“You could start with telling me about Annie, and how you know my parents.”
As he got closer, I was forced to tilt my head up so I could maintain eye contact. His hard stare was nothing less than intimidating. I gritted my teeth and balled my fists in an effort to stop from shaking.
“Annie…as in, your sister?” I narrowed my eyes at him and began inching around to the opposite side of the table, wanting some distance between us.
He tracked my movements without turning his head, a smile breaking out on his face.
“Are you trying to get away from me?” His hand shot out and wrapped around my wrist, adding just enough pressure to remind me how easily he could snap it. I glared down where he gripped me and then back up at his face.
“Why can’t you just answer me?” I shot back, attempting to pull away from him anyway.
“You haven’t even asked me anything.” He continued to grin, laughing at my poor attempt to break free. Giving a sharp tug, he bent my body at an awkward angle, pulling my upper torso over the table.
“Stop it!” I yelled, lurching down to bite where he gripped me.
“Katie,” he sighed, easily thwarting my assault.
He was quick to let me go, immediately winding a hand in my hair like he was grabbing a piece of rope, using it to drag me back around to where he stood.
A small squeak left my mouth.
His pretty green hues gave nothing away, his emotions shuttered.
I wrapped my hands around his wrists and dug my dirty nails in. I felt his skin tear off, but he showed no signs of physical distress or indication that I was hurting him.
“Calm the fuck down,” he gruffly commanded, violently jerking me left and right by the roots of my hair.
I cried out and dropped my hands, letting him place me where he wanted like I was a ragdoll.
He used his solid body to trap me between him and the table, pulling my head back until my back was forced to bow. My scalp was on fire, the tiny hairs stretched beyond their limit. I stared up at him through the pained tears that had gathered in the corners of my eyes.
“You picked one hell of a time to find your spine,” he commented, using his thumb to catch the first tear that fell.
“Let me go,” I pleaded, wriggling beneath him.
“I can’t.” He leaned down and skimmed his soft lips across my forehead. I could smell a hint of mint mouthwash on his breath.
“I missed you,” he confessed, so quietly I almost didn’t hear him.
I was sure I hadn’t been away from him that long, but then again, Mason would tie us together with a ball and chain if he had the option. If I wasn’t right beside him, I was too far away. Sometimes, I felt as if he wanted to merge us into one being, just to ensure I would always be with him.
He slightly pulled away to look back down at me, staring so intensely you would think he was reading my mind.
“You have no idea how lovely you are,” he murmured, stroking my cheek with his fingertips.
Oh, no. I knew where this would go, and it was the last thing we needed to be doing.
“Mason, we need to talk.” My voice came out smooth and steady, at complete odds with the rising sense of urgency I felt to get him off me. When he was inside me, I fell to pieces. Nothing else mattered but him.
“I know what you’re doing.” He let go of my hair, granting my scalp instant relief, and braced himself over me with his palms flat on the table. I was in an awkward position; not tall enough to reach the ground, my bandaged feet limply dangled on either side of his waist.
I could feel the tension in his powerful body. He had a dark look in his eyes, and I knew just what it meant. He leaned back down and I brought my hands up to brace against his chest.
“I’m filthy.”
“I like you filthy,” he whispered roughly, sliding his hands up my legs. Heat danced down my spine as he curled two fingers in the waistband of my thong and dragged it down to my ankles, not bothering to completely remove it.
“Mason,” I objected, but there was no longer any ire behind my words. He made me weak, and I hated it. He was a lethal amphetamine, an addiction I feared I wouldn’t be free of until I crashed and burned, unable to sustain any more of him.
