Page 24 of Bleed with Me

He didn’t need to ask twice. I took the food into another room, then returned with the bottle of still water. I held it to his lips as he slowly sipped, his eyes glued to the mask on my face.

“Better?” I wiped his mouth with a napkin.

“Painkillers and sleep would be much appreciated, but yeah, I’m fine.” He yanked his head away from my reach, his hazel eyes glowing with something I couldn’t identify in the dim light cast from the dusty lamp. “Why am I here, ma vilaine?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” I teased, crossing my legs. “We’re getting married.”

“When?” he inquired, piercing my skull with his fierce glance. His reaction was completely different from what I anticipated.

“In about an hour or two,” I answered, wary of the frightening calm he radiated.

“Won’t happen.” He offered me a strained smile, tilting his head back on a pillow. “Malin will be here in about forty minutes, then will blow your head off and take me home. If your accomplice is clever enough, he should leave the state right now. It’s game over, love.”

I blinked at him, my mind quickly processing the terrifying prediction he offered. But it didn’t make any sense. He didn’t even know what time it was. The accuracy of his threat was either complete nonsense or a premonition.

“It’s only the beginning, Dorian,” I countered, placing my hand on his thigh, but the chuckle he let out made the tiny hairs on my neck stand up.

“Have you forgotten who you kidnapped, ma vilaine?” he asked, as if he were speaking to a little girl who didn’t understand the assignment. “I have the strongest backup. Malin is like a fucking shark smelling blood. Whatever you planned and however great the execution, you have minutes, not hours, to disappear.”

My throat tightened, but I didn’t let his words affect me. I would either get to the end of this or die trying.

“You will marry me today, Dorian,” I said, smiling at him like I didn’t hear him.

“And why on earth would I do that when I know help is coming?” He tilted his head mockingly, making me think he was wasting time.

“Help might find you dead, baby,” I replied nonchalantly, pulling the gun from the holder on my hip. He finally looked away from my face to the weapon in my hand, but it only made his handsome face smile.

“You care too much to use it,” he whispered in a voice that sent delicious shivers down my spine. It momentarily disturbed my concentration, but then the reality hit. I had no other choice but to hurt him to prove a point.

“Do I?” I moved the gun up his torso to his neck, pressing it against his pulse point.

“Yes, you do, ma vilaine,” he stated with unshakable confidence, grinning when I pressed the gun further. “You won’t kill me.”

“Ooooh,” I whined, the idea striking me at the last moment. “Of course I won’t kill you. But.” I jerked the weapon to his chained left hand, pushing it against his bandaged wrist. “If I shoot here, you will never perform surgery again.”

For the first time since he woke up in this bed, I noticed a pinch of fear behind his look. His jaw clenched, his glare turning murderous.

“Do you still believe I hold no power?” My lips stretched into a slightly maniacal grin. He had no idea how desperate I was.

“Power is dangerous,” he lectured in a controlled tone, his eyes narrowing at the edges. I always considered him different than his psycho brothers, but in this very moment, he looked utterly like them, cold, ruthless, and detached from any emotions. “And sometimes, it’s smarter to walk away from a losing battle.”

“What if I have nothing to lose?” I whispered, dragging the gun along his forearm. “While you’re the one who can lose everything.” I pressed the barrel against his wrist. “So, what’s it gonna be?”

-16-

Dorian

Clever little villain!

Whether she planned it or thought of it at the last second, she caught me completely off guard. I didn’t expect her to uncover my only weakness. Because I wasn’t worried about physical or mental torture if it didn’t include my hands. I was trained to endure it until help came. But those hands saved lives. They repaired shattered bones, stitched ruined flesh, and restored movement. If someone jeopardized my mastery, I would lose my shit, becoming a psychopath, compared to which even Malin would look like a fucking clown.

Don’t push me, ma vilaine, or you’ll be unpleasantly surprised, I thought, glaring into her dark chocolate brown eyes.

A tiny black ring framed her irises, its color sneaking into the brown and mingling with it to create irregular, unique specks. It was a pair of stunning, fierce eyes that would hunt me in my sleep. I knew that. She’d made a terrific impression, and I actually flirted with the thought of saving her cute little ass from Malin’s wrath, but the threats to my precious hands turned the scales in the opposite direction. She pissed me off. Despite the attraction, I was furious with her for daring to suggest something so outrageous.

“It’s going to be nothing, ma vilaine,” I answered her bold question, ignoring the cold metal pressing against my forearm. She moved the gun up and down slowly, almost seductively. I had difficulty ignoring the twitching of my cock in my pants. The fucking idiot didn’t understand that our life mission was at stake here.

“That’s sad,” she sighed, sounding like she truly regretted her actions. “I hoped we could solve this like intelligent adults.”