Hell Breaks Loose: A Devil's Rock Novel by Sophie Jordan Read Free Book Online Page A

uttered words crossed the space between them and wrapped around her like a
     double-lined fleece blanket. The words did their part and provided solace, but it was also his eyes. Steady and true. The
     guy could be in politics. If he wasn’t a dangerous criminal. If he wasn’t built like an MMA fighter and sporting tattoos and
     scarred knuckles. He had that mesmerizing quality that compelled trust. And he was hot. Magic Mike hot .
    She gave herself a quick mental kick. Exhaling, she told herself that had nothing to do with it. Nodding, she moved to flip
     off the light. In the dark, she undressed with shaking hands, leaving her underwear on. Her clothes dropped, whispery sounds
     in the dark. The chilly air rolled over her skin, leaving a wash of goose bumps in its wake.
    She walked barefoot across the room, rubbing at her tender wrists. She sank down on the mattress beside him, wincing at the
     squeak of the springs—beside Reid —and pulled the cool sheet up to her chest, tucking the fabric under her arms. Scooting to the far edge of the bed, she hoped
     that she wasn’t wrong. She prayed he meant what he had said.

Five
    It took all of five seconds to realize he might have been lying when he said she wasn’t his type. He had gone a long time
     without sex and right now female was pretty much his type. Young female, even better—or in this case, worse. A female that smelled soapy clean and faintly floral and he was screwed.
    He kept to his side of the bed, rigid as a slat of board, inhaling deep even breaths as he battled for self-control. He’d
     mastered the art of self-control in prison . . . for keeping his composure when everyone else went bat-shit crazy around him.
     This shouldn’t be so hard. He shouldn’t be so hard.
    He wouldn’t hurt her. He wasn’t that guy. He wouldn’t become that thing she was so afraid of. He wouldn’t become one of them outside this room. He’d spent years fighting to stay human inside a cage and wouldn’t turn into an animal now that he was
     on the outside. For however long he had until he was caught—and he fully expected that to happen eventually—he would cling
     to his code.
    The smell of sizzling meat drifted to his nose, mingling with her floral scent. Apparently they were cooking. Just like it
     was an ordinary day with the president’s daughter captive in the next room. His eyes adjusted to the darkness, fixing on Grace’s
     features as she lay beside him.
    He had to admit there was something about First Daughter Grace Reeves. Her big brown eyes appeared soft and intelligent. Even
     with fear lurking in the honeyed depths, those eyes were sharp, quick. Fear didn’t slow down the wheels turning in her head.
     She saw too much. She saw he was different from the rest of them. Granted, maybe he wanted her to see that. Maybe he needed
     her to. And not for her sake, but for his. He had to believe he was not like them. If prison hadn’t made him into one of them,
     it wouldn’t happen now. One female wasn’t going to snap his self-control and break loose a part of him that he had spent his
     whole life battling.
    He wasn’t like his addict mother. He wasn’t like his deadbeat dad, who had floated in and out of his life, showing up to sleep
     with his mom, steal her drug money, and then take off again—only to repeat the cycle six months later. He wasn’t weak like
     Zane either.
    Grace shifted. Her soft sigh filled up the small space between them.
    Thankfully, it was dark. Thankfully, he hadn’t seen her naked. Not that it stopped him from imagining the small curvy body
     he had earlier assessed at a glance.
    He jammed his eyes shut against the darkness as if that would rid of him of the thoughts. It was a struggle. She had a body
     that reminded him of a pinup girl from the forties. His grandfather had one of those vintage posters in his shed. Reid spent
     hours gazing at it as his grandfather worked on his old truck. His adolescent self had been