As we turn around, I freeze. My hand clutches my throat. But it doesn’t stop the scream that erupts from my lungs. Shock and horror flood my system like a bucket of ice water.
There, in our bed, in the center of the mattress…
Elowyn Price.
Dead.
forty-five
“There. No smell.”
Even after a full day of the cleaning crew working, the scent of death won’t leave my nose. Ashlyn’s peppermint balm burns on my upper lip—her attempt to cover it, useless. But I don’t dare tell my future wife that the stench of the girl I used to fuck is still lodged in my head, like a bad dream.
“The oil diffuser helps,” she says, filling a second one. I glance at the lit candles lined up on the dresser. She sniffs. “Lemon and...must.”
“More like astringent,” I say, trying to be helpful. Rubbing her shoulders, I press my chin to the top of her head. “As I said, we can stay in the other wing.”
“No. I feel at home in the guest suite. Plus, we can grab our clothes from your closet without having to move them.”
“Whatever you want, dear.”
She flips around and faces me with a mock-stunned expression. “Who are you and what have you done with mytyrantof a Viscount?”
I grip her throat and shove her against the nearest wall. Hard enough to make a choked gasp explode from her lungs.Diving into her neck, I crawl my nose up to her ear and growl, deep and low. “He never fucking left. So don’t make me angry, baby girl. It’s been a while since I slapped you. Is that what you’re asking for?”
“Gods, please,” she whimpers, trembling. Her eyes blaze. Body writhing against mine in all the right spots.
She’s a siren, and I’m the sailor who never learns. Calling every bit of control I have into question.
And I love that.
I crush my mouth to hers, bite her bottom lip until she gasps, her tongue slick over mine, sweet and defiant.
“You want me to tie you up again? Whip your ass so hard you can’t sit for a week?”
“Yes!”
Her fingers hook into the loops of my jeans, pulling me closer. Kissing me deeper.
Between breaths, I huff out, “Shove my cock so far down your throat you bruise? Leave bite marks on your shoulders for everyone to see?”
As her throat vibrates with a moan of affirmation, I delve into the soft skin above her collarbone and sink my teeth in. My ears heat with the sound of her scream.
She pulls me up by my hair and shoves her lips against mine, hitching a leg up over my hip. I nearly give in when her pussy rubs against my hardening cock.
With a pop, I pull away. Slap a hand on the wall above her. Chest rapidly rising, I manage to whisper, “We have to get to class.”
She narrows her eyes. “NowI’mthe one going to slapyou.”
“Wouldn’t be the first time.”
“Noooooo…”
With a heavy sigh, she shoves off the wainscoting and reaches for her coat. I help her with it, grab our bags, then her hand, and guide her to the hall.
“Fresh start to the semester, Ashlyn! I’ll take you right to the admin building to change your major. Then to your advisor’s office to switch your schedule. More math for you.”
Her steps slow as she kicks her feet like a toddler. “I don’t want to…”