Page 82 of When She Tempts (The Fallen)
He leans his shoulder against the doorjamb. “Erasing footage of you and Polo from all of the public cameras in the area.”
Oh. My irritation eases a smidge. “Are there many?”
“More than you’d think.”
“What did you do to Polo? I haven’t seen him since yesterday.”
Hi gaze darkens, like he’s irritated with me for asking. “He and I had a conversation. I told him the next time he takes you off the property, he’ll lose a finger.”
Blood drains out of my face. “You didnot.”
“He disobeyed me,” he says, his voice taking on an edge. “He knew there would be consequences, but it seems the two of you have the same problem. You don’t know how to respect boundaries.”
The nerve of him. He says it as if he wasn’t the first one to trample right over my boundaries. Putting me in the room next to his. Climbing into my bed. Kissing me.
I don’t even care anymore that he was still under the influence of that tea when he did it. The tea may have lowered his inhibitions, but he must have been thinking about it for a long time before then. It’s the hypocrisy that grates on me.
I take a single, purposeful step toward him, my gaze never wavering, and slide my palms up his broad chest. It’s firm and warm, and my palms look impossibly tiny in comparison. His gaze drops to where I’m touching him, and that small movement is enough to send tension rippling through the air.
His scent wraps around me, thickening my throat.
This close, there’s no hiding the acceleration in his heartbeat. His body doesn’t lie, even when his mouth does, and that knowledge makes me want to have my hands on him all the time. Then all of his secrets would be mine.
“Am I crossing another boundary right now?” I lean in an inch closer. “What are you going to do? Cutmyfinger off?”
The pissed-off heat of his gaze singes my face. He takes my wrists in his hands and tugs me off him, but he doesn’t let go. “No. But if you try this again, Iwillpunish you.”
His tone is harsh, but my pulse leaps.
“Liar. You know you can’t do anything to me or my brother will kill you. You’re scared of him, aren’t you? That’s why you’re so terrified I’ll tell him what you did.”
His eyes flash, and his grip on my wrists tightens until it’s almost painful. “Careful, Martina,” he breathes. “There are some ways I can punish you that you’d never dare share with your brother.”
“Like what?”
He leans in, and my lungs stop moving. Lips brushing against me ear, he says, “Like bending you over my knee and making your ass so raw you won’t be able to sit for a week.”
My body grows perfectly still, even as my heart nearly leaps out of my chest.What?Did I hear him correctly?
He pulls back and takes in the stunned expression on my face. “Now, be a good girl and let me get back to cleaning up your mess. We’ll resume our classes tomorrow.”
I stare at him in shock as he closes the door in my face.
Did he really just…threaten to spank me?
My poor virgin brain can’t take it.
I walk back to my bedroom in a trance and sit on the edge of the bed, staring at nothing in particular.
The thought of him doing that to me is terrifying. He’s strong and could do some serious damage. But the way he said it… The heat in his eyes…
I squeeze my thighs together.Shit.
Burying my face into the duvet, I let out a groan. To be at his mercy like that is strangely arousing. It makes me think back to how heavy he felt lying on top of me, and the thrill I felt at the idea that I wouldn’t be able to get away. Is that normal? Or is there something wrong with me?
Sitting up, I rub my eyes and replay our conversation. How can he say things like that to me while denying that the kiss meant anything? It’s like he’s addicted to gaslighting me. He probably doesn’t even know what that term means, but that’s exactly what he’s doing.
Deciding to work my frustration out at the gym, I hop off the bed and walk past the closet when a flash of neon green catches my eyes.
