Page 15 of Emperor of Lust

With a frustrated sigh, I head back into my bedroom.

The moment I step through the doorway I jump out of my fucking skin, my heart lurching into my throat and forcing out a scream.

Damian sits on the edge of my bed in black jeans and a t-shirt, his posture relaxed, legs spread wide, perfectly at ease invading my private space. Another strangled, shocked sound escapes me as I clutch the towel more tightly around myself.

He looks up, a slow, dark smile curling his lips as his gaze sweeps over me with an intensity that leaves me breathless. In his hand is a mask.

My blood chills.

It’smy fox mask.

“Hello, Kitsune,” he murmurs, his voice filled with a rich, dark amusement that makes my stomach twist. “I think we need to have a nice, longchat.” He examines the mask thoughtfully,smiling deviously. “Just the two of us, without your family knowing about…well…any of it.”

My heart drops. My face pales.

Damian’s grin widens as he twirls the mask on his finger.

“Wouldn’t you agree?”

5

HANA

I stand there staringat him in frozen horror. Damian’s gaze moves over me with an unsettling calm, like he belongs here and has every right to be sitting on my bed. A dark smile twists his lips as he takes in my half-naked, dripping wet form.

“Get… Get out!” I finally whisper, gripping the towel tighter around me. My voice comes out shakier than I’m used to, my tone a mix of fury and something else I don’t want to identify, gnawing at the edges of my control.

Damian rises slowly, his movements lazy, as if he’s savoring each reaction, each spark of anger and confusion in my eyes. He begins a slow, deliberate walk around my room, his hand running over my things with unsettling familiarity. He moves to my dresser, brushing his fingers over the neatly lined up framed family photos. Each touch feels invasive, as if he’s prying into my private thoughts and inner being.

I clench my fists, wanting to yell again at him to stop. But the words stick in my throat, trapped under the quietly authoritative weight of his presence that fills the room and chokes the air.Every touch, every move he makes is a violation, yet I can’t stop him or pull myself from the grip he has over me.

“You can’t touch those,” I finally blurt, my voice feeling like it’s coming through a thick wall.

He turns, meeting my eyes with a dark, knowing gaze. “Can’t I?” he murmurs. His tone is taunting, each syllable a quiet challenge, and his words send a shiver down my spine. “What’s yours is mine, and what’s mine is yours… Isn’t that right,fiancée?”

He crosses to me with slow, measured steps, his gaze trailing down my exposed skin, his presence overpowering and inescapable. The clean, bergamot and citrusy smell of him invades my nostrils. I can feel the heat radiating off his body through the thin towel wrapped around me, the tension between us tightening, every breath filling me with both anger and something darker I can’t bear to admit.

I manage to steady myself, my words coming out controlled. “This is a duty we’re both doing for our families. So we’ll…do it. It’s just pretend.” I want to sound firm, but at the end my voice wavers.

Damian’s eyes flash with a dangerous satisfaction. “Oh, you know it’s deeper than that,” he says, his voice a low, seductive murmur that makes my pulse quicken. “And we’ll domuchmore thanjust pretend.”

I swallow hard, fighting the shiver that runs through me. “I can promise you,” I say through gritted teeth, lifting my chin, “we won’t.”

He chuckles darkly, sending a chill down my spine. “Does your mouth miss my dick?”

Heat flares in my cheeks, and my voice is low and fierce. “Youdo notget to speak to me like?—”

“Because my dickreallymisses your mouth,” he interrupts, his words taunting and deliberate.

I glare at him with a fury that borders on hatred. “Listen to me carefully, Damian.” I lean closer, my voice icy. “That’s never happening again, ever, in any capacity. That was aone timething. A transaction. I do…that, and you…you know.”

“Keep your dirty little secret?” he growls quietly, his tone seeped in a dark sensuality.

“Yes,” I hiss. “But that’s it. A one-fucking-time thing.”

His gaze doesn’t falter, the faintest of smirks tugging at his lips. “I disagree.”

I shrug, feigning indifference, though every part of me is simmering with fury. “Push it,” I say, each word clipped, “and I’ll tell everyone what you made me do the other night.”

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