Pavel would fill that role for him. Bedpartner. Lover. Confident. He was going to fill every role imaginable. Embed himself so thoroughly in Zane’s life, tangling the two of them together by all the possible definitions ofrelationship.
But they needed to start first, and he’d gone above and beyond setting the scene if anyone asked him.
“You could take out your knife and try to kill me,” Pavel suggested, knowing Zane needed one final push to get him to see he was well and truly stuck. “If, by some miracle, you did manage to overpower me and slit my throat, you’ll only be hurting yourself. The video footage is set to release on a timer. Only I know the password to stop it.”
It was a lie, but Zane didn’t have to know that. He was banking on the other guy being unable to take the risk.
“Your entire future, everything you’ve worked so hard for,” Pavel said, “down the drain, just like that. All because you thought yourself above getting hunted in the woods and fucked in the dirt.”
Zane licked his lips, either stalling or trying to hide the flash of heat in his dark gaze. “I would still like some clarification before I decide.”
He snorted. “Go ahead, gorgeous. What’s on your mind?”
“Did you really murder a man just so you could frame me for it and get me to have sex with you?”
Aw, it sounded kind of sweet when he put it like that. Innocent even.
“No, I didn’t do all of this just so I could have sex with you.” His grin widened when Zane’s shoulders noticeably slumped some. Zane’s need for desire was what was going to be his downfall here.
“I did this so I couldpossessyou, Doctor. I’m going to devour you, head to toe, top to bottom.” Didn’t matter that those two things meant the same thing, excitement was bubbling beneath the surface and pretty soon he really was going to run out of patience. “I’m going to brand you and make you complicit in the deconstruction of your own life.”
“Why?” the single word was practically gasped, almost inaudibly.
“Because I want to.” Need was more like it, but he was already coming on strong here, and knowing Zane, the line in the sand was a fine one. The delectable doctor wanted to be wanted, craved, longed for.
But he had commitment issues.
Shocker.
“Did it ever occur to you to just ask?” Zane shifted on his feet. “I wasn’t aware you’d even noticed me, let alone that you were interested in me physically. You could have asked, Pavel.”
“Could I have?”
“Of course.”
“And?” He grunted, already knowing the answer to his question. “What would have come of that, hmm? If I’d stopped you in the halls at school and simply asked if I could come inside you. What would your reaction have been?”
Zane didn’t respond.
“That’s what I thought.” It wasn’t Pavel who hadn’t been paying attention. “You’ve never seen me before tonight, but I’m going to make you look at me now, Doctor. Once I’m through with you, you’ll see nothing but me. My face is going to be the first one you seek whenever you enter a room. My touch the only one your body will respond to. I’ll have you lapping at my heels like a good little—”
His quarry didn’t let him finish.
Zane turned on his heels and shot into the trees in a blur of motion, momentarily leaving Pavel speechless.
Then he laughed, a sharp sound that no doubt carried its way to the fleeing doctor, and Pavel took off after him.
Chapter 4:
This was certifiably insane. Perhaps he should allow the Butcher to crack open his skull and take a peek at his brain.
Or Pavel’s, more like.
Yes, that was it. Something had gotten into the other Retinue member. Clearly he needed a medical evaluation and some serious help. Not for killing Samuel—that prick had more than deserved whatever he had coming to him—but forthis.
Zane raced through the forest gracefully, keeping the noise to a minimum as he mindlessly went. There was no specific path he could think of since he didn’t really spend much of his time wandering around the woods, especially at night, but the only real worry was getting caught.
If he had to, he could keep this pace up well until morning. Zane was a seasoned swimmer who could have gone pro if he wanted. The only thing keeping him from it was his goal to graduate from Vail with his medical degree. It’d been at least fifteen minutes since he’d left Pavel behind, and he hadn’t even broken into a sweat yet.
