Page 133 of The Never List
“Rylee,” he chides, folding his hands behind his back like he’s trying to keep from touching me. The tension in this dance he’s swept us into is tightening with every breath—and deep down, I think he loves it. “You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.”
“Neither do you,” I say. I have one last secret, one that could damn me in the end. Sure, he may be fine with me being an Ashlander, but a demi? I highly doubt it. Especially when they suspect the Faders might be comprised of people like me. They might think I’m one of them, sent here to ensnare them all.
He sucks his teeth, reaching out to gently grip my throat, tilting my head back to make me look at him. “Last chance,” he offers.
“I’m here, Jax. Still here. After all your attempts to push me away. I’m. Still.Here.” I glance behind him, silently indicating the utter scene he’d caused with Turner. I know that was merely a taste of what he’s capable of.
“I could make you leave,” he counters.
“Try me,” I fire back.
His grip increases, and then terror slides over my skin like an inky blanket.
It’s notofhim butfromhim.
The prick is raising the stakes, showing me exactly what he can do. I fight against it with every ounce of strength I have, wrapping my mental self with shields upon shields, using every tool Pierce taught me as I assure myself I’m notterrified. It’s only his power playing with my emotions. And once I have a semblance of control, once I can look at him without wanting to scream like death himself is holding my neck, Igrinat him.
“You can do better than that, Nightmare,” I say.
The terror instantly leaks from my veins, and the release is like a head rush.
“Fuck, Rylee,” he groans. Nothing but pure respect and desire churns in his indigo eyes as he dips his head down and crushes his mouth against mine.
I can’t resist his kiss, drinking it in like a much-needed breath. He sighs between my lips, sliding his tongue alongside mine, the edges of my teeth, claiming every inch of me until I’mburningfor him.
“Goddess, Jax,” I sigh between kisses. “Please. I need you.”
“I know you do.” He grips my wrist and leads me across the room to where the chains hang from a solid wooden beam near the ceiling. The cuffs dangling there are lined in leather. “You’ll have to trust me,” he says as he guides my wrists into the cuffs and hauls my arms above my head. “Can you do that?”
I nod, breathless, as he unsheathes a blade from his side, eyes scanning my body like he doesn’t know where to touch first. No more masks, no more walls, no more anger to keep him at bay. This is Jax, fully exposed and raw as he lets go of every ounce of control he has.
And I fucking love it.
Slowly, carefully, he glides the knife down my exposed skin until he reaches my tiny leather shorts. With an expert flick, they fall to the floor in pieces. I whimper, myentire body hot and tight at the same time as I hang there, completely at his mercy.
“You’ll want to hold very,verystill for me, butterfly,” he says, and I barely breathe as he drops to his knees before me. He drags his blade down the netting covering my legs, and the little strings give way, the sensation like being completely controlled and wild at the same damn time. It makes me lightheaded, makes me want to shift my thighs together to find some relief, but I don’t dare.
“Good,” he says, sheathing the blade again so he can remove the last remains of fabric until I’m totally bare before him. He’s still on his knees, and his eyes flick up to me before he dips his mouth between my thighs.
I tremble as he drags his tongue through the center of me in one sharp lick that makes me want to buckle right then and there. Jax moans against me, parting my thighs with his powerful hands, sliding another inch under me as he devours me from beneath. I rock against him with what little leverage I have, my wrists aching from tugging on the cuffs so hard. I want to drag my fingers through his hair, want to dig my nails into his back—
He sucks hard, emptying my head of all thought. I’m nothing but sensation as he licks and teases me until I can scarcely breathe. I’m right there, my pleasure built to a tipping point. I rock against him, seeking out that pressure that will send me flying—
Jax pulls away, grinning up at me with that devious smile of his as he kisses his way back up my body. He takes his time on my thighs, then my hips, then my stomach, all the way up to my breasts. Every kiss, every graze of his teeth over my skin is like trying to strike a match—I’m right there,ready to ignite, but he’s keeping me on the edge until I can barely see straight.
He palms one of my breasts, rolling my nipple until it’s peaked and rosy for him. He swoops down and sucks it into his mouth, doing the same to the other in a torturous dance that leaves me breathless.
“Jax,” I groan when he works his way up my neck and over the line of my jaw, stopping just an inch away from my lips. “Goddess, please.”
“Please, what?” He grins again as he glides his hand over my breast and down, dipping between my thighs, stroking me with a too-light touch.
“Let me come,” I beg him, so far beyond caring how much I’m revealing to him. I need him like I’ve never needed anything else in my life.
Jax steps away to slide off his pants and underwear, agonizingly slowly. My mouth goes dry at the sight of him. He’s so close but so far away, and I swear I’ll die if he doesn’t put me out of my misery soon.
He comes back to me, dragging his length through my wetness, and I whimper. Goddess damn me, I rock against him, trying to get him inside me, but he draws away again, piercing me with those eyes of his.
“I’ve never had anyone tie me up like you, Rylee,” he says, trailing his fingers over my peaked nipples.
