Page 190 of Forcing Fate

He snorted and settled in to watch. I threaded the needle and pulled a new button out of my sewing bag.

“Give it here.”

“No,” I said, twisting away from him. “Let me mend!”

He leaned around me, pressing his chest against my back, and snatched up my sewing bag. Placing it between his thighs, he rummaged through.

“That’s mine, you know,” I muttered, but made no effort to stop him.

“Soon to be mine,” he said, pulling out a tooth button. He rubbed it and held it up, turning it over. “Wild cat?”

“Aye.”

He let out a booming laugh, the force of it shaking the bed.

“Stop, I can’t sew when you’re moving like that,” I chided.

Amusement colored his tone. “I’ll have a bit of wild cat on my vest.”

“It’s better than wooden buttons.”

“It will remind me of my wild cat.”

“You have a wild cat?” I tied off the first button. “Where do you hide it?”

“Away from the world.”

I looked up at his teasing tone and shuffled round to face him, snatching the button back.

“I hide her in a fortress in the woods. Where no one else can find her.”

“How awful,” I replied dryly.

“I don’t think she thinks it’s awful.”

“And how would you know?” I threaded the needle through the second button.

“The way she looks at me.”

I yelped and jerked my hand back. Blood beaded the tip of my finger. Rafe snatched my hand before I could stop him, and shot forward, taking my finger in his mouth. My heart slammed into my chest and I sat there frozen in shock.

He swirled his tongue around my finger and slowly drew it out. Heat spread through my body, flushing my face. Releasing it, he let me pull it away. A dark glint danced in his eye, screaming danger, demanding I run for my life.

“Payback,” he growled.

I dropped my gaze to his lips, still wet, and I swallowed hard. He smirked and leaned back against the wall.

This day was not going at all how I planned.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

A knock jolted me upright. I blinked, taking in my surroundings, confused. It all came crashing back in a wave, and I whipped around to gape at Rafe. He was awake, leaning against the wall, watching me with hooded eyes. A drool mark dampened his tunic. A small smirk lifted the corner of his lips, and he jerked his chin toward the door.

I must have dozed off after finishing his vest. How I managed to end up on top of him, I couldn’t guess. Wiping the drool from my face, I rose, placing Rafe’s vest on the table. I brushed out my trousers and faced the door.

“Avyanna of Gareth?”

There was another knock. I took a deep breath and opened it as Rafe shifted on the cot.

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