Page 73 of Brutal Reign
Pavel sets his glass down on the side table with a quiet thud. The sound cuts through the silence, drawing my full attention, as he holds my gaze.
“Do you think of me as your enemy, Hope?” The rough edge to his tone causes an unwelcome flutter low in my belly.
“Yes,” I bite out. But then Dinara’s words echo in my head about how he went against his own brothers to marry me, to protect me under bratva law.
“Simon is your enemy. The man who was about to drag you kicking and screaming onto that helicopter, not giving a shit what happened to your son. Who returned fire knowing you could easily be caught in the crossfire. That man is your enemy. Not me.”
My tongue darts out to wet my suddenly dry lips. “I don’t understand you… You’re going to protect me and Kin out of the goodness of your heart?”
His gaze goes molten as he shifts closer, eating up the space between us. His fingers trail along my arm, leaving sparks in their wake. When he speaks, his voice is a gravelly whisper.
“I do nothing from the goodness of my heart. Wanting you is purely selfish.”
His thumb traces lazy circles just below my throat, and my eyes drift to his lips, remembering how good they felt against mine.
“What did Simon do to you? Did he hurt you?” His expression grows deadly as he brushes a knuckle down my cheek. “Did he touch you… like this?”
His fingertips glide down my throat and skim my collarbone. I shake my head as I suck in a shallow breath, reveling in the feel of his hand on me. Liquid pools between my thighs, and I hate how weak I am for him, how easily I melt under his touch, how desperately I want more. I need to snap out of this before I give in to the pull.
My gaze falls on his gun lying on the table in front of us. Before I can second-guess myself, I snatch it up and throw a leg over him until I’m straddling his lap, pressing the muzzle under his jaw.
He doesn’t so much as twitch. The infuriating man actually looks amused.
“What do you plan to do with that, angel moy? Kill me?” The bastard is taunting me.
I shift my grip and push the gun’s tip more firmly in place. “I’m showing you that I’m not as innocent and helpless as you seem to think I am.” I let my lips brush against his, teasing him the way he so enjoys teasing me. "I didn't need you to marryme and carry me off like some damsel in distress. I can handle myself just fine.”
“I can see that now. I guess I was wrong about you.” His calloused palm trails up my leg, rough against my skin. “You aren’t afraid to play with fire.”
"Exactl—"
Before the word’s even out of my mouth, he flips me over and pins me to the couch, his body sinking between my thighs. I blink to find the pistol in his grip, and a smirk on his face.
“Asshole,” I grit out, and try to push him off, but he doesn’t budge.
“Did you think there wouldn’t be consequences for your actions?” His palm cups the side of my neck, thumb brushing against my jawline, and I shiver. “Look at that… I think you’re turned on.”
“I’m not,” I lie.I shouldn’t bemight be more accurate, but I can’t help it. Having him this close, his touch, his heat, brings back a world of memories.
“Really?” he murmurs, eyes gleaming. “I bet if I spread your pretty legs right now, I’d find you soaking for me.”
His stare scorches me as he drags the pistol up the inside of my thigh, slow and deliberate, until it settles over my throbbing core. The cold metal kisses through the thin fabric of my panties, and I jolt as if he’s shocked me. One teasing stroke over the material is barely enough to relieve the pressure, and I shift my hips, trying to create more friction.
“Still so responsive,” he murmurs. “You’re such a good girl for me when you stop pretending this isn’t what you want.”
My pussy clenches around nothing, desperate for more than that fleeting contact.
Wake up, Hope. He has a gun pressed against your pussy but… Fuck, it feels good.
He moves the barrel, dragging it up and down over my center. My eyes flutter shut and my legs fall open, giving him better access, but he takes his time, rubbing directly over my clit through the thin fabric, as though he has all night to play. A low groan slips out before I can stop it.
Without warning, he hooks the edge of my panties with the weapon and shifts them aside, cool air brushing over my folds.
“Liar,” he murmurs, sliding the steel tip along my drenched slit. “You say no, but if you could only see yourself… You’re soaked for me.”
I ease the front of my gown down and slide my hands up my stomach, cupping my breasts. I pinch my nipples, gasping at the sharp burst of pleasure.
The vein in his neck pulses as he exhales. “Watching you like this is gonna be the death of me.”
