“A friend.”
I don’t ask more.
He pushes the doors open, and my breath hitches, a thrill rushing down my spine.
It’s a library. But not just any library.
It’s floor-to-ceiling bookshelves that seem to reach for the heavens, filled with leather-bound volumes smelling of history and secrets. A massive fireplace dominates one wall, though the embers are low, casting a warm, flickering amber glow over the room. There are velvet armchairs, rolling ladders, and a sense of quiet grandeur that makes me feel like I’ve stepped into the pages ofNorthanger Abbey.
“Oh my God,” I whisper, stepping inside as if I’m afraid the whole thing might vanish if I move too fast.
I start to wander, traveling to the second floor between the stacks, my fingers trailing along the spines of the books. I can feel Liam’s whole attention on me—dark, intense, and unyielding. He follows me, his shadow stretching long across the floor, always just a step behind. He doesn’t say anything, just lets me explore, but his energy trails me everywhere. It’s like he’s stalking me through his own private jungle of paper and ink.
I’m swept up in it—the smell of old paper, the weight of the history around me, the sheer volume of stories waiting to be told. I’m so lost in the wonder of it that I don’t notice the shadows closing in. I don’t notice him moving closer until suddenly, I’m pinned.
My back hits a bookshelf, and Liam is there, his hands slamming into the wood on either side of my head. He traps me in the small space between his arms, his body a wall of heat that makes my knees shudder.
He looks at me with a knowing, wicked grin that makes my insides do a triple somersault.
“Time for those five orgasms, Lexie Darlin’.”
Oh, God, my heart hammering against my ribs. “Here? Now? Liam, anyone could walk in. What happened to the dark, quiet corner where no one will see?”
He leans in, his lips brushing the sensitive skin of my jaw, then trailing down to my neck.
“Then, I suggest you stay quiet enough,” he murmurs against my skin, rough and thick. “But…I’ll be aimin’ t’make ya scream, my sweet girl.”
“Sweet baby Jesus…” A soft moan escapes me, and I squirm against him, the sequins of my dress rustling against the dark wood of the shelf.
The heat in the room seems to skyrocket. I can’t think, can’t breathe, but there’s a question burning in the back of my mind, fueled by the hundreds of novels I’ve devoured.
“Can I ask you a question first?” I whisper, my cheeks heating until I’m sure they match the deep crimson of my dress.
“Pray tell…” he croons, leaning in until our noses brush, his icy blue eyes like winter stars in the dim light.
I tilt my head, a small smile playing on my lips despite the frantic thrumming of my pulse. “Are you a dom?”
Liam chuffs a laugh, a sound of pure, dark amusement. Then, his expression shifts, his gaze turns deadpan and intense as the shadows seem to gather around him, making him look even more like the antihero of my dark dreams. Even the scars on his jaw seem to leer at me.
“No,” he says, his voice low and possessive. “I’myourdom, Elexia Carter. Choose a safe word.”
At first, I scrunch my brows. It’s not that I haven’t thought about it, agonized over it. But for some reason, this feels…different. He’s asking me, empowering me to make my own choice. So, I make it.
“I don’t want one.”
His jaw tightens. “Talk.”
Taking a deep breath, I say, “I know this is crazy. Really crazy. I mean, I’ve only known you for two days. But…I trust you. No safe word.”
A vein in his brow throbs. He scrubs a hand down his face, disbelief evident. “Fuck, your trust in me…it gets me so hard.”
“I know.”
I feel the evidence throbbing against my pelvis.
His features turn to dark steel, and he says, “Get ready to scream.”
He doesn’t give me time to process that before his mouth is on mine again—hard, demanding, and utterly thorough. His hands are everywhere, and for a few blissful, terrifying minutes, I’m lost in a sea of sensation that leaves me shaking and desperate for more. Especially since he only touches me over my dress. My nipples tighten.
