Page 117 of Reign

The quiet certainty in his voice brings back cold marble against my back, his hand beneath my ass, and the impossible stretch of him inside me. Heat coils low in my stomach.

Luciano leans back. “Most of your answers need discussion. One didn’t.”

I already know which one he means.

“Orgasm control,” he says, his voice dropping. “Strong yes.”

The words are low and deliberate, made obscene by how carefully he pronounces them.

I cross my legs beneath the table. His attention flicks downward for one infuriating second.

I uncross them out of spite.

“You want direction,” he continues. “But you want to feel safe.”

My embarrassment eases. Of everything I admitted on that questionnaire, that’s the one answer he handles without teasing.

“When you wrote it, were you thinking of me?”

The question changes the room.

He asks with the confidence of a man who already knows and wants to hear me admit it.

My heart slams against my ribs. The truth waits on the tip of my tongue.

Yes, you arrogant, beautiful asshole.

I straighten and gather what remains of my dignity. “Maybe I was thinking about someone who wouldn’t disappear after taking my virginity in a bathroom.”

Amusement warms his eyes. “You’ve been saving that one.”

“You earned it.”

“I admitted I should’ve handled that night differently.”

“That doesn’t mean I can’t continue using it against you.”

“Of course not.” He smirks. “You’d hate to waste perfectly good ammunition.”

“Exactly.”

He turns toward me in his chair. One hand settles on the back of mine while the other rises slowly, giving me every opportunity to move away.

I don’t.

His fingers curve around the back of my neck, warm and steady. The span of his hand makes the hold feel effortless as he draws me closer until his scent fills every breath.

“Brat,” he murmurs.

He says it like he’s discovered something he intends to enjoy.

The word should offend me. Instead, it sends a shiver down my spine and tightens the ache between my thighs.

“Is that what you are, princesa?” His thumb moves once at the base of my skull. “Teeth every time I get too close to the truth?”

“Maybe you keep giving me reasons to bite.”

His smile deepens. “That sounded dangerously close to an invitation.”