Page 34 of His Forced Bride
The aroma fills the space between us, but my stomach remains knotted with anxiety and rage.
"You need to eat."
I stare at the plate without moving.
"I'm not a child," I tell him, though I realize I'm acting like a child.
Maybe because I feel like I need my father to fix this, and that's never going to happen.
"Then stop acting stubbornly and take care of yourself."
When I don't respond, he reaches across the small distance between us.
His fingers find my jaw, tilting my face toward his.
It shocks me how gentle he's being when I know how strong he is.
"You need to eat."
The words send heat through my body that I absolutely don't want to feel.
His thumb brushes across my lower lip, and I have to fight the urge to bite him—or worse, to part my lips and accept whatever he offers.
"Let go of me," I say gruffly.
"When you eat."
He uncovers my plate and picks up my fork, then sticks the tines into a bit of meat and brings the fork to my mouth, laden with duck and sauce.
His dark eyes never leave mine, watching for any sign of submission or rebellion.
The intimacy of the moment is terrifying and infuriating, but my body responds to his touch in ways that make shame burn in my chest.
I want to turn away, to refuse, to maintain what little control I have left.
But the practical part of my mind knows I need food.
I part my lips and let him feed me, hating how the simple act feels both degrading and strangely arousing.
Yuri's eyes watch my lips close around the fork and draw the food off it.
I see how he devours me the same way, absorbing every inflection of my facial muscles, drinking in the hate in my eyes as I look away from his eye contact.
Why is my body so hot?
Why is his domineering care making my core melt?
"Good girl."
The praise makes my face burn with embarrassment, and he feeds me another bite, his thumb lingering against my lip longer than necessary.
"Why are you doing this?"
"Because you need to eat, and you're too stubborn to do it yourself."
"Not that. This whole thing. The marriage, the compound, keeping me prisoner."
I pull back from his touch, putting distance between us.
