Going Mad For Maddox

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

KODI

IT'S BEEN TWO days since Maddox had his fingers inside of me.

My skin is still on fire, remembering the way we tangled our bodies together, wanting— no needing to touch one another in order to survive and without it I was afraid I'd become nothing but a fragile skelton destined to live a life of painful fractures.

His fingers, his lips, his body, everything that is Maddox has unknowingly seared itself into my being until leaving that bathroom almost felt too painful. He had touched me with reverence and in all my nineteen years of life he was the first man to worship my body instead of use it for a sole selfish act of pleasure.

I'm frightened that I'll grow to feel something for him that will sink so deeply into my bones, that the act of clawing it out will seem like an impossible feat that'll only serve to be a my ultimate fatality.

"You okay, Peach?" I swallow on the lump of fear, clogging my throat until it's no longer obstructing my air way and face my brother.

"I'm okay."

"You sure? You seem a little out of it." He leans against the brick wall of Snake Eyes Tattoos, his eyes entirely too focused on my stiff body language, "you know you can tell me anything, right?"

"I know."

"I'm serious, Kodi."

Pretending to be nonchalant I cross my arms over my chest, "I'm okay, Ryat. I promise." It's not a lie. I am okay, but I'm scared... scared that Maddox might take ahold of my heart and slice it in half until mending it is deemed more painful than the actual break itself.

I'm constantly reminded what it felt like to be at both of my monsters mercy, making me want to scrape off my skin until I'm not only unrecognizable to them but to myself.

Maddox will see this and know that my sanity is slowly slipping from my grasp the closer my uncle reaches me, every text pushing my body closer and closer to the edge. I'm just awaiting for my inevitable fall. He'll know that I'm drenched in vileness, knowing the disgusting things I had to do in order to survive.

And I forbid him to ever find out the full truth of my past.

"Joey!" I turn around grateful for Demetri's interruption to see Jo getting out of her mustang. A little girl who can't be any older than eight exits alongside with her, wearing tiny pink cowboy boots that match the ones Jo is currently wearing, "and mini Joey?"

"Guys this is Gracie, my niece." Gracie brightly smiles at us and grabs ahold of her aunt's hand. "My brother's busy so we've been having a girls day."

Gracie has two braided pigtails wrapped in white ribbons that are identical to Jo's that if it wasn't for their contrasting features she would genuinely be the carbon copy of her pink haired aunt.

Suddenly the shop's door is swung open, "Ya'll fuc—freaking coming in?" Talon's brows furrow, quizzically glancing at the pair that has just arrived. "You have a kid?"

"No, this is Gracie my niece."

"Don't blame Tally Wally for thinking that." Demetri smacks his best friend's back, "he's always wanted to be a step daddy."