“Never call me that again. Not unless you want to be punished,” I warn as I cage her with my body.
Her cheeks flush. “Honestly, I don’t know if I’m into that kink. If I have a kink.” She shrugs. Her innocent yet blatant statement has my smile widening. Her face twists in thought. “Hmm, I might like it. Not too hard, though. What aboutyou? Want me to spank you?” she asks, wiggling her eyebrows.
My dick stirs at the possibilities of having her restrained, begging. Her amusement fades as the atmosphere shifts from playful to electric. I close my eyes and draw in her scent. Her arousal. I brush my lips over hers, feeling her shudder beneath me. My mouth, my tongue, ready to taste her, to take what’s mine.
Then heels click against stone, the sound slicing through the moment. My head snaps toward the door.
“What is it?” Evelynn asks, confusion threading her voice.
I spring off her. “Stay there. Don’t move.” My tone leaves no room for argument.
I barely take two steps before the door is blasted off its hinges. Seraphine strides in, murderous eyes locked on me. Instinct takes over, and I move in front of Evelynn, shielding her with my body. Behind me, her terrified heartbeat echoes through my bones.
“You are not welcome here, Seraphine,” I growl.
Her eyes blaze. “Not welcome? That’s a first, Lucian. I remember being very welcome when we fucked in that bed, on that chair—” she gestures lazily “—against the wall, on the floor?—”
I hear Evelynn’s breathing hitch.
“Enough,” I bark. “Getout.”
Seraphine smirks, shaking her head. “You can’t honestly have feelings for this.” Her attention slides to Evelynn. She inhales sharply, scenting my mark. My bond.
Her lips part, and pain flickers across her face before rage consumes it.
“Seraphine,” I say more softly, trying to reason with her.
Her gaze snaps back to mine, molten fury burning straight through me. “You marked her.” Her voice breaks, half devastation, half violence. “I’m going to kill her. I’m going to snap her pathetic little neck like a twig.”
She launches.
I intercept her mid-air, slamming her into the stone floor. It cracks beneath her body as my hand closes around her throat.
“You will not harm a single fucking hair on her head,” I snarl. “Try again, and I destroy you.”
Her eyes widen. The sound of my brothers’ footsteps is a reassurance as they enter the room behind me.
“You’d kill me to save her,” Seraphine wheezes.
“I would,” I confirm without hesitation.
“I waited,” she whispers. “I was patient. We were meant to be together.”
Guilt coils briefly in my gut. “I’m sorry if you thought it was anything more than sex.”
Her pain evaporates into pure darkness. “She’s twisted your mind.”
“She hasn’t,” I counter.
Seraphine explodes with strength, throwing me across the room. My back slams into the wall. “Fuck.”
She’s already moving, lightning fast. She appears behind Evelynn, dragging her to her knees. One hand clamps around Evelynn’s throat, the other fists in her hair.
Possessive rage detonates inside me.
“I wouldn’t, Lucian,” Seraphine taunts, her razor-sharp nail slicing Evelynn’s skin. Blood trickles slowly down her neck.
Evelynn looks at me, panic-stricken, pleading and begging me to save her.
