The Prison Project (by Bethany Donaghy) novel Chapter 158

Chapter 158

Margot’s POV

I woke slowly.

Not all at once- just in fragments as my senses started to pick up again one by one…

There was a grounding warmth at my back.

A steady rise and fall of breath.

An arm firm around my waist, keeping me in place like if he loosened even an inch, I could run off.

For a few disoriented seconds, I forgot where I was.

Then I breathed in.

Coban.

Soap. Clean skin. Something familiar that was unmistakably him.

My eyes fluttered open.

I was in his bed.

Curled up into him.

Back at our room.

Together.

My head cranked around until it was tucked beneath his chin, his chest solid against me, one of his legs braced behind mine like a barrier shielding against the rest of the world.

The greyish light from outside leaked in through the narrow window, dust particles drifting lazily through it, making everything feel strangely calm… always too calm for a place like this.

He was asleep.

Actually asleep this time.

And that alone made my chest ache.

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Coban Santorelli didn’t sleep like this- unguarded, loose, one hand splayed protectively over my stomach as if it belonged there, lips

parted.

His grip wasn’t tight, wasn’t possessive in that sharp, frightening way he sometimes carried himself. It was steady. Intentional.

Almost… careful?

Like he had been afraid of waking me when he’d done it…

I stayed still, afraid that if I moved even the slightest inch, the moment would shatter.

He looked beyond peaceful like this…

My body felt heavy in a way it hadn’t for days. The cramps had dulled to a manageable ache now, warmth still lingering from the heat patch beneath my shirt.

I still couldn’t believe he’d managed to get the patches for me, it seemed like a little blessing hidden amongst this place.

I stared at Coban in awe, thankful to be back to my normal routine, in here, with him.

At least for a while… I was safe.

The single word settled in my mind before I could stop it.

Yes, I felt safe right now.

But that little thought also terrified me…

Up close, the damage from yesterday was clearer. The bruising around his eyes had continued to darken, his nose still swollen and angry- looking. A faint cut along his brow had began to already scab over.

For a man jumping to help protect and care for me, I’d be lying if I said that he didn’t still look rough. Dangerous. Psychotic, even.

But somehow… I also seen him as being gentle. At least toward me recently…

His jaw wasn’t clenched like usual. His mouth wasn’t set in that permanent scowl. His lashes rested against his cheeks, and for the first time since I’d met him, he looked worn out. Tired. Human.

My chest tightened again.

He’d done all of this for me. Gotten himself banged up this bad all for me.

The swap.

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The protection by fighting to have me paired up with Leo.

The quiet way he’d handled something that had humiliated me instead of making it worse only hours ago….

This man was unlike any other I’d known.

But Cara’s words continued to echo in the back of my head whether I wanted them to or not…

Coban did it.

The murder.

I swallowed the lump back just thinking about it…

Part of me recoiled at the thought – at knowing what he was truly capable of if anyone ever dared to cross him…

But another part of me curled up deeper into his arms, already beginning to justify his actions…

Idiotic, I know. But justice had been served. It was just like the super–hero defeating the bad guy, right?

But that didn’t change that Coban was a killer.

My fingers twitched against his forearm, resting there like they belonged. His skin was warm, solid beneath my touch. Boldly, I let my hand slide over his, lacing my fingers through his loosely… and then:

He stirred.

I froze.

He didn’t seem fully awake yet, but he moved just enough to tighten his arm around me slightly, his chin dipping to brush my hair. A quiet sound rumbled from his chest, something between a sigh and a hum, and I felt it vibrate straight through me.

“Awake, Bella?” he murmured, voice rough with sleep.

My heart jumped.

“Yeah,” I whispered back, barely trusting my voice. “I’m awake.”

His grip tightened for half a second, but it was just enough to be felt, before relaxing again. Like he needed the confirmation of me still being here more than he wanted to admit.

Neither of us moved after that.

We didn’t need to.

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The world outside the cell could wait. The guards, the rules, the inevitable moment when I’d have to be handed back to Leo, all of it hovered at the edges of my mind like a storm waiting to break through the prison doors…

But right now?

Right now I was wrapped up in the arms of the most dangerous man in this place, and for reasons I couldn’t fully explain, I trusted him not to let anything hurt me.

I closed my eyes again.

Just for a moment longer.

“Feel better now?” He hummed next, as I sighed slowly.

“I do, yeah, thank you for helping me earlier, I’m sorry if I embarrassed you…” I mumble in to his chest, cheeks fluttering red ever so

slightly at the memory of being rushed inside from the yard, blood staining through my damn trousers.

Of all places to leak through my clothes, it had to be out in the prison yard!

“It takes more than a little blood to embarrass me Bella,” He chuckles, chest moving under me and voice still groggy from sleep.

He always sounded hotter this way…

His words light but his voice rough…

“I know, I just thought you were horrified when you rushed us in… I felt terrible for not realising sooner!” I admit, as I feel his head

shake.

“I wasn’t horrified,” Coban said quietly. “I was just worried.”

That surprised me more than it should have.

I lifted my head just enough to look at him, searching his face for any sign that he was teasing, but his eyes were still half–lidded with

sleep.

“You didn’t do anything wrong,” he continued. “Your body did what bodies do. That’s it.”

No one had ever said something like that to me so plainly. No irritation.

Just… acceptance.

“I still felt stupid,” I admitted softly. “I didn’t even realise until it was already happening. I can’t keep track of the days anymore…”

His hand shifted against my stomach, thumb pressing lightly through the fabric of my shirt, careful not to press too hard where the ache

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still lingered.

My fingers tightened slightly where they were still laced with his…

I don’t want to be a problem, I whispered.

That earned a low huff from his chest.

“You’re not a problem, Bella,” he said, firmer now. “And anyone who makes you feel like one doesn’t deserve your time.”

The words landed heavier than I expected…

Did he really think so?

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