Unconsciously my hand drifted to the wounds on my neck, attempting to swallow my anxiety. A dismal fail. In a clinical space filled with bustling blue and white figures, his grey pants and a black shirt with sleeves pushed up just enough to reveal those corded inked forearms, commanded effortless dominance.
Hands in his pants pockets, he lifted one dark brow and the abrupt tingle to my skin reminded me what he’d done to my mouth. Immediately, my anger resurfaced, erupting like molten lava, scorching through reason and logic, snapping my restraint on self-control.
“You,” I spat out, standing inches away from him, unaware of how I got there. “Have some nerve coming back here. Who the hell do you think you are, manipulating people, asserting your power, taking liberties?” I snapped, too far gone to care that we had an audience.
Silence descended around us, tension crackling the air as I faced off the devil, my thoughts of self-preservation out the door.
“No matter how untouchable you think you are, you’ll never be anything more than a coward who preys on the innocent.” I jabbed my finger at his chest, and he let me. “You deserve to be behind bars.”
“Are you done?” his voice eerily calm, he wrapped a hand around my finger, lowering it, the warm touch a stark contrast to his icy glare.
“Nope,” I seethed, jerking my finger out of his hand. “You don’t get to walk in here and do as you please, frighten people into submission. Hurt them, make them bleed, free will be damned.” My voice shook with unconcealed fury. “You’re nothing more than a monster, Remo Rossi, and the people in this place might lick your goddamn feet to get a look from you,Iwill never bow to you.” I blinked away the hot anger-induced tears threatening to fall. “Not now, not ever but Iwillsee you rot in hell.”
“Ishika!” I heard someone whisper-call behind me, their fear unmistakable.
Remo’s frigid stare kept me rooted to the spot. “Quite the show, little fox,” he mocked, his eyes dark and intense. “My turn.”
I opened my mouth to challenge him, and his hand shot up, his finger to my lip, silencing me.
“I said. My turn.” This close, he was suffocating, every inch of him radiating raw power, unfettered masculinity. “You’ll be quiet now and listen to me. Speak again and I’ll gag you with a lot more than my finger.”
My jaw dropped, my eyes narrowed slits but he ignored me, his finger sliding from my lips to my neck, tracing a slow line across the wound I’d covered with a large band aid. I clenched my fists to keep me grounded, to not move.
“You disrespected me in front of these people. For that you will be punished.”
“What the–”
He gripped my wrist, his touch searing my skin through the material of the long sleeve, shocking me into silence. “You don’t know me, or my world nor do you know anything about the power I wield but you’re about to learn.”
“Don’t touch me,” I hissed, yanking my hand out of his grip.
“Oh, little fox.” He smirked. “Touching you is the least of your worries.”
Don’t poke the bear, don’t poke the bear, don’t…
“I’m not scared of you.” I tilted my chin, exerting my defiance, mentally stabbing the bear in his face.
He leaned forward, his face inches from mine. “You reek of fear. I can smell it.” He licked his lips. “My favorite scent.”
My heart pounded in my chest, warning me to walk away. I jerked back, drawing in a steady breath, trying to hide his effect on me and glared at him. “Go screw yourself,” I retorted, hearing the shocked gasps of our audience as I turned my back on him.
Strong fingers closed around my arm in a vice grip a second before he swung me around. “That’s not how you speak to the man who owns you,” he rasped, his tone a deadly menace.
“You don’t own me,” I gritted, fighting his hold.
But his free hand grasped my other arm, restricting my movement. “Keep telling yourself that.” His fingers dug into my skin, his whisper a clear warning.
“Nev–”
His mouth slammed over mine, freezing my words, paralyzing my body for a moment before a slow unexpected surge of electricity charged through my veins. Panic crashed through me. I struggled, needing to escape. He tightened his hold, pulling me closer and forced his tongue into my mouth, pressing his rigid cock to my stomach.
The kiss was aggressive, possessive, demanding, his lips soft in contrast yet nothing like I’d experienced, ever. My skin erupted in flames, the tingle between my legs dizzying, my body trembled with unwanted need. I shouldn’t enjoy the effect he was having on me.
Stop him.
Frantic, I bit his bottom lip until the metallic taste of blood infused our tongues, but Remo’s soft groan filled my mouth,the sound a sexual deviant all on its own, reigniting that lick of arousal I denied yesterday. His kiss became fiercer and no matter how much I pushed at his chest, his hold remained relentless. I resisted, stiffening my body but I was drowning in him. His touch, his control, his taste, his smell, it was all slowly dragging me in, pressuring me to succumb.
Just when I felt my knees start to buckle, he pulled back, releasing me. Desire made him look almost human, his chest rising and falling in ragged pants much like mine before his swollen lips bright with blood, slipped into a wicked smirk, his blue eyes glistening with unconcealed triumph.
