Page 23 of Alpha Chained

He chuckles at that. The sound should make my blood run cold, but it doesn’t. It warms me.

Because I’m clearly nuts.

“I’m not here to fight,” he says.

“Sure. Because you’ve probably done enough of that tonight already. Who did you kill this time?”

His expression flickers and I feel a pang of guilt. Over the past few days, I’ve come to the conclusion that he hates what he does here. Now I feel bad for raising it. Which is stupid because what I should be feeling is fear. Mindnumbing fear. But as much as I just spent the past half hour convinced that he was going to assault me, now that I’m facing him, I’m not so sure anymore.

Maybe I was wrong. Maybe he’s not planning to do anything terrible.

“Get on the bed,” he says, proving me wrong.

“What?! No!” I blurt, backing away some more. My heart is galloping so fast I’m sure it’s going to burst out of my chest. “No!” I repeat. “I won’t!”

“Do it…now.” His voice is dark and dangerous, and it lifts the tiny hairs on my skin. “Or I will force you.”

Chapter 10

Riot

He’s dressed her like a goddamned whore. Of course he has. Because Franklin Fucking Parker may wear the finest suits and drink the finest whiskey and smoke the finest cigars, but at heart, he’s scum. More of an animal than any of the creatures he trades in here.

Raura’s eyes are huge as she stares up at me. She’s terrified. And it’s my fault. I want to say I’m sorry. That I don’t mean to terrify her. But right now, there’s no way of knowing whether Parker and his men are watching us. I’ve looked around the room for cameras or some sort of device he might be using to monitor us – I’ve found nothing, but that’s no guarantee. The man’s just sick enough to want to see what’s happening.

I don’t intend to give him a show. But if I draw this out long enough, maybe he’ll get bored and turn his attention elsewhere.

“You can threaten me all you like; I’m not doing it!” Her jaw juts out in defiance despite the terror shadowing her lovely eyes.

Fuck, she’s beautiful.

I can smell her fear, see it in her face, but she’s not backing down. If anything, she seems to be working herself up more.

“I won’t let you touch me! You’re a monster, just like him!” Her voice rises with each word until she’s almost shouting at me.

I know I should shut her up before Parker or one of his goons decides to investigate the racket, but I can’t help but admire her spirit. She’s got fire in her, this one.

A fighter’s heart.

“I should have known this was what you had planned from the start!” she yells. “All that bullshit with sharing your food. You were just buttering me up, weren’t you?” Her hair flies about her face. “You thought you’d be able to cozy up to me.”

“Raura, do you honestly think I need to do anything to…cozy up to you?” I stifle a chuckle. “They just gave you to me. I can do what I want with you.” It’s probably an asshole thing to say, but she seems to have lost touch with the reality of her situation.

She gasps. “You…! You wouldn’t dare!”

I raise an eyebrow.

“I can’t freaking believe the nerve of it!” She’s waving her unbroken arm around like a crazy person, and I know I need to put a stop to this. Parker is probably expecting some sort of sex god performance, and this doesn’t fit into the act. Just as she’s about to poke me in the chest, I snap out a hand, grabbing her wrist in a firm grip.

“What the—?” she blurts just before she loses her balance, stumbling forward until she crashes against my chest.

And just like that, the world stops.

Her body is pressed against mine, soft curves molding to hard planes of muscle. I feel her breath hitch, hear the tiny gasp that escapes her lips. And fuck me, my body reacts instinctively, desire surging through me like wildfire.

She feels it, too. I see the shock in her eyes as she registers the hard length of my cock pressing against her belly. For a moment, we’re both frozen, caught in a web of sensation that neither of us understands.

I know I don’t.

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