Page 65 of Ravage
His eyes narrow on me when my body stiffens.
How did the congressman know? No, he couldn’t have. I showed up at that party and he happened to meet me because I was with a friend of his. So, he couldn’t have known about my past. About what happened on that island.
Then I remember the words that reminded me so much of things Gordon used to say. His hand on my face. My thigh. The nausea at his touch. At feeling like I wasn’t in control.
Like the other times.
“Kellan.” Aiden tries to cut him off with a slashing look.
Kellan pauses and must see something on my face, because his twists with rage. “Did he touch you?!” He storms over to me, and I try to shift back, but the chair and bindings keep my hands from going anywhere.
“Stop!” I take a deep breath. I’m here. I’m…as whole as I’ve been in a while. Gordon is dead. And if this guy is part of GE, then I’ll rid the world of him too somehow.
I’m able to take another calming breath at that reminder. I’m fine. “No, he didn’t. Just…I don’t need to hear any more of it.”
I’m not going to admit what that man had done. It’s my business, not theirs.
Aiden sighs. “All right, cut her loose and get her far enough away from here that she won’t come back.”
There’s a second of relief that he might believe me for once, and then that drops like a rock. “Wait, what?”
Kellan takes a knife from the block on the kitchen island and moves around me to slice away at the zip ties.
“We came here for the congressman and to get information from him, not you,” Aiden reasons matter-of-factly.
“Let me stay to hear what you get out of him too. Otherwise, my whole plan was just wasted.” I rub my wrists once they’re free and stand. “You’ve got masks or something, right?”
Aiden’s chocolate eyes sweep over my dress, making me self-conscious over it again in less than ten minutes. “He’ll be blindfolded, but he knows your voice. And I know you won’t be able to stop yourself from saying anything. Whether it would be to rat us out or ask him a question, I can’t take that risk.”
“I won’t.”
He strides over to me so quickly that I back up until I hit a wall. “You were always good at finding and pushing my buttons, Raegan. You knew how to get under my skin and around my orders just enough without actually crossing the line. What makes you think I can trust you won’t do that again now?”
His breath is hot in the air between us as he stirs up old memories. I remember his kiss, and what I’d done to earn that kiss by doing something without his permission.
The intense need to feel that way again, to feel something other than the crap that’s been filling my head today, rises up in my chest. I trail my fingers down his silk tie. It’s smooth and cool beneath my fingertips. Like luxury embodied in a simple accessory. And here he is, wearing it to interrogate and possibly torture a man.
It shouldn’t be as sexy as it is.
He snatches my wrist and presses me against the wall until I finally bring my eyes to his. “What game do you think you’re playing? You’re not sticking around until I know you’re taking orders from me and not them. I’m done playing nice.” His tone is low to keep this between us, but it only makes it come out like a dark promise that makes my toes curl.
His breath fans across my face, and my body becomes acutely aware of his close proximity. He’s practically panting with the need to control me. To put me in my place.
And I get a thrill out of acting out again to see what he’ll do. Just how far will he take his threats? I’m curious of what he’s offering—I mean, threatening—me with if I do what I want anyway to snoop around this place while they’re busy with Joe.
It’s a nice distraction from everything else today, and I’m here for it.
“Playing nice? When have you ever played nice with me? When you lied to everyone about me getting off the island after hitting me over the head?”
“I don’t mean to interrupt,” Kellan remarks beyond Aiden, “but we have an interrogation to finish before everyone wakes up.”
Aiden and I hold each other’s stares for another few seconds, just breathing in the thick air between us, before he releases my wrist and pushes off the wall. He adjusts the cuffs on his sleeves and walks away.
I close my eyes and inhale shakily. I forgot how dangerous it is to get so close to any of them. Once I’m sure that I have my shit together, I open them to find Kellan watching me with an odd look on his face.
“What?”
“Time to get you somewhere far from here.”
