“Forget it,” Taylor said, lifting her chin.She turned to Corbin. “Master, there is no need for thisnow—Rod…the one who sought to hurt me is gone. I no longer needprotection so this marriage is pointless.”
“In other words,” I said. “Can she pleaseget a divorce?”
Corbin frowned at them. “I am afraid not.The union the two of you entered into is both legally andspiritually binding. You need each other. If you try tobreak the Laws of Qwnership there will be serious repercussions forboth of you.”
“He’s right,” Victor growled, surprising me.“We’re stuck in it.” He jerked his head at Taylor. “Come on. Mytruck’s out back.”
“Wait a minute.” I stepped in front of her.“You do remember that you swore not to hurt or molesther—right?”
Victor looked irritated. “What is it withyou people? Look, if it’ll make you feel any better, I swear not tolay a finger on her—literally—the entire time she’s at myplace.”
“That does make me feel better,actually,” Taylor said quietly. I had expected her to be inhysterics by this time but she looked strangely calm. “All right,”she told Victor. “I’ll go with you.”
“About fucking time,” he growled. “Hurry.The moon’s going to be up soon and I need to be on my land.”
Taylor gave me one last quick hug.
I kissed her cheek. “Just hang inthere—it’ll be over soon,” I whispered. “Love you, roomie.”
“I love you, too,” she said and then shefollowed Victor out of Corbin’s office and was gone.
Chapter Twenty-seven
“Darling, you have to stop worrying aboutyour friend,” Corbin said later when we were down in his daytimeresting place. “She will be fine. Victor is rough around the edgesbut he is a decent male. He won’t hurt her or starve her todeath.”
“I hope you’re right.” I sighed and sat onthe edge of the bed, then winced when the mattress rubbed againstone of my many sore spots. “Ouch!”
“Are you all right?” Corbin was suddenlykneeling in front of me, a concerned look in his eyes.
“Fine,” I said automatically, then changedmy mind. “No, you know what? I’m not fine. I acheeverywhere.”
“That is my fault.” He looked so remorsefulI wanted to let him off the hook immediately.
“Hey, don’t start that again.” I reached outand cupped his scratchy cheek. “I do have a question about itthough.”
He nodded. “Ask. I will do my best toanswer.”
“All these, uh, marks you accidentally lefton me,” I said carefully, not wanting to make him feel worse thanhe already did. “Why didn’t you just, you know, heal me?”
Corbin frowned. “You mean molest you in yoursleep?”
“Oh please…” I snorted impatiently.“Seriously—molest me?”
“You know that when I heal you it is a verysexual thing, darling,” Corbin murmured. “I washed you and dressedyou as gently as I could but I didn’t want to take any moreliberties while you were unconscious. Especially after what hadjust happened. I suppose…” He sighed and looked away. “I suppose Ifelt I had lost the right to touch you in that way.”
“Oh Corbin…” I stroked his cheek. “Are youreally going to keep torturing yourself like this? Can’t we pleasejust move on and forget it?”
He shook his head. “I can’t forget. Notwhile you still wear the marks of brutality I put on yourskin.”
“There’s an easy answer to that,” I said.“Heal me, Corbin.”
He frowned. “You’re certain after whathappened between us, you still want me to touch you… to tasteyou?”
My cheeks were getting hot but I noddedanyway. “Yes. Now more than ever.” I slipped one arm free of thedark green kimono and held it out to him. “Help me out,” I said,nodding at the dark, finger-shaped bruises on my pale skin.“Please, Corbin, it really hurts.”
He sighed. “As you wish, darling. But thiswill be for healing only. I do not think we should do moretonight.”
“What?” I frowned. “Why not?”
“You know why not, Addison. Though you claimto be just ‘fine’ after our encounter, there is no way you could gothrough what you did last night with me—no way you could pay theDebt—without incurring some emotional trauma.”
I could see the sense in what he was sayingand it was true—after my frightening experience with his darkerside, I should probably want to run away screaming or at least putsome distance between us. Instead, all I wanted was his hands andmouth on my skin, his body covering mine. Why was that? Could it bethat paying the Crimson Debt had healed me too? But how could Iconvince Corbin of that?
The answer was, I couldn’t. We would have totake things slowly.
“Just heal me then,” I said, holding out myarm again. “Please?”
“All right. As long as it is only healing.”His face was serious as he took my wrist gently in one hand andbegan to lick a long, slow trail up my arm.
I felt my breath catch in my throat as thetingling warmth spread through me, making my nipples hard and mypussy wet. Feeling embarrassed at my instant reaction, I tried toconcentrate on the healing Corbin was performing on me. It wasamazing to watch how the bruises disappeared, melting away likemagic as he licked and kissed my tender skin. Before I knew it, myleft arm was completely healed.
“Much better,” I said, holding it out andexamining it in the firelight.
“There is more to heal.” Corbin’s eyes werehooded as he tugged gently at the other sleeve of the kimono. “MayI?”
“Yes.” My breath was coming fast as Islipped my other arm out of its sleeve and let the top part of therobe pool around my waist. “Yes, please.”
Corbin growled in approval at my voluntarynudity and went about healing my other arm as well. By the time hewas finished with that one, my body was throbbing and I would havebeen happy to skip the rest of the healing and get down tobusiness. But Corbin was having none of that.
“I want to heal all of you,” he said,stroking my cheek. “I want to erase every mark I put on your creamyskin, darling. I won’t feel right until I do.”
I could see the hurt in his eyes and I knewthis was something he had to do.
“All right,” I whispered, offering him mythroat, which was still raw and tender from the
