Page 94 of Wicked Dreams (Fallen Royals 1)

His face shutters for a second.

“Why did you attack Ian?” I need to change the subject.

“Just protecting what’s mine.” His hand wraps around the back of my neck and pulls me to him.

Our lips touch softly at first, barely moving.

I open my eyes.

He’s watching me. His free hand sneaks up my shirt, dancing across my back. He unhooks my bra at the same time that he lowers me to the couch.

“Wha…”

“One choice,” he says, his lips moving to my jaw. He palms my breast. His fingers find my nipple, rolling it and pinching. “If you want this—if you want me—just say the word.”

One choice.

It’s not just one. It’s a series of choices that could lead to catastrophe…

Or happiness.

God, that seems like a possibility right now, with Caleb’s breath in my ear and his hands on my skin. He could play me like an instrument, make me sing. I’ve never felt this way about anyone else. No one has ever bothered to try to touch me.

And then it comes back to me that we’re in his best friend’s living room.

I push his face away, staring up at him. “I do, but not here.”

He laughs, and the walls that he let down for a split second are resurrected. “If not here, where?”

If not now, when?

He picks himself up off me and leaves the room. My silence must’ve spoken for itself.

With shaky fingers, I reclasp my bra and straighten my shirt.

He comes back with his jacket on. There’s a new set to his jaw, and a smirk on his lips. “My place. If you don’t want to here... and you’re not going to tell me where, then I’ll choose.”

I shiver.

But I can’t say I’m against it.

The drive to his house is quick. It’s more silent than a graveyard in his house.

As we pass the front room, I point at the covered furniture. “Why is this place so…”

“Haunted?”

I run into Caleb. I hadn’t realized he’d stopped walking, and I almost fall backward.

He grips my upper arms, keeping me stable. “A lot of ghosts in this house, love.”

I meet his gaze.

“Let’s banish a few.” He leans down and kisses me.

It’s more ruthless than the kiss in Eli’s house. Something has shifted. He’s released the monster inside him.

I shudder at the infiltration. My heart cracks open as he backs me against the wall, taking my wrists and holding them above my head with one of his hands. His other continues his exploration of my body like we never stopped.

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