The Hunger Read Free Page A

confession, refusing to hear truth in his words.
    “I know you don’t believe me, but I have.”
    Mia pressed her lips tightly together and resisted the urge to respond. The industrial building that housed her apartment was in sight, and if she could stay silent long enough, she’d make it home where she could shut out his words and their possible meaning.
    “I miss how responsive you were when I applied the right amount of pressure. I can still feel how wet you’d get in the palm of my hand after I’d given that lovely little pink clit of yours the spanking it deserved.”
    Mia almost faltered in her step as he finished his declaration in a voice gone even deeper from arousal. She didn’t respond though, because she was afraid of what might come out of her mouth if she spoke, and more importantly what might find its way in. Instead she squared her shoulders and gave Galen a scathing look. He was completely unrepentant and gave her a mocking wink as he kept pace with her hurried steps. The little light she kept on above her door was a beacon in the night, promising salvation from the torture he was bringing.
    “No comment, sweet Mia. Usually that lovely mouth of yours was quick to put me in my place. Which inevitably was inside you. ” He chuckled to himself at his own statement.
    Mia practically ran the final yards to her door and fumbled around in her bag, searching for her wayward keys. She could feel him at her back, waiting patiently for an invitation she couldn’t give if she planned to keep her sanity. If she let him in, he would have her--dear God, would he have her--and when she was at her weakest he would convince her she didn’t need to stay away. He would be all rational facts and examples of how centuries of evolution could not be wrong, and she wasn’t a monster when she fed her darker half’s needs. Those sea-green eyes would stare into hers, and she would believe every single word, and there would be nothing of her left. She needed to stay strong, walk in her front door, and shut it firmly behind her.
    Focusing on what she needed to do to put distance between her and Gale became a mantra she chanted as she tried desperately to find her keys in her ridiculously large purse. She kept repeating each step in her plan as she felt him behind her, waiting patiently in the shadows of the night. It was on a continuous loop as she fitted her key in the lock and pushed her door open to freedom, closing out her bad-boy predator. It was even the thing that kept her grounded as the husky sound of his laugh slipped into her studio, reminding her just how patient a predator can be.

Day 3
     
     
            Mia’s nerves were frazzled, and she was surprised she hadn’t snapped at some point during the day. If she’d barely slept two nights ago; last night she hadn’t slept at all. Galen’s words to her the night before had their intended effect, and she’d fitfully turned in her bed as her body ached for the release only he could provide. She taken matters into her own hands, literally, but it wasn’t the same and instead, even though she’d come, she’d never found release.
            She rubbed the counter vigorously, hoping the motion would burn some of the unspent energy that was riding her hard. She and her manager were closing up, and Mia almost had the place sparkling as she manically cleaned every surface and appliance. Tully had retreated to the small office in the back to finish closing paperwork and leave Mia to her newly acquired OCD tendencies.
            “I don’t think that can get any cleaner, Mia.” Tully chuckled as she walked out from the small office.
            Resisting the urge to snarl, Mia gave her a weak smile before gathering up her cleaning supplies. The idea of moving, picking up and planting roots somewhere else, far away, entered her mind, but she knew the Family and she knew Galen. There wasn’t a place far away enough. She sighed with frustration