Page 26 of Just One Bite
He grits his teeth. I’m afraid if I stop moving, I’ll sprain something.
“What will it take? What has he promised you? I can give you more. A car. Money. I’ll give you anything you want. A spot in the IBCE, you’ve got it.”
I’m already pissed off, so that brings bile into my throat.
“Is that how you got what you have? Your family gave it to you?”
He yanks me forward, and I gasp at the pressure in my leg. I can’t risk injury. Not with my audition days away. Maybe I should scream.
“I’m told your mother was in the company. My father is friends with the artistic director. Be my bride and you’ll get anything you could ever want.”
“Don’t talk about my mother.” I open my mouth to scream, but he stops so abruptly I fall into the dirt.
“My patience is wearing thin with you.”
“If you think that now, imagine if we were wed.”
He picks me up with one arm, and I yank away to stare him directly in the eyes.
“This isn’t about me, is it? There has to be another reason you’re willing to take me as a wife to get me away from Parker.”
His pupils dilate when I mention Parker. I’m right. This isn’t just about me. It’s about Parker having me to himself. Parker having anything he doesn’t.
“You’re threatened by him.”
“You know nothing, human.” He spins so fast, slamming his fist beside my head into the tree. “I’m trying to make this painless for you.”
I scoff. “Says the man trying to bribe me to be his bride. This is about Parker. You’re afraid of him—”
He pins me to the tree, leaving little room to wiggle. If I needed proof Parker feels different and I hadn’t hallucinated it, Barrett’s breath in my face is enough.
I shrink away from him. My heart is hammering in a desperate, nervous cadence. His body pressed against mine is suffocating and painful, and a branch is digging into my back.
“You can get scared, huh?”
He leans into my neck to smell me. I’m rigid. Defenseless. I swallow. I do have the crystal in my pocket, but getting it out without him noticing won’t be easy.
“Maybe threatening you should have been my first approach. Wed me. Everyone wins. If not, your life can get harder, and so can Parker’s.”
“Fuck you.”
“Maybe I won’t give you a choice. Maybe I’ll mark you right now. It will hurt,but I don’t think that will be much of a problem for me.”
My stomach flips. The thought is terrifying. I don’t know much about marking, but I do know it involves another painful bite. I wriggle, but there is no way I’ll make it past him.
“You really are a charming fellow.” Darien’s voice cuts the air, and he leans against the tree next to me.
“Parker is making his way this way, and he’s bound to shift instantly if he sees you trying to mark hisgirlfriendup against a tree,” Darien says, pulling a dead leaf from my hair. Barrett’s grip on my wrist is so tight I know it will bruise.
I’m not relieved to see him, but I am relieved to not be alone with Barrett any longer.
“Don’t tell me you believe their little tirade.”
Darien’s eyes stay on me, and he shrugs. “They’re more than friends. That’s for sure.”
Okay, I am a little thankful for Darien. He buys me enough time to grab the crystal from my pocket and shove it into Barrett’s sternum as hard as I can. He falters back and howls in pain.
Darien bites back the laughter as I brush off my skirt and remove the tie from our ankles.
