Kaiser
* * *
I know Bella’s up to something when she flashes me a warning smile. Then she turns and gives the clerk her full attention.
“Hi! I’d like to get these.” She flutters her eyelashes at him.
He looks surprised but returns her smile. “There are some good finds.”
“Thanks.” She tosses her hair over one shoulder. It’s painfully obvious she’s learned to flirt by watching that stupid vampire show. It would be pathetic, except she’s mesmerizing. The clerk leans in, asking her about books she’s read.
I touch Bella’s back, and she ignores me, her full focus on the guy.
She’s doing this to piss me off.
And it’s working. I don’t feel much, but the one thing I can feel is rage. I’ve kept it close, used it to fuel me. It rises now, speeding my heart. Blood pounds through my veins.
I glare at the guy. I could snap his spine with one hand.
My future wife and this bookstore dweeb reach for the same book, and their hands nearly touch. I’ve had it.
“Enough,” I say, inserting my arm between them and handing the clerk my credit card. “We need to get going.”
“What’s the hurry?” Bella pouts.
I lean down and whisper in her ear. “I have plans for you.”
“Ooh, like what?” Her attention’s on me now, where it should be.
“Like re-enacting page 269 of Viking Thunder.”
Her forehead creases as she tries to remember that scene. I’ve got her curious, but I want more. I want her to look at me with the same interest she showed him. I want her to flirt with me.
The clerk finishes ringing me up, and I grab the paper bag full of books and take her arm to propel her out of the fucking store. Taking her here was a mistake—except I don’t regret it. I wanted to cheer her up, and now she has a smile on her face. I never care about people’s feelings, but I care about hers.
I want her to be happy.
This isn’t good.
She can never find out this instinct of mine, or she’ll use it against me. And I need to fight those instincts. If I give her a long leash, she’ll use it to get into trouble.
I’ll have to set her straight. Immediately.
I wait until we’re both in the car and speeding away before I put my hand on her knee.
“Let’s get one thing straight, Bella. You do not let another man touch you.”
She smirks. “If I do, what will you do about it?”
I wait until we’re stopped at a red light to turn to her. “Break every bone in his body. Then slit his throat and fuck you in his blood.”
She blinks rapidly. That’s right, little bride. There’s a hand on the leash.
Her chest rises and falls. She’s so quiet, I wonder if I’ve gone too far. But then a sweet, musky scent floods the car. She’s turned on.
Fuck me. The blood roars in my ears.
I put the car in gear and lay on the gas. I need to get her home, now. My cock is throbbing in time with my heartbeat.
