Page 44 of Wicked Pursuit

Casimir is right on my heels, not bothering to put on a shirt or shoes. This feels as unbearably intimate as fucking him, but I can’t stop. I pick a direction at random and charge down the hall.

To his credit, he doesn’t touch me. But there’s no escaping his presence as my shadow. I can sense his anger growing. That’s fine; mine is too.

“Ruby, stop.”

“Fuck you.” I hear voices nearby and take a sharp turn to head in that direction. Even now, I don’t really think Casimir is going to hurtme, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to let me leave without him. I need to find the Concierge or...

I turn another corner and catch sight of the auctioneer. Reaper. That was his name. He’s standing in a large arched doorway, talking to a pair of people. They move into the room behind him, and he sees me coming. His grin is sexy and a little dangerous. “Nice collar.”

Help.

I open my mouth to say it, but instead what comes out is “What’s going on here?”

“This?” Reaper shrugs, the gesture toward the room elegant. “It’s a little tradition among old friends.” His gaze slips past me to where Casimir has stopped behind me, so close, I can feel the heat coming off his body. “Wolf.”

“Reaper.” There’s a rumble to his voice that feels particularly dangerous. “Ruby is hungry. We’re headed to the kitchens.”

“I’m not hungry anymore.” I peer past Reaper into the room behind him. There are couches and chairs arranged artfully around the space, and along the perimeter are a number of suspension racks, spanking benches, and other large kink equipment.

The room is full, the gathered people ranging from an older couple in elegant eveningwear sharing wine on a love seat to a handful of people my age who are wearing little more than their skin.

What’s great is that I don’t know a single one of them.

I take a step forward, but Reaper tosses out an arm, stopping me without touching me. “Sorry, love, but the Mad Wolf is a nightmare to play with, and our voyeur ranks are filled.”

“I don’t want to watch. I want to participate.”

Reaper studies me for a beat and then turns his attention on Casimir. “Well?”

Casimir makes another sound that’s suspiciously close to a growl. “A moment.” He takes my arm and practically drags me a few feet down the hall.

“Let me go,” I say under my breath.

He spins me to face him. He may be manhandling me a bit, but I don’t miss the fact that he’s being very careful not to actually hurt me. The fool inside me wants to look into that. The rest of me wants to punish him for all the horrible feelings tangling inside me. I don’t know what to think, what to feel.

“You want this.”

“Sure do.” I don’t know if it’s true, but he looks distinctly irritated. It’s there in his clenched jaw and the way he holds himself a little too still.

He studies my face. “If I agree to this, you are going to sit down and hear me out at the end of it.” His grip on my shoulders shifts, and his fingers start stroking up and along the rubies of my collar. “And you’re going to keep this on the entire time.”

“Can’t really take it off without the keyyouhave.”

“I’m serious, Ruby. We’re talking after this. No theatrics. No bullshit. No lying.”

Not likely.I smile up at him and lie through my teeth. “Fine. We can talk after this.”

Casimir curses under his breath. “You’re lying again. Whatever. Let’s go.”

I step away quickly before he can guide me to where Reaper watches us with undisguised interest. As I walk back to Reaper, I catch sight of a woman kneeling at his feet. I hadn’t noticed her, because he’s so damn entrancing. She’s a pretty white woman with long dark hair and angry blue eyes. My eyes go wide. She’s the one before me in the auction, the one who sold herself for a single dollar. WasReaperthe winning bidder? It doesn’t matter. He’s my priority right now, and so he gets my best charming smile. “We’re in.”

“Very well.”

I start to move past him, but he blocks my way again. “Not so fast, love. If you want in, you have to prove yourself.” There’s a teasing note to his voice. I might be shit at reading Casimir, but I understand power plays. Casimir undermined Reaper at the auction, and now he’s all but whipping out his dick to piss on Casimir’s foot.

I can work with this.

“That’s not?—”

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