“You awake?” I murmur, voice thick with sleep.
“Yup.” Her voice has a noticeable edge to it. “If you’d care to unwind yourself from around me, I’d appreciate it. I’m not a stuffed animal, and you’re not five years old.”
I smile sleepily.
“You’re right.” I yawn. “After all, I wouldn’t want to fuck a stuffed animal. I have my kinks, but that isn’t one of them.”
She doesn’t respond to that, and it’s just as well. I unwind myself from around her and stand, heading to the bathroom so I can brush my teeth and assess the damage on my body. Ember isgood, and she got some serious hits in before I managed to subdue her. My nose is swollen, and both my undereye bags have turned a dark color. My cheekbone is an angry red, and the stab on my shoulder looks a few beats away from a nasty infection.
I sigh, retrieve the duffel from the bedroom, and set to work patching myself up. I keep the bathroom door open so I can have eyes on Ember through the mirror, but she doesn’t move much. Either she’s given up on the idea of escape, or she’s planning something. I hope, for her sake, it’s the former. But considering the last 24 hours, it’s probably the latter.
After my nose has been relocated, my shoulder’s cleaned and patched, the claw marks on the side of my face have been disinfected, and I’ve checked the bruises on my body from the shootout, I return to the bedroom. Ember’s still on her side. I flip her to her back, brows touching when I get a look at her face.
Her eyes are bloodshot—the bags beneath them are large enough to house an entire city—and her features are sunken.
The fuck?
“Were you crying?” I ask.
She lets out a derisive scoff. “Please. I haven’t cried for years.”
I blink slowly. “You look like shit.”
“You really know how to worm your way into a gal’s heart.”
“My specialty is actually working my way between their thighs. I get very high reviews for my work.” I gaze hard at her. “Did you sleep?”
“Sure.”
I arch an eyebrow at her; she sighs. “The fuck does it matter? You’re planning on using me for leverage against Dagon, right? Who gives a shit if I’m well-rested?”
I rear back. Where the hell didthatassumption come from?
“That’s not part of my central plan,” I reply, brows furrowing. “I suppose itcouldbe seen as an added bonus.”
“He won’t come for me.” Her voice is flat. “He’ll wait for me to come to him. And every second I delay endangers something precious to me.”
“What is this precious thing?” I ask.
She seals her lips, shutting down. I sigh, shaking my head. “Flame, I can’t help you if I don’t know how to help. If there’s something you’re worried about, you need totell me, and then I’ll fix it. But, without knowing, I can’t do anything.”
She bares her teeth. “Giveyouleverage over me? No thanks. I already have one wannabe supervillain to deal with; I’m not looking to add another to the roster.”
This needs to be dealt with, but not now. Now, I need to find us both food, and decide how to deal with Ember for the rest of the drive back to HQ.
“When was the last time you slept?” I ask, stroking a hand through her hair. Her nose wrinkles at the affectionate touch, and it transports me back in time. Once upon a time, she'd wrinkle her nose just like that whenever she disliked something or was confounded by it.
“Does it matter?” she asks.
“Yes.” It definitely does. I’ve learned from Greyson that having a chosen,owninga woman is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it’s gratifying, fulfilling, heady, and satisfying in every way.
On the other hand… humans are much more needy than pets, with a wealth of potential problems that require careful monitoring. Something tells me that Ember will be high-maintenance. Not because she’s incapable of taking care of herself… but because the glimpses I’ve seen of her personality so far indicate that she’s incapable—or vastly opposed—to asking for help.
She doesn’t reply. I take that as the perfect invitation to take liberties with her bound body until she decides to unseal her lips and talk.
“What are you doing?” she asks in a high-pitched tone as I straddle her and help myself to a handful of her breasts.
They fit just right in my hands. Perfect. Fuck, I can’t wait to suck her pretty little nipples. I’m curious to see if she can come from that alone. Time will tell.
