Page 62 of Harbinger

It’s the second time she’s kissed me tonight. Really kissed me. I’m starting to think this is something she wants.

Freezing in place, I glance to the side quickly, trying to see if she saw someone I didn’t and wanted to make a show of it. But there’s no one. Just us.

Bringing my hands up to cup both sides of her face, I angle it the way I want, taking the kiss deeper as my tongue explores hers, feeling her wild breathing against me. My head grows fuzzy as if I’m losing control, and I shake it off. But that only makes me all too aware of how she’s affecting other places.

I break the kiss, tipping her head back to look in her large, green doe eyes.

“What was that for?”

She shakes her head, her hands finding their way around my wrists as I push her against the wall.

Biting my cheek, I look away before glancing back down at her, feeling emotions I’ve never felt before swell in my stomach.

“This is a lot,” she whispers.

Rubbing her cheek with my thumb, I place a kiss on her forehead. “I know, baby, I know.”

“Don’t call me that,” she snaps.

My trance is broken, my brows furrowing. “Why not?”

“Because you don’t mean it. There’s no one around. You don’t have to put on a show.”

“Sydney, you kissed me,” I whisper, leveling her with a stare.

She looks away, not sure what to say to that.

“Syd, this doesn’t feel like teasing.”

Her face twists as she holds back tears. “It is,”

“You’re a liar.”

“Says the biggest liar of them all.”

Stepping back, I drop my hands. I’ve dealt with this before. Her sister does the same fucking thing. “Cut the shit, Syd.” Her eyes widen as her head snaps up. “Since we got to the compound, I haven’t lied to you once. Not once. I’ve fucked with you, sure. But you’ve fucked with me. Where’s that fire now, huh?” Anger flashes over her face, and she opens her mouth, but I’m too annoyed to let her speak. “No, shut the fuck up. You’re so fucking strong. I’ve seen it with my own two eyes. Where’s that girl tonight?”

“That girl takes time off from time to time.”

“That girl is here. She’s you. She’s always been you. Not some separate entity. Do you know how much faith in life and love you have to have to go through the shit you’ve gone through in your life? A lot, Princess. Where’s that woman who literally stole my keys and a three-million-dollar car? The one who accepted her fate the second day she was at that compound? The one who went head-to-head with me after I admitted that I’ve had tokill peoplebefore, huh?” I say in a whisper over the loud music from the other room.

She doesn’t say anything, just stares at me.

“You think that you’re just some sheep. Just some plaything that we’re going to throw out when we’re done with her, and I don’t know why. You’re anything but. You’re powerful. Beautiful. Capable.” She looks away, but I force her eyes on mine again. “You got this, okay? I’m with you all the way. You can do whatever you want to me, Princess, and I’ll accept it.”

She takes a deep breath, looking at her shoes. “Jeffrey Wright abused me as a kid,” she blurts quickly, and the second she notices the fury that runs through my body, my hands fisting at my sides, she quickly adds, “It’s fine. I should have told you before we got here, but I thought I’d finally forgotten. I thought I’d be able to get through the night. I’m not sure why it took seeing Jeremy to lose my shit. It was just, I don’t know. I think it was the last straw. The level of stress right now is too much.”

I remain silent, fuming, and when I start to move toward the main room, she grabs my hand, pulling me back gently.

“Ronan, it’s not worth it. We’ll get him later. Don’t do that now. Don’t throw away everything we’ve been working toward.”

I stare into her eyes for a whole minute, watching how they morph as she silently pleads with me.

“The second I can make it happen, he’s a dead man,” I tell her.

If there’s one thing I hate, it’s men who think they have the power to touch someone else. To make someone hurt. To mark them for the rest of their lives.

I don’t let those kinds of men live.

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