My heart hammers against my ribs. Ending things with Hunter should be simple. He’s engaged to my sister, for god’s sake, but nothing about him has ever been simple.
“Why are you really here, Aurora?” Hunter’s voice turns cold, the warmth I’d glimpsed moments ago vanishing like it never existed.
“I told you. I’m ending this.” My resolve strengthens with each word. “Whatever happened between us was a mistake.”
A humorless smile plays across his lips. “A mistake? Is that what you call it when you screamed my name? When your nails left marks down my back?”
“Stop it.”
“Or how about when you begged me not to stop?” His eyes gleam with cruel amusement. “That’s quite a mistake.”
The distance between us feels electric. I take a step back, needing physical space from his presence.
“You can joke all you want, but I’m serious. I won’t continue this while you’re engaged to my sister.”
Hunter circles me slowly, predatory. “We both know Olivia doesn’t care about me.”
“That doesn’t matter,” I counter, holding my ground despite the intensity of his gaze. “She’s still my sister. Our relationship means everything to me. I won’t destroy that, not even for...” I gesture helplessly between us.
“For the best sex of your life?” he finishes, his voice dropping an octave.
Heat floods my face. “This isn’t about sex.”
“No?” He steps closer. “Then why can’t you look me in the eye when you say you want to end things?”
I force myself to meet his gaze. “I’m serious, Hunter.”
“And yet you came here, to my home, instead of calling.” His fingers brush my cheek. “Interesting choice for someone ending things.”
I jerk away from his touch. “Olivia may not love you, but she’s my sister. I won’t betray her like this.”
Hunter’s laugh is sharp, dangerous. “Olivia’s convenient trip to London wasn’t a coincidence, Aurora. I arranged it and convinced her father it would be good publicity before the engagement party and suggested which designers she should see.”
My stomach drops. While I suspected he might have orchestrated it, I didn’t really want to believe it. “What?”
“I orchestrated everything. Right down to the exact dates she’d be gone.” His smile is triumphant. “I create the circumstances I need. Always.”
Despite already knowing he was behind her invite and trip, I glare at him. “You manipulated everything just to get what you want.”
“I always get what I want.” A predatory gleam lights his eyes. “And I want you.”
Fury surges through me. “You’re a monster.”
“Perhaps.” He steps closer. “But I’m the monster you crave.”
“Go to hell.” I push past him, but his hand catches my wrist, spinning me back.
“Tell me you don’t want this,” he challenges, his face inches from mine. “Tell me, and I’ll let you walk out that door.”
Words fail me as his proximity overwhelms my senses. The scent of his cologne make me dizzy.
“I—I don’t...” My protest dies as his thumb traces circles on the inside of my wrist.
“Liar.”
His lips crash against mine, and whatever resistance I had crumbles instantly. My hands fist in his shirt, simultaneously pushing and pulling. I bite his lower lip hard enough to taste blood.
Hunter growls against my mouth. “There she is.”
