Page 65 of Choke

She gasps—a sharp inhale—flinching as the door slams into the wall.

Despite watching her on the cameras, I still lose my breath when I take her in. She’s wearing a tiny white shirt that’s so thin it’s transparent and so short that it just covers her full, round breasts. Her long dark hair is a mess around her. Bright, bold tattoos cover nearlyevery inch of her. Her chest rises and falls, and she instinctively wraps her arms around her middle as if she can hide from me.

Keep it together.

I take a step forward, and she mirrors it, stepping away. The movement brings a devilish grin to my face, and I take another.

Step.

I continue, watching her move back more and more until she bumps into the dresser on the edge of the room.

“Now, where will you go?” I ask. My tone is so low and dark that I barely recognize it.

Step.

Well done.

Her eyes shift around the room and then back to me. I keep advancing.

Step.

“You know. I pulled a lot of strings to get you those tickets.”

Confusion spreads across her face. She already forgot about the tickets.

Step.

“Called in favors that have been owed longer than I care to admit. Then you gave them away. Imagine the hurt I felt seeing those two fucking idiots in the seats I sacrificed to get you.”

Her eyes widen.

Step.

“Then, you show up in his fucking jersey. It’s a blatant disrespect. Could only have been worse if you were fucking him in the stands.”

Step.

“Adrian—”

My glare is so lethal that she stops instantly.

“His filthy fucking hands all over you. At my event. With my team watching as he defiled what belongs to me.”

Step.

The distance between us is negligible at this point. I can feel her breath rushing in and out and the heat coming off her skin. I look down at her body, licking my lips.

Step.

I am pressed against her now. I can feel her heart as it hammers wildly.

“But it was Colton. That was the icing on the fucking cake. You made a pass at one of my best friends. Knowing what that would do to me. Knowing what it would do to our friendship.”

There is a drawn-out silence between us. She holds my stare. Her blue eyes are darker than usual, almost gun-metal gray. She huffs an indignant sigh, breaking the trance those eyes held me in for a second. I slam my hands up on either side of her head, the sound of them hitting the walls making her jump again.

“So, Lex…” My head dips, voice a dark whisper against her lips.

“Are you ready for your punishment?”

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