One of them opened his mouth to respond, then obviously thought better of it. Heath didn’t look particularly threatening, but there was something in the way he spoke that made everyone obey him without question.
Both boys shot me quick looks, that cocky bravado they held moments ago draining out of them as they hurried away like they knew what they’d just stirred up.
But Heath wasn’t done.
“Come with me,” he murmured, gently touching his fingers to my elbow. Gentle, yes, but I felt the warning behind it.
I nodded as he escorted me toward the private elevator, giving me the silent treatment until the doors slid shut. His grip tightened then.
“What exactly were you hoping to accomplish out there?”
“I wasn’t?—”
“You were sunbathing inthat.” His gaze raked over my bikini with an open disapproval that made me feel like a misbehaving child. “Knowing the kind of people staying here this weekend.”
I was well aware of who he meant. It was alumni weekend for one of the nearby private universities, and the hotel was crawling with frat boys back in town—mostly the freshly graduated ones who treated it like an extension of spring break.
“You picked it out,” I snapped, the words tumbling out before I could think better of them.
His response was a slow exhale as the elevator climbed upward. Seconds ticked by, each one in time with the glowing floor numbers.
“You made a spectacle of yourself,” he said. “With everything going on, you thought it was wise to lie out half-naked in front of drunk college kids. What exactly did you think would happen?”
“I didn’t ask them to come over?—”
“No,” he cut in, “but you didn’t do much to discourage them either, now did you?”
Anger thrummed throughout me and I straightened, even though his grip on my elbow was really starting to hurt. “So it’s my job to manage how grown men behave just because I exist near them?”
He was furious—I could feel the anger radiating off of him in waves as the elevator dinged and we stepped off of it and into our penthouse suite. My heart pounded painfully against my ribs.
“You really don’t get it, do you?” he asked, letting go of my elbow as he crossed the room, sliding off his suit jacket and rolling up the sleeves of his Oxford. “I bring you into my world,” he continued, back still to me, “and you think that gives you permission to act like you don’t know better?”
“That’s not fair,” I shot back, my stupid voice wobbling and getting louder. “I didn’t even talk to them. They came over and I told them no?—”
He turned toward me then, closing the space between us in quick and deliberate strides as his hand came up fast, the back of it poised inches away from my face as he glared at me.
I flinched, shutting my eyes tight as I braced for impact.
But it didn’t come.
“Did you really think I was going to hit you?” he asked, his voice low and viciously amused.
My eyes blinked open, and he was smiling at me now, smug and cruel, as his fingers skimmed my throat before curling his palm around to the back of my neck. He pulled me to him then, brushing a kiss against my forehead. “Always so dramatic.”
I could barely breathe. The thump of my pulse roared in my ears as my chest rose and fell in a shallow, panicked rhythm.My entire body was locked up tight, but my mouth moved on instinct.
“Don’t touch me,” I said, the words barely audible.
His fingers twitched against the nape of my neck. “What was that?” he sneered, not pulling away.
Panic clawed at my throat, but I met his eyes straight on. My chin wobbled, but I bit down on my molars and swallowed hard. “I’m done.” My heart banged against my chest. “We’redone.”
His smile vanished.
“Let.” I sucked in a shallow breath. “Me.” Released it on a shaky exhale. “Go.”
His hand moved so fast I didn’t see it coming. Pain exploded across my cheek and I stumbled, catching the back of my ribs painfully on the edge of the entryway table.
