Page 56 of Beneath the Starlight and Storms

He narrows his eyes on me but loses some of his ire at my words.

Is that what was wrong with him? Does he think that I ran off?

But if that was the case, then why did he treat Ben the way he did?

“Is this all just one big game to you? Am I? Because I don’t always want to play games, Hook. I want to enjoy myself and have fun. I want to experience new things and figure it out along the way. I didn’t disappear on purpose, but I don’t need your permission to go do something either. I don’t belong to you or anyone else.”

Hook stalks forward, walking me backward until my back is pressed against the wall.

“That’s where you’re wrong, Tink,” he breathes. Staring down at me with flames in his eyes.

“Youaremine. You’vealwaysbeen mine. And this time… I’m not letting you go.”

Before I realize what he’s doing, he slams his lips to mine, silencing any reply I have. Heat unfurls inside me as he teases me with every stroke, every swipe of his lips.

The shock of his cocky move quickly fades and I grab his jacket to push him away, but he pulls back before I do, his eyes flitting from my swollen lips to my face.

“This isn’t a game to me. I’ve spent years imagining what it would be like to taste you… touch you. And not a single one of them comes close to this.” He shakes his head as if in a daze, his eyes zeroing back in on my lips. “Not one,” he whispers before his hands slide to my neck and face.

No one has ever touched me like this. No one has ever made me feel so…alive. As if I’m all they see and breathe. Unfamiliar feelings flood my body, my nerve endings feel like they're on fire.

Something in the back of my mind tells me that I should stop this. That nothing good will come from it. But then he dips his head and there’s a blaze of desire in eyes that can’t be feigned. He leans into my body and the warmth from him seeps into me and I become lost in a wild, desperate need to pull him closer.

“Hook…” I breathe.

He presses his lips to mine and every thought and worry disappears. Deepening the kiss, he devours my mouth with deep sweeping strokes of his tongue that leave me breathless and craving for more.

My body quickly heats up once more with desire as the kiss turns hungry and full of fiery passion. It was all-consuming but this time it had his rough edges and jagged pieces on display.

I bite his lip and a low groan rises up his throat. He lines up every hard inch of his body with mine. But even with his body pressed tightly against mine, I ache for more as I become addicted to the feel of him. Craving him like he’s my own personal poison.

Dragging his lips from mine, he begins to kiss and suck down the length of my jaw and neck. I tilt my head back against the wall as each swipe of his tongue sends a bolt of heat to my core.

“Hook…” I breathe.

“You’re mine, Tink,” He groans while placing open-wet kisses on my neck. “No one touches you. No one,” he growls before dipping down to meet my lips again.

But his words are the bucket of ice I needed to hear, snapping me out of my heated daze as I realize what this is.

This is Hook trying to lay claim to me and mark me as his. To own me and control me just like everyone else.

But I belonged to no one. Especially notHook.

Just as he tries to deepen the kiss once more, I bite down on his lip, hard, hearing a groan before I shove him back. Even with my rough shove, he barely moves. But it’s enough to get his attention.

“There’s my vicious little Tink.” As if he thinks this is all just another game, he gives me a savage smirk and licks the blood from his bottom lip before leaning back in.

I shove him back again before narrowing my eyes at him. “I’m notyouranything and I belong to no one. This was a mistake. We’re nothing more than enemies and stuck together until our deal is over.”

That smirk turns carnal with a vicious edge to it. “We’re enemies, are we?”

“Yes. We are.” I glare up at him, pushing against his chest but he still doesn’t budge. Before I know what’s happening, he grabs hold of my wrists and places them above my head, holding me still. His dark look turns intense as storms shadow his eyes. A warmth encircles my wrists and a flutter of energy flows through them. Something flickers in the back of my mind but before I can think about it, he releases his hold on them.

I open my mouth to deny everything I’m feeling right now, every sliver of desire, when he dips his head and runs his nose up the length of my neck to my ear, making me gasp. He does it again this time but adds a soft kiss just under my ear.

I close my eyes at the sensation, wanting more, craving his touch as he draws me in once more.

“Liar,” he breathes.

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