The Last Time I Cried Your Name novel Chapter 313

Now she had no choice but to give in, whether she wanted to or not.

After slipping the bracelet onto her wrist, he kissed her hand, then held it up so she could see the sparkling charm. “Not any worse than that sapphire brooch Franco gave you, right?”

Her mind jumped back to that night at The Eminence auction. She remembered him glancing over at her and saying,

I saw you staring at that brooch. You want it? I’ll buy it for you.

A hundred million... I can afford it. Don’t worry about the price.

He’d been pretending all along.

“So you knew...” Petty muttered through clenched teeth. She could feel something inside her changing, a pull that made her shiver. She couldn’t let Owen see her weakness now. She needed to buy herself some time, wait for her strength to come back. Whatever Owen had given her was more than she was ready for.

Owen leaned down, his voice low and soft by her ear. “Because I’m the one who picked up that brooch at the accident scene.”

Her thoughts started drifting, heavy and slow, almost like she was going to fade out. She bit down on her tongue hard enough to taste blood, fighting to stay awake. Owen’s voice sounded far away, like he was somewhere underwater: Something about Franco... about not having a receipt... and making the brooch by hand.

None of it made sense. She couldn’t focus. All she could feel was that heat crawling through her, pooling between her hips, threatening to take over. Petty bit down again, and the pain mixed with the sharp flavor of blood jolted her for just a moment, dragging her a little closer to herself.

Still, it didn’t matter how hard she fought. Sweat kept rolling down her forehead, trails slipping down her neck. She couldn’t hide it.

“Not feeling good?” Owen brushed his fingers along her neck, wiping away the sweat with a gentleness that almost made her recoil. “Just be good, okay? It won't last long. I promise I’ll make you feel good.”

In her hazy mind, a memory flickered. She was on a stormy, endless sea, someone holding her captive, a gun’s flag blocking her view... and then, as the flag dropped, her captor was killed before she could even see his face.

Was it Malcom? Or...

Petty tried to claw the blanket away, but her body wouldn’t listen. Whatever poison Owen gave her was still burning inside, making her shiver and twist, unable to stop.

Owen’s once-handsome face was covered in blood.

Drops of red slid from the black gloves of the man who’d saved her.