Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 92284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 461(@200wpm)___ 369(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 461(@200wpm)___ 369(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
“You don’t know me,” I repeat, the words coming out weaker than I intended.
When he leans in, his breath brushing against my cheek as he speaks. His voice is a promise, dark and electric. He bends so his lips brush my cheeks, and the next thing he says makes me shudder.
“You know as well as I do that’s a lie, and I told you if you were mine, that wouldn’t fly, didn’t I? We’re going inside, little queen. Someone needs a lesson.”
Chapter 10
RODION
She didn’t like it, but I put the mask back on.
I like how she acts when I wear it.
“This is not what I had in mind,” she says with an adorable frown. I stifle a smirk.
When I told her there was a lesson I had to teach her, I could tell exactly what she had in mind by the way her eyes lit up. It made me almost pull her over my knee right then and there because I know she craves it. I've watched the videos. I've seen her reactions. I’ve hacked into her e-reader and read every section she’s highlighted and recommended since I found her. I've seen the stitches incoming where she talks about being overpowered and punished by a strong, preferably masked man.
I know that some of this is only fantasy, but I also want to make sure she’s prepared. It's important that we know how to defend ourselves.
“So tell me. Who’s Shawn?”
I know what I found out, but I want to hear what she has to say in her own words. Her whole body freezes. Just for a second. Just enough for me to see the truth in her eyes before she schools her face into something defiant.
“How do you know that name?”
“I asked a question first.” My voice drops, low and calm, the kind of calm that precedes a storm. She hates it—I can see the flash of anger in her face—but I don’t care. Not when I’ve seen the texts. Not when I know something isn’t right.
“It’s none of your business,” she snaps, wrapping her arms around herself like it’ll protect her.
“Wrong.” I take a step toward her, closing the space between us, the mask making me feel sharper, colder—like a weapon. “he won’t leave you alone, and you’re mine, so he’s making it my business.”
Her chin tilts up stubbornly, but her voice trembles when she speaks. “And what exactly are you going to do about it? Beat him up? Kill him?”
“If I need to.” The words hang between us, heavy and unshakable. I mean it, and she knows it.
She scoffs, even as her cheeks color, turning on her heel and pacing to the other side of the room. “I don’t need your hero complex, Rodion. I can handle him, you know.”
I love hearing her say my name, even when she’s angry.
I want to hear it again.
“Maybe you can, maybe you can’t,” I snap, sharper than I intended. She flinches, and I force myself to breathe, to pull back from the edge. “Not yet.” My voice softens, though the mask keeps it cold. “But I’m going to teach you.”
She spins to face me, her green eyes blazing. I want to grab her chin and force her eyes to mine before I claim her mouth and teach her manners. “Teach me what, exactly?”
“To fight. This is why we’re having your first lesson in self-defense.”
Her laugh is sharp, almost self-deprecating, but there’s an edge of something—self-doubt maybe—underneath. “You’re crazy.”
“And you’re reckless,” I bite back, closing the distance between us again. She doesn’t back away this time, her gaze darting between my mask and my eyes. When her pupils dilate and she visibly swallows, it only confirms what I already know. Ember’s fucking turned on. “You don’t know what you’re up against, little queen. You don’t even know how to defend yourself. I’m not always going to be there to stop someone from touching you.”
“Oh yeah?” she challenges. “I’ve studied self-defense. I work out, hard.” Her voice is husky as she licks her lips and meets my gaze. I step forward before she can react, crowding her space. Her breath catches, and she raises her small hand as if on instinct to warn me off, but her movement is slow and wide. With barely an effort, I grab her wrist without hurting her, just enough to immobilize.
Her body stiffens, her eyes locking onto mine. “What the hell are you doing?”
“Proving a point,” I murmur. I twist her wrist slightly more, shifting her balance so she stumbles forward, her chest brushing against mine. When her free hand hovers between us, it’s as if she’s unsure whether she wants to fight or flee.
I know what I fucking want. I’m holding myself back, but I want to prove this point.
“Let me go,” she demands, but the tremor in her voice gives her away. A stray strand of hair crosses her face, and she blows her breath at it to get it out of her mouth with an angry frown.