Page 46 of Wedlock
My lips crush down upon hers. It’s an automatic response, a move to silence more words of hate, to taste her, to wipe away any other lips that had explored that delectable mouth by claiming it once more as my own. But she struggles against me. Moving one hand from hers to the back of her neck, I knot my hand in her thick curls and hold her still, but rather than continue to struggle, or submit, she freezes, every muscle in her body turning to stone. Recognising that she’s not going to respond, that her body is signalling she loathes me just as her words had, I end the kiss and push her from me in disgust at myself, myweakness.
She reels a little before righting herself, her face a picture of righteous indignation, her beautiful eyes flashing steel.
“How dare you!”
I push my hands into my pockets and exhibit an air of nonchalance that I don’t feel at all. My heart is hammering at her proximity and aching at her rejection. I honestly don’t know why I did it. I just wanted to be close to her, to feel her once more in my arms, to taste her sweet lips and feel her hot breath on my face. I justwanther, despite it all.
“I dare because you are mine to do with as I wish,” I shrug, “but obviously it’s other lips you crave, perhaps have always craved.”
“Ugh!” She exclaims, throwing her hands into the air. “I don’t honestly know what I ever saw in you. You’re so petty, and such a fucking hypocrite. While I was being forced to suck off your brother and sleep with someone else, you were gleefully bed-hopping between Spider’s wife, your other mistresses, and now some goddamned vampire princess. All along in my heart I was loyal, but you accused me of being a spy, you beat me, youabused me, youbitme. As far as I can see you deserve no loyalty, because you sure as fuck don’t give it to anyone else!”
“My loyalty is above question,” I snap. “You understand nothing if you believe I’d trade my brother for a snake who’d abuse my trust and hospitality the way Jag did. You had an excuse, or so it would seem, although we’ll never know the how and why of it. Jaguar had none. I trusted him and he betrayed that trust, end of story.”
“Jag looked after me. He saved me when you and your brother were treating me like shit. I’d be dead now if it wasn’t for him — and need I remind you that yousenthim to me, time and again when you were too weak, or distracted by other pussy, or raging like a madman, to face me yourself.”
“More fool me,” I snap.
Despite my retort, the truth of her words batters me like fists, one after the other. Deep down I can’t deny any of her accusations, and it’s not lost on me that Mother is right. The old Angie, full of fire and intelligence and challenge, is back. Clearly she had been in a thrall this whole time and I’d been blind to it. And if the child upstairs is, as she claims, my son, then getting to the bottom of her accusations against Viper and of Jag and Spider’s roles has never been more important. But I can’t do it with her here, throwing past mistakes into my face, making me doubt and hate myself. Making me want to put her over my knee and thrash her into lustful submission. I need time to think.
Throwing my shoulders back and raising my chin, I point to the door.
“You’ve said enough.”
She steps close and pins me with her eyes.
“I’ve barely begun.”
I stiffen at her renewed proximity, noticing for the first time the bite marks on her neck. Just as of old, I feel the need to protect this woman before me. The instant rage I feel knowing her perfect skin was marred, that she was assaulted yet again under my roof, under my protection, is indescribable. No matter that she rages against me, hates me, I’m drawn to her, always have been, and she’s mine to protect.
Instinctively, I reach out. She flinches, but doesn’t step back as I place my fingertip on one of the marks, the puncture wound still raw and red around the edges. Her scent, natural and sweet and forbidden, hits my nostrils, tinged with the trace of blood and milk. Mother had said the Princess attempted to harm her, but I’d thought little of it since then, knowing if it was serious Angiewouldbe dead. Revna is not known for playing around. I’d been so blindsided by Viper’s death that I’d put this issue aside for attention another day. But if she bit Angie it was more than jealous threats that she’d intended. And after tonight, it’s very clear why. She doesn’t hold a candle to my wife.
‘I will fuck you up for this, Revna.’
For a second, a long second, I want to lean in and kiss the marks away. I want to hold my wife, the first human woman I’ve ever loved, the first woman I’ve evertrulyloved, and beg her forgiveness. I want to promise I’ll avenge her, that no other will ever hold her in thrall or bite her again.
‘But she’s made it clear, in thrall and out, that she despises me. She cares only for Jag.’
“The Princess will not go unpunished for biting you,” I murmur as I gain control of my warring emotions and meet her hard gaze.
“I’m sure the spanking couldn’t be bestowed upon a more grateful recipient,” she spits, before turning on her heel and stalking from the room.
33
Reaching my room I lean against the outside of the door and put my hand to my pounding heart, my face still flaming.
Being in such close proximity to him now that my mind is free had been confusing, frustrating, exciting, terrible and wonderful all at once.
When he’d kissed me I’d almost lost myself to him. Part of me wanted to open my mouth to his warm, familiar lips and beg him to start all over again, to forget everything that had gone before, to ask if he still loved me as Eleanor claimed he did and always would. But the other part of me wanted to torture him for all the terrible things he’d said and done to me from the first day we’d left The Games. To detonate his heart the way he’d shatteredmine into tiny, tiny pieces day in and day out, one chip at a time. Instead, I’d fought his advance because I know it’s way too late for either of those options now that the Princess is in the picture.
‘But why did he kiss me? Why touch my neck with such tenderness? Such concern?’
I shake my head and try to stop thinking about his mercurial actions. His words had told me everything I needed to know. He can’t forgive me for sleeping with Jag, thrall or no thrall. And as for mitigating what Jag did, Falcon was right, I had no actual proof that Viper and Spider were linked, other than Asumpta and Tatyana, and even that was tenuous. Of course, I could have thrown Asumpta under the bus, told him that she knew all along about the obedience bite and was working with Viper, but if I did that I would definitely have no way of ever escaping this castle. Right now I figure I hold an ace up my sleeve by not mentioning her involvement. Also, I’m not sure how it would go over with Eleanor, with whom I’m also playing my cards close to my chest on the very slim off-chance she might help me get out of here.
Either way, given that I wasn’t going to divulge that information, I should have left when he told me to. I was pushing him and baiting him, and I knew I took it too far and strayed from the topic at hand. But he made me so angry, there was so much to say, so much else to tell him. And once I was in the room with him, I didn’t want to leave. Yet his arrogant stance, his hard glare, his assertion that he needed more ‘time’ when time was the last thing any of us had, me especially, had made me so furious I couldn’t hold the words back. But I hadn’t said the words that I’d been thinking for so long, but was unable to say.
‘Words like: I love you. Loved you. Hate you. Hated you. Needed you, need you, wanted you, want you…’ So many words.’
Pressing my hands to my face I take a deep breath and step into my bedroom. It’s time to feed the baby again, even though my skin is punctured and my flesh bruised from his feeding this morning, and I still feel weak from loss of blood. Now that I’m no longer under an obedience bite I’m a regular human once again and not healing like I had been. But there’s no help for it. My baby needs my milk and blood.
