hard and slams me back into the wall. The force of it stuns me and I cry out in pain.

Abe leans forward, resting his cheek on mine like we’re in an intimate hug. “I tried to play nice with you, Elise,” he whispers. “But . . .” He pulls back just enough to peer down at me. “Since you won’t remember this anyway.”

He crushes his mouth against mine, his hand knotting painfully in my hair. I struggle, but he’s unmovable—strong. Inhumanly strong. I’m trying to scream for help, but I can’t get free of his mouth. He pushes up my shirt, his hands rough and careless on my skin. My body begins to shiver, splinters of ice tearing me apart from the inside. I bite down on his lip and he jumps away, cursing under his breath.

Abe touches the back of his hand to his mouth, checking the blood there. He shakes his head at me, smiling like he’s impressed I fought back.

Completely weak, I slide down the wall as tears stream over my cheeks. My mouth aches, my body. Why did he do that? What’s wrong with him?

“Didn’t know you liked it so rough, Elise.” He wipes his mouth again, and soon the blood is gone and his lip is normal, undamaged. “The things I can do with you.”

My body convulses with the cold, and when I look down, my skin is grayer. I begin to whimper, wanting Abe to go away.

He stands over me and exhales, like he’s exhausted. “Just give in,” he says. “If you want, I’ll be sweet, treat you like a queen. Will that make it easier, querida?” He reaches toward me and I flinch, my teeth chattering. He gently runs his finger over my temple. “I don’t know why you’re different,” he says. “And I don’t care. You’re the closest I can ever get to the light, the brightest thing I’ve ever seen. Just come with me and I’ll never hurt you again. I promise.”