UNTIL YOU ARE MINE (TWISTED VOWS 1)

Aria's POV "What have I done?...Where am I?" I whispered. I inhale an unknown scent. It smelled wonderful. I slowly blinked. The scent of whiskey and sweat were in the air. My head throbbed like a drum. When my eyes adjusted to the sunlight that shone brightly in the room, I realized the worst thing imaginable. I wasn’t alone. A tall, broad-shouldered man laid beside me. His dark hair spread on the pillow. His heavy and muscular arm wrapped around my waist as if I belonged to him. My stomach twisted. Then, it dawned on me. This wasn’t my bed. This wasn’t my apartment. And this man, this stranger, wasn’t my boyfriend. Panic enveloped me. My boyfriend. The memory hit like a shattering glass in my chest. I heard him last night. His voice. His promises to my neighbour. My neighbor’s giggles. My boyfriend’s hand tangled in her hair. They were in am intimate position when I walked in. The betrayal so sharp I thought it would kill me on the spot. So I ran. Tears filled my eyes and overflowed. I entered the nearest bar to let out my sorrow and heartache in whisky. That was all I remembered. How did I get into this room with this stranger? My throbbing head failed to get more information about last night. I sucked in a shallow breath. I tried to break free from his grip. If I could just slip away, I could pretend this never happened. I would pretend last night was a nightmare and not a reality. But the man’s hand tightened suddenly, like a steel trap locking me in place. “Leaving so soon?” His voice was low and husky. It was pleasant to the ears. My ears, I confessed. My heart skipped. He wasn’t asleep. I froze, every nerve in my body screaming to run. “I...I need to go,” I stammered, clawing at his fingers. “Let me go.” He didn’t. His grip only grew firmer, sliding from my waist to my wrist. He pinned me to the sheets. His eyes opened. It was the deepest shade of blue. It was beautiful but dark, cold and unreadable. The kind of eyes that studied its prey. “You think you can just walk out?” he asked, tilting his head. His tone wasn’t angry. It was curious. Fear screamed in my veins. This wasn’t right. No stranger should look at me like that. Like he owned me already. I thrashed, kicking at the sheets. “Let me go!” I refused to fall into his temptation. His lips curled in a half-smile, dangerous and amused. “You hit me once already, sweetheart. Do you really want to try again?” Hit him? I blinked, my mind searching, trying to remember when I hit him. I still didn't remember. My head was still banging but the need the run away from this stranger was greater. "You're quite a fighter, you know. But I like it." He continued. His fingers tightened around my wrist like a shackle. I twisted hard, but he only dragged me closer, his breath grazing my ear. "Last night was heaven, my sweet girl." My breath hitched. Every instinct screamed at me to run, but I was trapped. I was caught in a stranger’s bed, in a stranger’s hand, in a nightmare I didn’t sign up for. I twisted, pulled, clawed, but his hold only tightened. “Let me go!” I snapped, my voice breaking. His lips curved into something dangerously close to a smirk. "I'm sorry, my sweet girl. I can't." "I am not yours. Don't call me that." My heart beat hard against my ribs. My eyes scanned the room until they landed on the lamp by the nightstand close to my side of the bed. I didn’t think. I moved slowly, unnoticed. My free hand shot out, fingers curling around the cool metal base. I lifted it with a surge of desperation, the weight dragging at my arm, and then... Crash. The sound exploded in the room as the lamp smashed against the side of his head. A loud groan rang out, louder than my scream. His grip loosened instantly, his hand falling away as his body slumped back against the bed. For one terrifying second, time stopped. The lamp slipped from my fingers, dropping onto the carpet. My chest heaved, I became dizzy suddenly and all I could hear was the pounding of my pulse in my ears. He lay motionless, the faintest groan escaping his lips. His blood flowed on the carpet. “Oh God…” I whispered, backing away, my hands trembling. I tried breathing but I thought my lungs were failing me, the room spinning around me. I didn’t wait to see if he would wake. I quickly grabbed my bag, nearly tripping over the sheets tangled at my feet, and bolted for the door.