My hands shake as I grip the edge of the sink. The crystal inside me shifts with the movement, and I bite back a sound.
You wore it.
You didn't have to.
You could have thrown it away, blocked his number.
But you wore it.
I splash cold water on my face. Pat it dry with the softest towel I've ever touched. Stare at the woman in the mirror who looks like me but feels like a stranger.
I straighten my spine. Smooth down my dress. Check that my makeup hasn't smeared.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Vittoria
Iopen the door.
Dmitri moves so fast I don't register it until my back hits the wall. His body cages mine, one hand flat against the wallpaper beside my head, the other?—
His fingers wrap around my throat. Not hard. Not painful. Justthere. A promise and a threat braided together.
"Dmitri—" I start to protest, but the word dies in my mouth because I don't actually want him to stop.
His eyes burn into mine, reading every micro-expression, every flutter of my pulse against his palm. He knows. He always knows.
Then he kisses me.
It's not gentle. It's not sweet. His mouth claims mine like he's been starving for weeks and I'm the only thing that can save him. His tongue sweeps past my lips, tasting, taking, demanding everything I have.
My hands find his chest, fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt.
His grip on my throat tightens just enough to make my head spin, and I melt into him instead.
When he pulls back, we're both breathing hard. His thumb traces my jaw, feather-light against my flushed skin.
"Beautiful," he murmurs, more to himself than to me.
Then he lifts his other hand.
The controller sits in his palm like a grenade with the pin already pulled.
Panic floods my system. "Don't you dare?—"
His thumb presses the button.
The vibration hits me like lightning, stealing every thought from my head. My knees buckle, and I grab his forearms just to stay upright. The moan that escapes my lips is embarrassing—desperate and needy andloud.
"That's it, solnyshko." His voice drops to a rough whisper against my ear. "Let me hear you."
"I can't—" I gasp, nails digging into his skin through the shirt. "Someone will?—"
"No one's coming." His lips brush my temple. "Just you."
The vibration intensifies. Or maybe it's the same and I'm just losing my mind. Every nerve ending in my body focuses on that single point of sensation, building and building until I can't breathe.
"You're so wet for me." His teeth graze my earlobe. "Have been all night. Sitting across from me, pretending you weren't dripping, pretending you didn't want exactly this."
