The Millionaire Door Prize (Erotic Romance) Read Free Page A

comfort.
    “Alyssa , that’s not what I meant.”
    “It sure sounded like it to me ,” she snapped.
    “Technically , yes then. Why should you go back to him after what he did to you? And if he left you and is now at her place fucking her, then where will that leave you? Huh? Home alone, crying, and for what? He’s the one who hurt you, correct?” He was getting angry, but not at her. Although he’d never seen her boyfriend or even knew what he looked like, his imagination added a face to the cursing, abusive voice he’d heard earlier. “And he sounds as if he enjoys threatening and hurting you.”
    She closed her eyes and clenched her jaw. Her silence was enough of an admission to the truth.
    “I am in no way thinking that anything will happen between us. I am not looking to score. I want to help you feel . . . less pain,” he admitted.
    “Somehow I find that hard to believe ,” she said, disbelieving.
    “Why , because I’m a guy and you believe that’s all we think about?”
    “Ah, yeah!” she stated without hesitation.
    He shook his head. “Not all guys are out for a score,” he said, watching her. She refused to look at him. “So I treat you to soup and some dancing, then I guess it’s time to fuck,” he bluntly replied.
    She glared up at him. “Fuck you,” she said and threw the pillow at him. Then she jumped up from the couch and ran for the door. He got to it first, putting his back to the door. Tears were now streaming down her face.
    “I’m so sorry , Alyssa,” he said. “I am sorry.” He looked sad. “I never should have said that, and I apologize.” He was panting, so afraid she would leave and because he had been so damn insensitive.
    “Please, let me leave ,” she asked, trembling in fear.
    “But I don’t want you to. And what I said . . .” He held his hand up in reference to the couch. “Again, I am so sorry.”
    “What do you want with me?”
    “Just to talk.”
    She laughed and shook her head. “Are you serious? Talk?”
    “Yes, please.” He held his hand out to her.
    “I want to leave.” Her scared voice quaked.
    “Do you honestly want to go back home?”
    She just stood there, biting her lip, tears blurring her vision. Finally after a few moments of silence, she swallowed the lump in her throat and shook her head. “But you’re scaring me.”
    “And for that stupidity , I’m sorry,” he said, trying to calm himself. “How about this . . . what if we were to go out, that way you won’t feel so . . . confined? We could go . . . well we already ate . . . I guess go for a walk, go see a movie . . . I don’t know, whatever,” he offered.
    “I don’t know ,” she said, confused, hurt, and afraid. She shook her head and went to sit on the couch. Xander breathed a heavy sigh of relief. He went to sit next to her, picked up his laptop, and started typing again. She again huddled in the corner, hugging the pillow.
    “What are you doing?” she asked , hoping he wasn’t going to play anymore of that smut he had earlier. He presented the laptop to her.
    “See, that was me in high school,” he said, looking away.
    “This is you?”
    “Was me,” he stated.
    “I remember you now ,” she said almost excitedly. Then some of those memories came flooding back and she looked sad. “I’m sorry for what you went through.”
    “Yeah, well, we all have our little moments in life ,” he said, reaching for the laptop. Shockingly, she grabbed his wrist. This time he jumped. He looked into her sad eyes which mirrored his own.
    “I’m sorry for what Thomas did to you. It was wrong and I should have done something . You were just talking to me and didn’t deserve to get beaten up,” she said.
    “He would only have hit you too ,” Xander replied, taking back the laptop and closing it. He set it on the coffee table.
    She just sat in thought, fiddling with the small hole in the knee of her jeans. “He did . . . in the car.” Xander looked at her with pain in his