Asher pulls a pack of playing cards from his back pocket and tosses them to Cruz. “Maybe we should play a game,” he suggests, his voice light and playful.
My body stiffens. “I’m not playing some game.”
“It could be fun.” Asher smiles cheekily, trying his best to charm me, but I don’t trust his intentions right now.
I lock my eyes with his. Damn, he’s pretty. “Not if it’s your idea of punishment.”
“Yeah, a game of chance sounds like the perfect idea to solve this problem.” Cruz sniggers.
Jagger seems to agree because he takes a step back from me, plonking his ass on the coffee table. Giving me space for the first time since he carried me in here.
Cruz takes out all the queens, jacks, and kings from the pack then shuffles. “Queen, you get to choose a punishment, Jack, Asher and I will think of something creative. King, Jagger will decide a consequence for you,” he explains as he shuffles the cards and places them down on the table beside Jagger.
“Do I have any choice?” I swallow the lump in my throat, my eyes bouncing between them.
Cruz shakes his head, pushing the shuffled cards toward me.
With my pulse kicking up a beat, I sit forward just a little and pluck a card and place it on the table. “Jack.” I sigh, not sure ifit’s a good thing or not. Easier than working out what they want from me.
Cruz tilts his head to the side. “What do you think, Ash?”
“Hmm. You forgot who was in charge and got silly ideas of running from us again. We all remember what happened last time you tried that.” He produces a pair of handcuffs and dangles them from his thumb. “For the rest of the night you will be wearing these.”
I go to argue, and Cruz places a finger to my lips to stop me. “Not a good idea to talk back. Take your punishment like a good girl, darlin’, and we will make it less challenging for you.”
My eyes narrow in on him, and he replaces his finger with his lips, kissing me quickly before he hops up and moves to the bar.
“I think we need a drink.”
I turn to Asher. Surely he doesn’t agree. “Ash.”
He takes my hands in his, the cool metal cuffs sliding over my flesh as he tightens them. He leans in, his lips brushing mine. “You run, it’ll kill me.”
His words sink right to the pit of my stomach, causing pain to radiate through my chest. I stare back at him. “I won’t run.”
“Can you promise me?”
“Yes. Can you trust me?” I ask, remembering our questions from earlier today.
His eyes search mine, boring deep into my soul. “Yes,” he answers, but he doesn’t sound convinced.
“Next round,” Jagger interrupts our moment, clearly needing the attention back on his grumpy ass.
I roll my eyes just to piss him off. And instead of taking the card he has held out for me, I take one of the shot glasses Cruz has left on the table and throw it back. Something tells me I need to be buzzed for the rest of this game.
Cruz settles back in beside me, kissing my cheek. “Love this look on you, little darlin’. You know I’ve been imagining you cuffed and helpless since that first night I brought you home.”
I can’t help but smirk back at him. “Guess all your dreams are coming true.”
“Oh, you have no idea, baby.”
“Good luck thinking I’m helpless just because you have my hands bound.” With a sassy smirk, I reach for a card, needing a distraction from the way he’s looking at me like he’s about to throw me over the coffee table and screw me. I turn a king, and my skin goes all clammy.
Jagger’s lips twitch at the sides ever so slightly as his dark menacing eyes meet mine. He stands and walks over to the window, staring out into the night, his hands in his pockets. “You know, I like the idea of attaching you to me permanently, but I have a better idea. Choose one of us to marry,” he says without hesitation, turning back to face the three of us.
My spine goes ramrod straight. “What the fuck?” I stare back at all of them in disbelief, thinking I must have misheard him. “You’re joking, right? You know how I feel about being married.”
“To one of them, some fucker your family chose for you.” His lips twitch into a smug smile. “But you said yourself you don’t want to run from us; you like us and what we have to offer. So stay and marry into the family.”
