Page 264 of Hateful Games

“Because both will end up with you pushed against the wall and fucked.”

I snap my gaze to his, realizing I said it out loud. “So? You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

“Weren’t you sore?”

As if I had forgotten, my body reminds me by clenching. Desire still runs strong. But I know I’m not ready to have him inside me so soon. If I do, it’ll be another few days before he touches me, and I can’t handle that. “A little.”

His gaze heats at my answer. “I like that you feel me for days, Rose.”

“Me too,” I whisper shyly.

Hooking a finger in my waistband, he tugs me closer. I don’t even care when I find myself pressed against his sweat-slicked chest and that I’m a mess too. “Are you going to tell me why you’re up so early? Are you okay?”

The second question having to do with last night’s events. I tilt my head, grabbing his waist. “I’m better. I had a mystery to solve, so I woke up early.”

“The mystery of what an early sunrise looks like?” he teases.

“Very funny, and no.”

“Then what?”

“You.”

He laughs, raising one eyebrow. “Me? I’m an open book, sweetheart.”

“You’re charming but you’re also mysterious. You don’t let people get close to you and hide your true emotions.”

His jaw tightens as he becomes serious. “I can’t afford to trust everyone, Rose. Everyone has an agenda for wanting to be close to me. Half wouldn’t hesitate to stab me in the back. Even if they didn’t, I find it hard to trust and let people in.”

“I know the feeling.”

His hand travels to the back of my neck as he confidently says, “Because you’re just like me. We’re both jaded. You and I were meant to be, Rose. Even if we hadn’t been arranged to marry, I still would’ve found my way to you.”

He says it without a shadow of a doubt, making my heart lurch. I want to believe him but I was hardly the center of attention anywhere. Not even at home. “I’ve been always invisible, Nova. While you’re like the sun, everyone gravitates toward you. Even in high school, you demanded attention the moment you walked into a room. It wasn’t because of your family name; it was all you.”

He shakes his head, resting his forehead against mine. “You’ve never been invisible, Rose. Never to me. And trust me, I tried very hard.”

His lips clash with mine, not giving me a chance to argue.

He erases my doubts with every swipe of his tongue.

I’m a breathless mess when he pulls back. Still holding me against his body, he says, “I have something to show you. I was going to wait until the afternoon but since you’re up, I don’t want to wait.”

“What is it?” My curiosity is piqued.

He smiles at my impatient tone. “It’s a surprise and it’s not here. Shower, breakfast, and then we’ll go.”

“But it’ll take too long,” I cry out. “The suspense will kill me.”

“Always so dramatic, Rose,” he teases.

“A hint, then.”

“No.”

My retort is lost in a yelp when he bends and throws me over his shoulder. I’m hanging upside down as he walks out of the gym and climbs up the stairs. When we enter the bedroom, my dogs perk up. I don’t get a chance to kiss them good morning before I’m being carried into the bathroom and staring at the slamming door.

Nova puts me down when we’re inside the shower. As soon as my feet touch the tiles, he orders, “Strip.”

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