Attraction by T. C. Anthony Read Free Book Online Page B

craving and softly alerted him of my presence. “Good morning.”
    But he didn’t turn and only responded after an awkward silence. “I was wondering how long you would stand there before saying good morning.”
    “How did you…?” I was confused as to why he would let me stand there without acknowledging me.
    “You need to get accustomed to the fact that I can sense you from miles. And let’s not forget that you have a scent to you that can’t be confused with anyone else. Now, take a seat,” he commanded me, and I did as I was told.
    But as I walked toward the table, I kept him in my sight. I wanted him to look at me; I wanted to meet his stare and to feel him peering through me. But he didn’t.
    I sat alone at my kitchen table for a while, watching Alexander as he continued to prepare us breakfast. And though I had no desire to eat, I wouldn’t dare alert him to that after he had gone through all the trouble of cooking everything in my fridge.
    He placed the last plate of food on the table and poured me a cup of coffee. “Take this,” he said, handing me some ibuprofen. “Drink the coffee black. It will help.” And then he sat down on the other side of me.
    “Alexander—”
    But he didn’t allow me to speak, even though I had no idea how I was going to explain everything.
    “Eat; I can barely stand to look at you so thin. And I have plenty to say for the both of us, so you can remain quiet.” Taking the empty plate in front of me, he began piling on food. I felt nauseated at the thought of eating, but I wasn’t about to anger him, so I pretended to eat by moving the food around on my plate with my fork.
    “Though you’ve done nothing but act like it, you’re not a child. Stop playing with your food.” Alexander’s attentiveness toward me was always on point, but I didn’t appreciate it now like I had previously.
    Managing to put a small piece of egg in my mouth, I struggled to swallow it, seeing as my stomach was shrunken by my nerves. “Can we please talk about all of this? Or are you going to continue to torment me by sitting there motionless and mute?”
    “Torment you? I’m tormenting you? What is it exactly that you would like to discuss? You said all there was to say when you told me you didn’t love me; that to me says that there is nothing more to say. Except for maybe you’d like to explain why you allowed that sick fuck to beat you.” Alexander’s tortured words repeated from our last encounter were delivered with disdain.
    I had unfortunately had three months to dream of him but only moments of sober wakefulness to make a plan of how to win him back. I was at a loss, and there were no apparent words or explanations for my transgressions or my shameful actions.
    “I can see you trying to make a diagram in your head of what scenario or explanation you should lay out, but it’s not going to work. You have no say in this situation; you have lost the right to determine how this should work or plan out how it will work.” Alexander moved his chair closer to me and pressed his elbows onto the table as he leaned closer. “I make the rules now, and you will follow them.”
    He arched his eyebrows, daring me to argue.
    “Silence…good. That’s a good start,” he whispered at me as he relaxed into his chair, and I waited for him to continue.
    And for once, I truly had no plan. I waited to find out my fate, to hear the rules and the obstacles I would have to overcome to be with Alexander. But I had already decided I was willing to do anything.
    “You tore my heart out.” And with that short statement he confirmed that he was not going to make this easy on me. “I purposely kept myself from relationships for this reason. I’ve experienced the worst of death and loss and pain, and I let you into that part of my life, assuring myself that you wouldn’t hurt me. But you did; you hurt me worse than anyone else.” He paused. “And I know that you are sorry for causing that pain. I