Sin & Salvation

Chapter 41

The sizzling noises of the bacon frying in the pan puts me in a trance and I zone out as I watch it bubble and fizz. It feels surreal to be back in the same place I was just a few weeks earlier, making the exact same meal, at the exact same time, for the exact same person. Except now, things are so much fucking crazier— and I think I am too.

Grease pops up off the pan and lands on my hand. I jerk away, wiping it off and looking at the now angry red mark on my knuckle. I'm getting déjà vu as I hear the sound of Brett's work shoes tapping down the hardwood stairs. He rounds the corner and comes up behind me, except this time he doesn't place his hands on me. He rests his chin on my shoulder, peering into the pan.

"Good morning beautiful," he coos, kissing my neck.

I pull away, pushing him off. "You know I'm not ready for that yet," I mutter, watching as he comes up beside me to pour himself coffee.

He sighs, filling his mug. "I know, I know. I'm sorry," he says, watching my face. "I just miss you. I don't know how to act around you, Cora. It's impossible for me to ignore all the feelings and love I still have for you."

I flip the bacon and turn to look at him. "Nobody said you had to ignore them. I'm just asking you to respect my boundaries for right now until I can trust you again."

He grabs me by the shoulders, kissing my forehead. It doesn't elicit that same warm, fuzzy feeling it used to, and while it hurts my heart a little, I also feel like I've grown so much in just the last few weeks. He gently tucks a stray hair from my messy bun behind my ear.

"I hear you, baby, I do," he nods sympathetically. "But it's been almost a week and you won't even let me kiss or hug you without pulling away. It's breaking my heart."

I scoff, appalled at the audacity of his words right now. "How do you think I fucking feel, Brett? You broke my heart into a million pieces when I watched your dick sliding in and out of another woman's pussy! So don't even try to talk to me about a broken heart," I seethe, angrily turning off the stove and taking the pan off, throwing it onto the counter and walking away.

"Enjoy your fucking breakfast," I shout, not even bothering to look back at him. I make it as far as the stairs before I feel a hand violently grab me by the neck, pulling me back.

There he is, I think to myself, finally breathing a sigh of relief knowing he's showing his true self again. As odd as it seems, I'd been waiting for him to show this dark side again, especially considering how volatile and moody I've been, but to no avail.

He brings his mouth down to my ear and I can see just how much he's trying to keep his composure right now as he breathes heavily.

"I have been nothing but patient with you, respecting your little 'boundaries' and letting you talk to me however you want. But it ends now, are we understood?" He growls into my ear, staring into me with those lifeless, cold eyes.

The old me would have cowered down and just nodded her head— but the new me doesn't give a flying fuck. I grin at him, watching the confusion on his face.

"No, we're not," I reply back sarcastically.

He chuckles as if he's appalled by my confidence. "Oh really?" The grip on the back of my neck tightens, but I'm not scared. "And why's that?"

I sigh, unbothered by his intimidation tactics. "Because even if I agree, you'll still find a reason to put your hands on me. So I figure, if you're going to hurt me no matter what, I might as well make it fun, you know?" I offer, grinning.

This enrages him even further and he slams me up against the wall, my head thudding against it hard. But I don't cry— no, I start laughing. Loudly.