Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 72233 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 241(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72233 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 241(@300wpm)
“Was I a target? Did you intentionally send Jukes to—” Her words cut off as he flung her to her back, pushing her onto the bed as his hand closed around her throat in warning.
He didn’t need to apply pressure. The warning was in his eyes. “Hush now.”
He abruptly released her, and she panted, unsure how much more she could push him without truly regretting her words. Only when he sensed she understood how truly serious he was did he release her and return to the table.
She watched his back as he finished the glass of wine in two long swallows and then stripped off his shirt. The flash of tanned flesh distracted her. Muscles bulged about his shoulders, ropes of sinew twisting down his arms.
White marks formed long, thin scars across his sun-kissed skin, every single one a secret he refused to share, yet she wanted all of them. Such beauty made it too easy to forget he had the body and the mind of a killer.
When he finally faced her again, his expression was unreadable. The engorged head of his cock peeked past the waistline of his black leather pants. It was the first time she’d ever actually seen a man’s body like that.
“It’s time we finish what we started.”
Uncertainty spiraled inside of her. She scooted back, her inner turmoil spinning into fear.
He no longer felt like someone she could trust—a foolish misapprehension if there ever were one. But that illusion of safety had helped her, and she wished she could have it back now.
Crawling further into the pillows, she tried to hide, but there was nowhere to go. She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t give herself to a man like him.
“Look at me.” His words penetrated her panic, creating a false sense of intimacy between them.
She liked his hands on her, and now she hated herself for allowing him to touch her. She was losing her mind. “You tricked me.”
“I’ve been nothing but honest with you.”
That wasn’t true. He was hiding his motive. Until she understood why he chose her, there would be lies between them.
“What’s gotten into you?”
As if he knew her well enough to even ask such a thing. “Nothing.”
“That’s a lie. You’re upset.”
“How would you know?” The gall of him to call her a liar when he was the one hiding his motives.
His frown deepened. “I think we’ve established that I can read you like a book.”
“I’m not as transparent as you think.”
His eyes narrowed. “Don’t push me, darling. I’ve been more than gracious with you—”
“You kidnapped me!”
His jaw ticked. Keeping his voice dangerously low, he warned, “I suggest you get over whatever fixation put you in this mood. My patience is expiring.”
“Mine already has.”
He grabbed her ankle and yanked her forward, making it unmistakably clear who had the final say. “Do you think I care?”
“You’re hateful!”
She tried to get away from him, but he pulled her back and snarled, “That may be true, but you signed yourself over to me knowing exactly what I was.”
They faced off in a moment of truth. He was a tower of secrets, and she was as transparent as glass. He saw through her and never lost the upper hand. When she took a swing at him, he caught her arm in an unbreakable grip.
“Careful, darling.” He watched her with the eyes of a depraved man. “Fight, and I’ll enjoy it just as much. Yield, and you won’t get hurt.”
She’d promised her surrender, and he intended to make good on that promise, no matter what.
Jagged breaths sawed in and out of her as he waited for her resistance to fade. There was no getting out of this. She was defeated and outmatched without a fight.
Closing her eyes, she turned her face away, letting go of all the tension in her body.
He eased back and frowned. “What is this?”
What did it matter? He won.
She lay limp before him until he fisted her hair, forcing her to look at him. “Answer me.”
“I don’t know what you want me to say!”
“Why are you acting differently?” His eyes searched hers, misleading her to believe, once again, that he cared.
“I’m acting like myself.”
“This isn’t you.”
“Maybe it is. Maybe I’m not as transparent as you thought.”
His eyes narrowed, and the energy between them chilled. “You think this attitude of yours will stop me?”
“No.”
“Then why not enjoy yourself.”
“Will that make it easier for you?” She met his stare with cold, hard truth. “If you’re the self-proclaimed monster you say you are, what does it matter how I feel?”
“I suppose it doesn’t.” He seethed, shoving his pants off. Somehow, her words offended him but did not deter his plans. “I told you before, good manners are wasted in carnal matters.” Jerking her forward, he pried open her legs. “Fight, cry, scream. Your fate is inevitable.”
He stroked himself as he leaned over her. His touch was cold, nothing like before.