Page 37 of Tangled Roses

“No!”

His voice is like whiplash, and my heart falls in a bloodied puddle at my feet.

He’s angry.

I did this. I made him angry and I hate the dull throbbing ache inside my heart.

“You’re angry. Why?”

I just won’t give it up, and he shakes his head.

“No. I’m disappointed.”

He turns and the gleam in his eye is terrifying and in this moment I see him for what he is. Arman Romanov. Powerful human being and so out of my league it’s ridiculous.

“In me?”

My chest heaves as I struggle not to break and he studies me with those enigmatic eyes and then takes a deep drag of his cigarette and tosses it over the side.

The smoke rings he sets off into the air dispel on the breeze and he says huskily, “No, malysh. I’m disappointed I never experienced the thrill of being inside you.”

It sounds so final. As if this was all we had. A moment in time when two lost souls came together to see what would happen. An experiment if you like that is over now. His words have a final edge to them that makes the tears sting behind my eyes.

He jerks his head toward the exit and says with a sigh.

“Go and sleep. I’ll see you at breakfast.”

He turns and removes another cigarette from a pack that is resting on the ledge and, as he flicks the flame of his lighter, it illuminates the frown on his face.

With a sinking heart, I turn and walk away. Just as he instructed me to and as the tears spring forward and coat my face, I sense that whatever this was is over now.

CHAPTER 22

ARMAN

Ihear the door click behind her and angrily toss the offending cigarette to its death. I was so angry I needed the air to clear my mind.

How did this happen? I let her control me. I gave her the edge and when she walked away, I held on tight to prevent my heart from following her.

The feelings that laid heavy on my heart were alien ones. I came so hard, harder than I ever have in my life, and it was because of her. Ellie Adams. The woman who hates the world and is trying desperately not to hate herself. She did something she will probably regret in the morning and it must never happen again.

I have no time for this shit. I don’t want to feel anything. I am cold, unemotional and controlled because I have to be. Business is my aphrodisiac—not a person. I get off on a business deal, not sex. That is just a necessary way to relieve some of the stress my business dealings cause.

Not this desperate need to consume. To devour and to own. Not this aching need to possess and to conquer another human being. To trap them in my web of danger and keep them there, while I feed off them until there is nothing left.

That is me. I consume, I am not consumed.

She has exposed a weakness in me I never knew I had and it ends now.

As I leave the roof terrace, I get my shit under control. Tomorrow I deal with the problem that is Ellie Adams. Tomorrow I arrange for her to meet her mother and God help me, I will tear the truth out of that woman with my bare hands if I have to. Solving my father’s murder is the only thing that matters.

The only thing.

I spent the night in one of the other rooms and most of it was spent mulling over what happened yesterday. The party wasn’t a huge surprise. I was right when I told the men we didn’t need their business. We have the capabilities to make things extremely difficult for them, and they know it.

Last night was a power play. They were testing me. Not the crude test they dreamed up, either. It was to test how strong I was. How strong my brothers are. I laid it on the line, put them in their place and reassured them it was business as usual. One thing ticked off the list, but the most important one is still firmly waiting.

I rise early and head to the gym, my own personal one equipped with everything I need to keep in shape.

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