A spark bolts through me. I grind my thighs together, praying he doesn’t notice.
Back in the lot, a Maserati chirps to life. He tosses me into the passenger seat, buckles me in like a child, and leans close. His jaw is so smooth I want to bite it. But I don’t. I’m angry. I’msupposedto be angry.
Watching him destroy what he was ordered to do isn’t thesame asearning me, though. I’m nervous he won’t go far enough. He needs to prove himself.
After the agony of seeing him standing on stage with Hailey, I’ve settled in my mind what I need.
I want the ring. The public proposal. A green dress and a commitment of forever. It used to be enough to have him love me and look at me the way he once did. Now? I wanteverything.
Or I’ll fuck Landon in front of him.
“Sit there and be still,” he says with a warning glare. I don’t protest. Before he leaves my side, he stares at me for a long moment, and I almost imagine he’ll kiss me. He lingers, thumb pressing into my arm, rolling up and down like he’s searching. When it finds the bump of my birth control implant, his eyes narrow, then turn victorious.
“Ouch! What the hell are you doing?” I ask, breathless, confused, and now…maybe a little scared.
“Don’t move.”
In a swift motion, he skirts to the side, slips behind the wheel, and presses the gas, flooring it with a screech of the tires as we peel out. The engine screams, headlights cutting through the dark. With Talon, I’d claw the door in terror. With Aiden? I lean back and enjoy the ride.
That is, until he eventually swerves us toward theThetaManor’s cellar door.
The smug smile slips off my face when he lifts me from the seat and carries me down the crumbling stone steps.
“We— We’re not going to your room?”
His chuckle is demented. And cruel. “Oh no. You lost that privilege. I told you not to talk to any other guys. I told you to stay put. I told you I was fixing things, and instead ofbelievingme and trusting me enough to handle it, you decided to disobey. And so now? Now, baby? You get stricter rules.”
“No more nice daddy?” I ask, almost hitting my head on alow beam as we enter the musty stone hall. He covers my skull with his palm and kicks open a wooden door.
“No. Stern and fuckingpissed offdaddy is here now. Because that’s what you deserve.”
He sets me on my feet and shuts the door, locking it behind him. The little dank room holds a moldy-looking full-size mattress with sheets and a nasty cream comforter on it. Iron headboard and footrails obviously made for bondage. Chains hang from the ceiling, and there’s an old wooden pillory in the corner next to an upholstered chest.
A skinny door behind the main one leads to either a closet or a bathroom. But it’s shut.
He whirls to face me, black suit jacket flaring out at the sides. Fury and molten lava swirl behind his eyes.Fuck. He’s insanely attractive when he’s mad.
“Strip. Everything off.”
Taking my time, I remove my sweatshirt and dangle it on the end of my finger in front of him, then let it drop. Then I do the same with my tank top and finally my bra.
“If you don’t hurry the fuck up? I’ll burn those off your skin.”
I turn around and shimmy out of my jeans, letting my hips sway until I can practicallyhearhis dick filling with need.
The snap of the belt across my bare skin sends me surging toward the bed, scrambling up onto it.
“What are you doing with me?” I ask as he straddles my waist with his thighs.
Silence is his only reply as he sets to work securing my wrists to restraints bound to the headboard. He does the same to my ankles, though I do get one swift kick to his throat before he grabs it. In response, he bites the side of my foot until I yell out in pain.
“That’ll bruise,” he says, smug as hell.
With frustration, he tosses his suit jacket to the floor andloosens his tie, then wraps it around my face until I’m blindfolded.
“Yeah, asshole. What’s your plan?”
“My plan is to gag you unless you shut your mouth and listen.”