Damaged and the Outlaw (Damaged #4)

“Who is he?” I growled, losing my temper despite my best effort to be calm.

“Why? So you can hunt him down and kick his ass? I’m not going to be with a crazy fuck, so beating up a guy won’t make any difference.”

“Just tell me who he is? An old boyfriend? Someone you met while we were together?”

“Are you calling me a cheating whore because I’ll crush your skull just for that?”

Leaning forward, I rested my elbows on my knees and sighed. “Raven, just tell me.”

A few minutes passed as she fought to keep her footing, but I could see she was dizzy. Finally, she looked at the front door as if planning to make a run for it.

“I was going out with Lark and Aaron. We were seeing a movie, you stupid fuck.”

“Why didn’t you just say that on the phone?”

Raven’s gaze met mine and I thought she might cry. Yet, her tears would be a result of rage, not sadness.

“You drugged me, Vaughn.”

“I know. I wanted you to talk to me and you wouldn’t.”

“This isn’t how normal people behave, you freak.”

“We’re not normal people,” I said, studying her. “It’s a heavy lamp. You might want to put it down before holding it wears you out.”

“Stop telling me what to do.”

“Raven, I love you.”

“I don’t care.”

Arms tired, she relented and set the lamp back down. Instead, she clenched her hands into fists.

“I’m leaving.”

“You can’t.”

“I’ll take your keys and kick your ass and I’ll leave. Sounds easy.”

Grinning, I leaned back in the chair. “I love when you get feisty. Even if you got my keys and kicked my ass…”

“If?” she interrupted, lifting a brow.

“The road is tricky at night. Even for me and I know the way. You’d likely crash out in the dark and be stuck until the morning.”

Studying me, Raven realized I was telling the truth. “I hate you.”

“You love me though. It evens out.”

“What about Lark? Does she know what happened because she could be worried and she’s fragile right now?”

“Call her.”

“You grabbed me before I took my phone.”

“Use mine,” I said, gesturing towards the front table. “Once you tell her that you’re okay, we’ll talk. Tomorrow, I’ll take you home.”

“I’m not fucking you tonight,” she said, going for the phone. “I’m never fucking you again. Unless you just plan to force me.”

Frowning, I hated the look on her face. She wasn’t playing around. Raven was genuinely scared of me. For the first time, I wondered if drugging and forcing her to the cabin was a bad idea. Was it too fucking crazy even for me?

“How would you feel if I was fucking another chick? I asked, needing Raven to show she cared.

“Not my problem who you fuck.”

“Look me in the eyes and say you wouldn’t care.”

Raven walked over to where I sat, leaned forward, and stared into my eyes. “I wouldn’t care if you fucked my roller derby team and posted the video on the Internet.”

“You’re lying,” I said, wanting to kiss her snarling lips.

Raven stepped back. “Yeah, but I look into your eyes and lied.”

“I love you.”

“You already said that. You can stop now.”

“No,” I muttered, crossing my arms. “I wanted to say it before and held back. I’m not holding back anymore.”

“You’ll say it too much and it’ll lose its power,” she said, texting Lark. “You’ll ruin the word.”

I waited until she finished with my phone. Once her attention was fully on me, I held her gaze and Raven didn’t look away.

“We can’t ruin that word. Maybe some fucks in your past ruined the word because it meant something else to them. For me, love means freedom and home. It seems I’m not lost anymore. I can say it a million times and it will always mean I’ve found somewhere I belong and that’s with you.”

Raven reached for the couch and I sensed she woke too fast and frenzied.

“Maybe you should sit down. I drugged you.”

“I was there, Vaughn.”

“I saw you leave your sister’s. When you said you were going on a date, I just panicked.”

“You keep chloroform around for these occasions?” she asked, sitting on the couch away from me.

“Actually, yes. Sometimes, I need to go into a situation soft and that’s my version of soft with assholes. With you, it was something else.”

“I can’t believe you did that.”

“I can’t have you fuck another guy. It would kill me and I’d have to kill him. Fact of life.”

“It’s been a day, Vaughn. If you gave it more time, you might stop loving me. You’d get over it.”

Frowning, I joined her on the couch. “You dated some lame fuckers if you think you can just get over love.”

“I got over it. I loved those lame fuckers and now I don’t.”

“Did you love them like you love me?”

Raven refused to look at me and that was enough of an answer.

“I’m special, cookie. Best for you to just accept that.”

Smiling despite her best efforts, she shook her head. “You’re nuts.”