She swallowed the rock in her throat. Did she? Her whole body was trembling. This was all too much.
The tension between them was electric, charged with danger and desire in equal measure. Nadi knew she should push him away, maintain the emotional distance that was her only protection against him.
But when his lips claimed hers, fierce and demanding, she couldn’t resist responding with equal hunger. The kiss was raw, honest, born from the heady rush of survival.
His hand tightened at her throat—just enough—proving to her the difference between the two men. Pulling her from the wall, he tilted her head back to deepen the kiss. Nadi clutched at his shoulders, her resolve crumbling as her body betrayed her once again. She wanted him—here, now, surrounded by death and darkness. The realization was as terrifying as it was exhilarating.
When they finally broke apart, both breathing hard, Nadi felt a surge of frustration—at herself, at him, at this impossible situation. She pushed him away, creating physical distance to match the emotional barriers she was struggling to maintain.
“Don’t,” she warned, her voice low. “This doesn’t change anything between us.”
Raziel’s smile was knowing, infuriating in its confidence. “Doesn’t it?”
Before she could respond, the distant sound of voices echoed through the warehouse—more guards.
Sighing, Raziel’s posture changed. He was suddenly all business again. “Let’s go.”
As they ran through the darkness, the ledger secure in her purse and the taste of him still on her lips, Nadi fought against the confusion in her heart. She had come to destroy the Nostroms, to avenge her family and her clan. Getting closer to Raziel was supposed to be a means to that end, nothing more.
So, why did it feel increasingly like she was losing herself in the process? And why, despite everything she knew about him—the monster he was, the blood on his hands—could she not resist him?
These questions haunted her as they emerged from the alleys onto the main street, glistening like a river after the rainstorm. Ivan was waiting for them in the car.
She shouldn’t have felt relief when she saw it. Because it shouldn’t have felt like freedom to her. Freedom—or another kind of prison. She wasn’t sure which anymore.
Climbing into the car, she slid onto the bench to make room for Raziel.
“Go.” The command to Ivan was urgent. No hypnotism needed to get his friend and bodyguard to stomp the gas.
But it seemed she wasn’t going to be given any time to relax. Raziel pulled her into his lap, rolling up her sleeve to inspect the wound on her arm. It was closed, but the blood remained.
Lowering his head, he lapped up the red stain slowly, his eyes boring into hers. “We have a discussion to finish when we get home, Monica.”
A knot twisted in her stomach even as her face went warm in anticipation.
Everything was becoming too complicated.
And complicated was going to get her killed.
But for now, all she could think about was the taste of his lips.
And the sensation of his body against hers.
I am losing my mind.
This has to stop.
One way or another.
TEN
“Show me.”
The door had barely shut behind Raziel before he pushed Nadi onto the bed, climbing atop her and straddling her legs to pin her down. Her instinct had been immediately to fight him tooth and nail—she wasn’t used to her enemy manhandling her like it was nothing out of the ordinary.
But when she saw the look on his face, she froze.
The desire in his expression was gone. At least for the moment. Instead, it was a strained, almost panicked look of desperation.
