Reality crashed upon her as she realized Mateo was touching her. That he had her spread open.No. Stop.She begged her body to listen, to break whatever spell he had on her.
Spell.
The idea was like a burst of welcoming light.
He has magic.
He must. What kind?She didn’t know, and she worried she didn’t have time to figure it out. She needed to break the spell.
“That’s it, wild one,” he whispered as he circled his finger around her clit. Her legs tightened from pleasure, and her hips rocked.
No, no, no. My tiger. Where is my tiger? Isn’t it supposed to protect me?Her body wasn’t listening to her. Instead, to Ophelia’s horror, it began to quiver.
Focus. You can get out of this. Think of your tiger. Focus on it.
Just as her body was about to come for him, her tiger’s roar broke through her thoughts, and the invisible rope that tied her body down was suddenly cut. She immediately grabbed Mateo’s hand and stopped him.
“Stop,” she said firmly. “I...” she stammered, coming out of her fog.Speak, damnit.“I have to go.”
“Let’s go back to my place,” he said, sprinkling kisses down her neck. She lifted her shoulder in disgust, effectively moving him away. Ophelia clambered out of the tub and quickly snapped her bodysuit back together.
She wanted to claw his eyes out. She didn’t know what game he was playing, but he haddonesomething to her. The menacing look on his face told her to tread lightly, so she played the game, acting like nothing was wrong in order not to further enrage a man before she got to safety.
“Thanks for the invite.” She plastered on a grateful smile. “But I really should head home. I have an early morning.”
“Oh, you sure?” he said, eyeing her with suspicion.
“Yep, big day,” she said curtly.
“Okay, let me walk you back to your car.”
“No, no, you stay and enjoy yourself. It’s a great party.” Ophelia started to back away from him. She breathed deeply.Fresh air.
“I’m not letting you walk back by yourself,” he said sternly. “We can leave now.” He placed a hand on the small of her back to guide her to the backyard gate. She briskly stepped out of his touch.
“No, I’m fine. Really,” she pleaded, stepping farther from him.
“Ophelia, I am not letting you walk back to your car alone in the middle of the night.” He was stern. There was no arguing, and Ophelia knew he was right. It was dangerous for a woman to walk alone at night in New Orleans, buthewas the danger. “Come on,” he commanded.
Ophelia relented. Don’t let him get near you,she told herself. Kick him if you have to. Do not let him get near you again. Whatever he is doing, it’s through that scent.
As they walked back in the direction of her car, Mateo seemed to sense the change in her. The conversation from him was tense. Almost desperate. As they reached her car, he stopped and reached for her hand. Ophelia quickly pulled her arm away and hugged herself, feigning cold.
“Ophelia, I’m genuinely interested in you. I want you to know that, and I’d like to see you again,” he said at the same time she said, “All right, well, I need to go. Bye!” and rushed to her car door.
“Wait.”
She paused with her back to him, hand on the car door handle. “I made a sculpture of you,” Mateo said casually. “I want to show you. It’s not at my apartment, but at my studio. I hope to finish it in the next couple of days. It’ll be my newest piece and will be shown at the Archer this Thursday.”
Ophelia turned slowly back to face him. Mateo held his smile, but beneath it was something sinister. Anger and fear bubbled up inside her. “You what?” she asked indignantly.
“You’re a muse, Ophelia. How could I resist? Look at you.” His smile curled further, and he shrugged as if he were embarrassed.What a fucking act.
“You made a sculpture of me? We’ve known each other for three weeks.”
“I know. You’ve taken much longer than my other sculptures. You can see it tomorrow if you want, before I show it.”
Horror washed over her. She was a sculpture of his. All of his sculptures were of women… nude.
