Page 9 of The Wrong Play

“Easy, darling.” His voice was low, edged with something dark, something possessive. His body pressed against mine, and I could feel his hard length against my stomach.

I should have shoved him away. I should have screamed.

But I didn’t. I was frozen.

Trapped in his orbit.

Callum’s lips brushed against my jaw, his breath hot against my skin. “You look so pretty when you blush.” His fingers moved down my side, stopping just above my hip, pressing in slightly. “I’m sorry I couldn’t stay this morning, but I know you understand.”

A tremor ran through me. “Callum?—”

He hummed, nipping at the edge of my jaw. “I can’t wait to be inside you again.”

My stomach clenched, that sick feeling once again roiling inside me. I squeezed my eyes shut, my hands coming up to push him away, but he caught them, trapping them against the wall.

His hips rolled into mine, slow, purposeful. My breath hitched, humiliation scorching through me.

“Was it torture to sit across from me like that?” he murmured. “I could barely function having you so close and not being able to touch you.”

I shook my head, my throat thick. “Callum?—”

He cut me off with a kiss.

Deep. Overwhelming. Taking.

My heart slammed against my ribs, panic and shame warring inside me. My fingers twitched against his shirt.

Footsteps.

They were distant, but growing louder, coming from the other end of the hallway. Stark relief rattled through my bones.

In an instant, Callum pushed away from me, taking a quiet step back, smoothing his shirt like nothing had happened, his expression unreadable as my father stepped into the hallway.

“There you are.” My father didn’t even glance at me, addressing Callum instead. “Ready to head to the club?”

“Of course.” Callum’s voice was light, easy. His posture was relaxed, his hands tucked into his pockets.

He was so much better atpretendingthan I was. The fact that he could just head to the country club for a round of golf after all that had happened was inconceivable to me.

“I was just discussing Riley’s college applications. She’s considering a few out of state options, but I think I can convince her that Chapel Hill’s her best bet.”

I sucked in a breath, my pulse hammering. Chapel Hill. Where he was a professor.

My father nodded approvingly, even though I knew he really didn’t care. “That’s good,” he said absently as he pulled up an email on his phone. “I know Claire would love to have her nearby.”

Callum turned his head just slightly, his eyes catching mine. And in them, I saw it.

The warning.

The power.

The control.

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to breathe as my father patted Callum on the shoulder, completely oblivious.

Completely blind.

I was born with something broken inside of me. That was the only explanation I had for what came after.

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