antiseptic and began unwrapping a band-aid. It looked like a normal band-aid except the two sides were held together by some kind of elastic. He placed one horizontally over one of my cuts, and the skin tightened around my wound.
It was slightly uncomfortable, and I winced and averted my gaze. Once I stopped looking, I instantly started to feel better. My stomach stopped churning. My head stopped feeling so light. I didn’t know if it was because the bleeding had stopped, or because I’d been getting woozy looking at what I’d done to myself.
“I think I passed out,” I said, before remembering Colt didn’t deserve to know anything about what had happened to me.
He didn’t say anything.
I glanced up at him.
I wanted my eyes to be trained on something other than my wounds, but the last place I wanted my gaze to land was on him.
But I couldn’t stop.
It was like he was pulling me toward him with some kind of invisible force.
His forehead was knotted in concentration, and he bit his bottom lip just a tiny bit as he continued placing the bandages on my skin.
His eyes were dark, his displeasure with me written all over his face.
When he was done with the butterfly band-aids, he reached for a roll of gauze and wrapped it around my wrists, fastening each side together with medical tape.
Once he’d placed the last piece of tape, he put everything back in the first aid kit and then he stood up.
“Can you stand up?” he asked, holding his hand out to me.
“I think so.”
His hand wrapped around mine, and I instantly became woozy again. Not from the blood loss or the cutting, but from Colt’s touch. I hated the effect he was having on me, hated that he could make me feel this way.
He’d kissed me, touched me, pushed me beyond anything I’d ever felt, beyond anything I’d ever even imagined I could feel for anyone besides Declan. And it made me both attracted to him and furious with him at the same time.
A rush of heat overtook me as I remembered what it had felt like, Colt’s tongue in my mouth, his hands on my body, the scent of his cologne, the faint taste of alcohol on his breath, how badly I’d wanted him inside of me.
I couldn’t help it. I wanted him to kiss me again.
And for one incredible moment, as I stood there facing him, his eyes searching mine, I was sure he was going to, was sure he was going to pull me toward him and crash his mouth into mine.
But instead, he shook his head.
“You’re done.”
“What?”
“That’s it. It’s over.”
“What’s over?”
“This.” He turned my hands over in his, looking at the bandages he’d just placed on me. His face softened, and I saw something in his eyes. Fear? Concern? I couldn’t be sure. “You’re not doing this anymore.” The soft look was gone from Colt’s face, and now all that was there was a steely determination.
“I’m not cutting myself anymore?” I repeated incredulously, and then laughed.
“No,” he said. “You’re not.” He picked up my bag, rummaged through it until he found my razors, then slid them into his back pocket. He hoisted himself up until he was sitting on the side of the desk, his legs dangling over the side. “That’s over, Olivia. I’m not fucking around.”
“You do realize that it’s not that easy, right?”
“It is.” He looked at me again, and a shiver ran up my spine. “You will not cut yourself again. Do you understand?”
Something about his tone, about how commanding he was being with me, made butterflies swarm my stomach. I thought about how he’d dressed me in my tiny little outfit, how he’d held my hands down at my sides and let his eyes rake up my body.
“You’re not in charge of me,” I said defiantly, raising my chin in the air, daring him to contradict me.
“Oh, I sure as hell am,” he said. He stood up and crossed the room to the bar in the corner, poured himself a drink and took a long gulp. He shook his head, like he couldn’t believe he was being
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