Yeah, he’d learned a while back that she had excellent instincts, and her body was way ahead of her brain right now. “Let’s get to this, Mia.” He held out a hand.
She looked at his palm as if it might bite her. Then she shook herself and reached for her door handle. “I don’t know what game you’re playing right now, but I think I’ve had enough of it.” Even so, her voice trembled slightly.
He grabbed her by the hair, the beast inside him settling at her startled yelp. Then he tugged, forcing her to turn her head and move toward him across the seat to avoid pain. “When I tell you to come this way, when I hold out my hand, you take it.” He leaned down until his nose almost touched hers, his gaze unrelenting. “Tell me you understand.”
She gulped, her nipples hardening visibly beneath her sweater.
He watched patiently as she battled what she wanted and what she should want. The second she made the wrong decision, he knew it.
She tried to jerk back from his hold, baring her teeth, temper flaring in her eyes.
Stunning. Fucking stunning.
Yet he kept his hold firm, and she did nothing but cause herself pain. Irritation flashed through him. “The more you disobey, the harder your punishment. And, Mia, hear me now. If you really hurt yourself, the punishment will be severe enough that you’ll never even think of doing it again.”
“Punishment?” Flames nearly poured from her eyes, but she didn’t pull back again. His woman might be stubborn, but she wasn’t stupid. “I’m an FBI agent, Volk.”
The scent of her arousal hit him, and he growled, the low rumble flowing up from his chest.
She quickly sucked air into her lungs.
“Not here. Here, you’re my mate. In fact, all the time and anywhere in the universe, you’re my mate.” He twisted his fingers in her hair, forcing her head to the side, looking down at her. “Your job might be as an agent, but you—heart, body, and soul—are fucking mine.”
Desire and need battled with temper in fleeting blasts of expression across her beautiful face. Unable to help herself, she punched his arm to break his hold. Her fist impacted solidly, and she winced.
“I warned you.” He released her hair and scooped her up, hauling her out his side of the vehicle. Ducking his body over her, he protected her from the rain as he ran to the front door and opened it, moving them both inside.
Lightning zapped a tree in the distance, and ozone filtered toward them before he kicked the door shut.
“Put me down.”
He carried her into what was now his office, and the smell of scotch and embedded cigar smoke grounded him. She struggled uselessly in his arms, and he briefly allowed it before tugging her weapon from her waist and tossing it onto the chair behind his desk.
She punched him in the neck, and his head snapped back.
The pain centered him, and his body relaxed. “You’re being a brat, Mia Stone.”
Her teeth clenched. “Then put me down.” She clenched her hand into another fist.
“Mia,” he said softly, so softly she stilled. Good instincts there. “Right now, it’s my hand. You hit me again, and not only are you getting my belt, you’re also going to remove it from my jeans and offer it to me in your fucking teeth. I don’t bluff, sweetheart, and you know it. So, think hard right now.”
She faltered. Make that excellent instincts. “This game isn’t working.” She panted, her nipples peaking and her desire a spicy scent filling his nostrils.
“That’s just it, baby. This isn’t a game.”
Seth slowly loweredMia to her feet, and she regained her balance, pushing away from him. Her calves rested against the buttery soft sofa. She couldn’t go far.
His expression was harsh, and his eyes looked feral, but when he reached up to run a thumb over her bottom lip, his touch was gentle.
Fire lashed from that simple touch down to her clit, making it pound. She wasn’t entirely sure what was happening, but she was two seconds away from jumping him.
He gently pushed her hair over her shoulder. “Take off your clothes, Mia.”
Something uncurled in her abdomen. “Why don’t we go upstairs?”
“No. Let’s get this over with, sweetheart.”
She blinked.Get this over with?She tried to take a step back, forgetting momentarily that she was trapped. “I’m not getting anything over with.” Seth usually liked to take his time in the bedroom, so he wasn’t talking about sex. She flashed back to what he’d said in the truck. “You can’t be serious.”
