His crude words made me flinch, but I refused to back down. “So you took a quick option?”
He laughed, the sound devoid of humor. “Elowen, you seem to have forgotten you are not my true mate; the only thing binding us is the contract. What I do doesn’t hurt you physically. We can pretend to be so much in love before others, but outside that, nothing
His words hurt me more than I expected.I was nothing to him–just other clause in a contract, a temporary convenience.
་
“Well, you aren’t good at pretending, seeing how close you are to this Lysandra,” I shot back, unable to keep the bitterness from my
voice.
“I can be with whoever I want to be with.” His tone was so matter of fact, so dismissive, that something reckless stirred within me.
“Then how would you feel if I fucked Frost? Would you like that?” The crude language felt strange coming from my mouth, but I wanted to provoke him, to crack that infuriating composure.
To my surprise, his expression didn’t change. “I would not hold you back, Elowen; you are free to be with whomever you want, and this contract doesn’t tie you to me, just as long as I approve of said person.”
This wasn’t the reaction I’d expected. I’d thought he would be angry jealous–anything but this cool indifference.
“Do you approve of Frost, then?” I pressed, uncertain where this dangerous game was leading.
“Yes, I do,” he said, his eyes darkening slightly,
turn–on.”
the only condition is that I will watch you while you fuck him. That would be a
Heat rushed to my face, whether from embarrassment or something else, I couldn’t say. Images from Barbara’s Fantasies flashed unbidden through my mind–vivid scenes that suddenly included Frost’s ice–blue eyes and powerful body, with Kaius watching from
the shadows.
“You really are twisted,” I managed, trying to hide how his words had affected me.
“Yes, that I can agree to.” The hint of a smile played at the corners of his mouth, as if he could read my thoughts.
Anger flared again, fueled by my embarrassment and the memory of Ophelia’s scarred face. “You know your mother was right; you are just like your father.”
The change in Kaius was instantaneous. All trace of amusement vanished, his face hardening into a mask of cold fury. “I am nothing like my father.”
The dangerous shift in his demeanor should have warned me to stop but something reckless had taken hold of me. “You only say that, but your actions don’t prove it. Your mother knows you more than anybody, and she had said the same; she said, Deep down, your father is proud to have a son like you, even if he sees you as an opponent.”
“She speaks nonsense,” he snapped, his voice razor–sharp.
“I wouldn’t agree to that.”
In a heartbeat, Kaius closed the distance between us. He didn’t touch me, but his presence loomed over me like a real threat. “Do you want me to show you what my father would do if a woman like you talked to him the way you just did to me? Do you want to know what he would do if he had you in his possession?”
Ophelia’s scarred face flashed before my eyes–the jagged lines that had once been smooth skin, the ruined landscape of a woman who had dared to challenge her Alpha mate. I felt cold with fear, unable to move.
1/2
Chapter 32
“No. Please don’t. I’m sorry.” The words tumbled out in a rush, all my carlier defiance evaporating.
He stepped back slightly, seemingly satisfied by my sudden submissiveness. His next words, however, caught me off guard.
“You don’t like me with her.”
It wasn’t a question, but a statement–an acknowledgment of what been denying to myself since witnessing Lysandra’s casual intimacy with him.
“Do I have a say in that?” I asked cautiously.
“That’s not an answer to my question.”
I looked away, unable to meet his penetrating gaze. “No, I don’t,” I admitted quietly. “I don’t like the way she touches you too. What would the pack members think if you had a mate yet kept her so close?”
Something shifted in his expression–not softening exactly, but changing in a way I couldn’t quite interpret.
“Then I won’t go to her when in need,” he said after a long moment, but you know what that means?”
“What?” My voice came out as barely more than a whisper.
He moved closer, his voice dropping to a low, sensual tone as he spoke. “It means I would have you anytime I feel the need, and I am not easily satisfied, nor am I gentle. Can you take that, Elowen?”
I should have been afraid. I should have hesitated, should have weighed the implications of what he was proposing.
Instead, I nodded and the word “Yes” came out before I could stop myself.
My ready agreement seemed to surprise him as much as it surprised me. His eyes narrowed slightly, studying me with renewed interest. “I knew you weren’t very innocent after all.”
Heat flooded my cheeks. Was it that obvious? Had he somehow discovered the erotic novel hidden beneath my pillow? Could he sense how his words had affected me, how the dark promise in his voice had sent an unwelcome thrill through my body?
Before I could respond, he turned away, moving toward the door. “I’ll be back late. Frost would also be busy; I never intended to leave you all on your own.”
“I’ll be fine.” I managed to say, At least I had ‘Barbara’s fantasies‘ to keep me occupied..
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