Page 68 of Hush Darling
“Why won’t you tell me?”
“Because it’s not your business.”
“But you said?—”
He caught her chin and dragged his thumb over her lips, silencing her. “There are better uses for your mouth. This is the last time I’ll warn you. Don’t question me again.”
If she did, would he punish her?
He said there would only be truth between them, but that was a lie. He was holding something back from her, something he never planned to share.
“Was I a target? Did you intentionally send Jukes to—” Her words cut off as he flung her to her back, pushing her onto the bed as his hand closed around her throat in warning.
He didn’t need to apply pressure. The warning was in his eyes. “Hush now.”
He abruptly released her, and she panted, unsure how much more she could push him without truly regretting her words. Only when he sensed she understood how truly serious he was did he release her and return to the table.
She watched his back as he finished the glass of wine in two long swallows and then stripped off his shirt. The flash of tanned flesh distracted her. Muscles bulged about his shoulders, ropes of sinew twisting down his arms.
White marks formed long, thin scars across his sun-kissed skin, every single one a secret he refused to share, yet she wanted all of them. Such beauty made it too easy to forget he had the body and the mind of a killer.
When he finally faced her again, his expression was unreadable. The engorged head of his cock peeked past the waistline of his black leather pants. It was the first time she’d ever actually seen a man’s body like that.
“It’s time we finish what we started.”
Uncertainty spiraled inside of her. She scooted back, her inner turmoil spinning into fear.
He no longer felt like someone she could trust—a foolish misapprehension if there ever were one. But that illusion of safety had helped her, and she wished she could have it back now.
Crawling further into the pillows, she tried to hide, but there was nowhere to go. She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t give herself to a man like him.
“Look at me.” His words penetrated her panic, creating a false sense of intimacy between them.
She liked his hands on her, and now she hated herself for allowing him to touch her. She was losing her mind. “You tricked me.”
“I’ve been nothing but honest with you.”
That wasn’t true. He was hiding his motive. Until she understood why he chose her, there would be lies between them.
“What’s gotten into you?”
As if he knew her well enough to even ask such a thing. “Nothing.”
“That’s a lie. You’re upset.”
“How would you know?” The gall of him to call her a liar when he was the one hiding his motives.
His frown deepened. “I think we’ve established that I can read you like a book.”
“I’m not as transparent as you think.”
His eyes narrowed. “Don’t push me, darling. I’ve been more than gracious with you?—”
“You kidnapped me!”
His jaw ticked. Keeping his voice dangerously low, he warned, “I suggest you get over whatever fixation put you in this mood. My patience is expiring.”
“Mine already has.”
