“Thank you,” I respond, allowing Bel to drag me to whatever she has in store for me. I haven’t the faintest idea how one is supposed to dance to music like this, and it appears that no one else does either. I would argue this is closer to fornication than dancing, but perhaps that’s the point.
Bel stops me in the middle of the cluster of humans and starts to sway her body to the music. Unsure of what to do, I find myself just standing, entranced by the way she moves. Laughing, she puts her hands on my hips and tries to help me move the way she does.
“Come on, Cas! Just move! Feel the music and move!” I try to follow her lead. Truly, I do. But it’s impossible tofeelanything but the bumping of sweat-slicked bodies every step and the overwhelming stench of alcohol and smoke in the air. She attempts to guide me a few more times before seemingly giving up. “Just watch then,” she shouts to be heard over the music.Gladly.
I’m happy watching, just being drawn into her orbit, relishing her elated face and sparkling dress catching the light as she spins and sways. That is until some dead man decides he can put his hands on her. Big, meaty hands land on her hips, and she freezes, her sweet scent instantly being doused in fear.
She moves away from him, and I step toward her, but he doesn’t relent, following closely behind her. “Come on, gorgeous. He doesn’t wanna dance with you, but I do.” Her eyes land on mine, and her terror has just signed his death warrant.
I gently pull her hands and maneuver her behind me, telling her over my shoulder, “Go back to the table, little dove.”
“Caspian, it’s fine. He didn’t do anything. He’s just being drunk and overly friendly.” She sounds brave, but her trembling hands, currently fisted in my shirt, tell another story.
“Hey, Fuckface, we were dancing,” he slurs at me, spittle falling from his mouth. I grab him by the throat, my claws barely starting to grow, causing little droplets of blood to start cascading down my fingers. No one even seems to notice the violence happening in their midst, too consumed by drink and each other to see the danger around them.
I repeat to Bel, “Go sit down. I’ll be there shortly,” while cutting off the grabby man’s airway.
She doesn’t say anything, but I can feel her releasing me, and her eyes begin to frantically wander around, searching for the exits. I already know where her mind is headed. “Do not run away, Belissenda.” I face her, dragging my next meal with me, “I will find you, and I’ll be forced to make you suffer.”
Despite herself and her fear, the unmistakable fragrance of her arousal hits my nose, causing my cock to stiffen.Does she want to play again?Between the promise of violence, followed by the possibility of chasing my sweet little sacrifice, this night is taking the best turn. I need her to run just as much as she craves for me to follow.
I groan, ignoring the man dangling from my grip, “Or is that what you want, Little Dove? You want me to hunt you down, pin you to the floor and make you scream for mercy?” She shakes her head but doesn’t use the special word she chose to use when she’s uncomfortable, so I press, “Oh, but I think you do.”
Truthfully, I think after the little exchange with this stranger that has clearly frightened her, she needs the distraction, but I wouldn’t force that on her. I change my tone to drop the game for a moment and ask sincerely, “Tell me, Bel. Honestly. Do you want me to chase you?”
She nods sheepishly, eyes wide and trained on me.
“Then fly away, my sweet. I’ll be with you shortly.” She takes one last look at the almost-dead man, then takes off into the crowd.
Oh, fuck yes.
Run, Run, As Fast As You Can
Bel
I cannot fucking believe I’m doing this.
This is crazy. I should not be running. Caspian’s killing someone right now for putting his hands on me, and instead of trying to stop him, I’m letting him chase me while he’s probably still covered in that guy’s fucking blood. Then what?
What happens when he catches me?He said he would make me suffer. But it left his smiling lips like a promise, not a threat. He can’t hurt me anyway, so what meaning could it possibly have other than something sexual?
Even if it is sexual, is that something I want? I haven’t let anyone touch me like that in… well, basically ever. But Iwanthim, don’t I? Every wicked lick of his eyes on my skin had me on fire, and when he traced the edge of my dress, I wanted to straddle him right then and there, damn every pair of eyes who could possibly see it.
And if I don’t want this, he already gave me an out. I can tap out with one teeny little word, and the whole game would be over.Do I want it to be over?
Absolutely not. I’m more exhilarated than I’ve ever been in my life. I have no idea what he has in store for me, but I’d let him do any vile thing he asked, strangers blood on his hand or not.
I push my way through the packed bodies, searching for the exit when I see Marie looking strangely at me.Shit.Running up to her, I quickly ask her to send my purse up to our room for me. I’m not risking losing that on this little excursion. A knowing smile comes over her face, and she gives me a two-finger salute and ahave fun.
I spot my escape route just as people behind me start yelling about some asshole pushing them over, and I know I’m already almost caught.Fucking fuck.
A strong arm wraps around my waist, and he breathes in heavily with his nose buried in the crook of my neck before moaning and uttering, “Caught you. It’s almost as if you wanted to be captured.”
“No fair. I expected that to take longer,” I pout.
He sets me down and cards his hands through the hair at my nape, grabbing a fistful and turning me towards him, forcing my neck back so I can see his face while pressed flush against his rock-hard body. His eyes are pure white, and I can feel the hunter inside him begging to be freed.
“I’ll give you one more chance.” He says, licking a stripe from the base of my neck all the way up to my ear, causing me to whimper before biting the lobe with another small groan. “I’ll even give you a two-minute head start before I find you, okay?”
