Page 51 of Falling for the Enemy

Despite this, his obsession and soft edges, whether or not they seep with deceit, can be utilized to my advantage. By regaining control of the situation regardless of the nylon that binds my wrists, I’ll be able to bend him to my will, manipulating him as he likely does me.

Then, when the time is right, I’ll attack.

But first, I must bring him to his knees.

Before he brings me to mine.

“I have a better idea,” I whisper, sliding off the table and onto his lap, the move less graceful than I intend and more exhilarating than I want. “How about we skip the first two and go straight to the third, da?”

He cups my jaw, the clamp-like hold almost painful. “Don’t fuck with me, Arianna.” He pulls me closer, his lips stealing my focus. I can still taste them; I suspect I always will. “If you want my cock, I’ll give it to you, but do not fuck with me.”

“Ari,” I whisper in reply, leaning forward and kissing the side of his neck, the butterfly-like caress the gentlest I’ve ever given. “Call me Ari.”

Becoming thicker, the air shifts.

And like a string pulled too taut, he snaps.

Whether it’s the command I spoke or the second featherlight kiss I’ve just placed to the sensitive juncture of his throat and shoulder that causes his demons to surface, I’m unsure. But when he abruptly palms my ass with one hand and the middle of my back with the other, then stands with haste, I ready myself for battle.

A battle that I will win.

And that I may just enjoy fighting.

THIRTEEN

Ari

I may have underestimated my opponent.

The fear, something I rarely experience, takes hold as Alejandro drops me onto his bed, its silk-covered pillow top mattress cradling each of my curves. Following me down, his calloused hands tear at my dress, the expensive fabric standing no chance of remaining intact.

A ripping sound fills the air.

Cool air bathes my exposed flesh.

My nipples pebble when he freezes, his hungry stare caressing my bare chest. Ravenous desire, an emotion I’m not expecting despite lying beneath a man whose touch my heated body begs—nyet, screams for—takes quick possession of me as his eyes heat.

Needing to maintain control, I can’t let him get the upper hand. I need to slow things down, to refocus. A key aspect in forcing his guard to lower, it’s his desire and weakness that I should be exploiting, giving me the chance to escape.

Not the opposite.

“Alejandro—”

I gasp, the sting of tearing fabric biting into my hips when he grasps my thong and jerks it free of my body, rending the silk ruined before tossing it to the floor.

“Spread your legs.”

His chest heaves, his gaze riveted on me. A warning rings through my mind, the siren loud and clear. But my thoughts do little to drown out the lust driving me. Lower lip tucked between my teeth, I eagerly comply to his growled demand, unashamed of baring myself to his hungry gaze.

This isn’t a case of my body betraying me.

Nyet, this is a case of me being selfish.

If Alejandro wants to kidnap me and claim me as his own, the least he can do is fuck me, gifting my body the pleasure it’s been denied for so long before I fire a bullet into his heart. Pleasure I have a feeling only he’ll be able to deliver.

Eyes landing on my wetness, irrefutable proof of my consuming need for him, he sucks a sharp breath between his teeth, palms once again landing on my thighs. “I knew you’d be gorgeous here as well”—he trails a forefinger along my glistening lower lips, the tip of one dipping to circle my entrance—“but fuck.”

I smile as my eyelids grow heavy.

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