Page 27 of Entangled
“Then I guessIcan’t make any guarantees…”
“What?” Fire flashes in her gaze with my lackadaisical shrug. “You’re seriously manipulating me?”
“That’s right, Princess.” I tap the tip of her nose. “I learned from the best.”
10
ROWAN
Mood Music: “Lioness” by Ashley Reed
I’m goingto kill him.
How dare he threaten my job? If word gets out about Myst, Esme will fire me. Then she’ll sue me for all I’m worth. The last thing I want to do is bring all sorts of negative media attention onto my father’s company.
I jam my finger into the center of his chest. “You’re a bastard.”
“Don’t forget asshole,” he adds with a cocky smirk I want to slap off his face. “Wouldn’t wanna leave that one out.”
“I should tossyouout in the snow and let you freeze to death.”
“Go for it,” he challenges, crossing his massive arms over his chest. “I’ve lived through worse.”
The reminder of his history takes some of the wind out of my sails. Just a tiny breeze though. I’m still furious enough to blow down this tower.
I draw a few calming breaths. Now that I’m stuck with him for the night, I need to find my patience. Fast. “What do you want from me?”
His dark gaze burns into mine. “You go first.”
“Really? We’re doing that again? For the record, I asked first this time.” When he doesn’t respond, I heave an exasperated sigh. “Why is everything about you so obnoxious?”
There’s no conviction in my words and he knows it. My armor weakens every minute I stand here with his focus riveted on me. That’s what it’s all about. The one thing I’ve been missing. Attention. I may be one of the richest women in America, but I don’t have shit.
I wave my hand back and forth in front of his face. “Hello? I asked you a question.”
“Asshole and obnoxious go together like peas and carrots.”
“I hate peas.”
A slow grin curves his full lips. “How come? One too many under your mattress?”
I roll my eyes. “Enough with the princess comments.”
Henry chuckles. “But you make it so easy.”
Snatching my braid, I pull it in front of my shoulder and hold up the end. “Go ahead. Add in some Rapunzel jabs. You know you want to. ‘Let down your golden hair, so I can climb into your tower and annoy the ever-loving shit out of you.’”
“Princess, if you want your hair pulled, just say the word.”
A lightning bolt of desire fries what’s left of my sanity. How is it possible this infuriating man knows one of my wildest fantasies? Is he in my head? Does he know how deeply I crave a man’s touch? Fifteen years is a long time to go without physical connection.
Especially when you’ve never even been kissed.
“What word would I have to say?” The question tumbles out of my mouth before I can stop it, and I gasp when my words register in my head. Maybe it’s my years of celibacy that dismantled my filter, or maybe I never had one to begin with. One thing is for damn sure, this man has an uncanny ability to make me voice my desires.
Which begs the question: is it sexual bravado, or do I actually have the nerve to act on them?
11
