One of her hands flies at me, catching me across the chin. I grunt, snatching her wrist and twisting it behind her back easily.
“That won’t do. If you can’t sit still and take the punishment I promised like a good girl, I’ll have to tie you up.”
“Goddamnit, Wren!” Rowan bucks and gets her frustration out with a fierce yell.
“Scream all you want, baby.” Grinning savagely, I lean down to speak against the back of her neck. “The walls are soundproof.”
Her indignant shouts are music to my ears as I maneuver her onto the bed and take off her jacket and camisole, revealing the mouthwatering sight of her tits. I hold her wrists in one hand while taking my belt off with one swift tug. She kicks and I get a knee over her thighs to pin her to the bed. I make a loop for one wrist, feeding the end of the belt through the buckle to make the second restraint and pull tight enough to restrict her.
“What a gorgeous sight you are all tied up for me, baby,” I murmur.
She bares her teeth. “You’re an asshole.”
Flexing my grip on her wrists, I palm one of her breasts.
“You have such great tits.” I tease the pebbled nipple, pinching it when her lips part on a gasp. “I should pierce these to give myself something to yank on when you’re naughty.”
“You—fucking shit,” Rowan hisses, a clash of arousal and wariness clouding her eyes.
Interesting.
A menacing laugh rolls out of me as I sit back down and drag her back into my lap for more.
The next time my palm collides with her ass I feel the tingling warmth and the room fills with the crisp sound of skin clapping on skin. Another hoarse cry leaves her, ending on an aroused moan. She arches her back and wriggles, likely attempting to seek relief from my torment and find somewhere to rub against on my lap for friction.
My cock strains in my pants. Part of me wants to pin her to the bed and fuck her senseless. But the monstrous side of me wants to keep pushing her until she’s a beautiful broken mess.
“See, kitten.” I smooth my hand over the pink flush blooming on her cheek. “Told you I could make you like anything. Bad girls don’t get to come, though.”
“No,” Rowan says breathlessly.
“Afraid so.” I click my tongue in disappointment. “A real shame. You’re so pretty when you come undone for me.”
Her panting grows ragged as she struggles, but I offer no respite from my hold. After a couple of minutes, she flops bonelessly, tiring herself out. I pat her ass, enjoying her hiss of surprise.
“I’m not doing this just because you didn’t listen.” My fingers delve between her cheeks and I smirk when I find her slick from desire, even wetter than when I devoured her pussy. She enjoys some pain with her pleasure. “You put yourself in danger.”
“I had it under control,” Rowan mumbles into the sheets. “Brought pepper spray and something to stab anyone who tried anything with me.”
A snort jerks my head. “How’d that work out for you?”
Instead of answering, she turns her head away and grinds on my fingers. I indulge her for a moment, slipping into the side of her panties to glide through her folds. She sucks in a sharp gasp as I tease her. When I pull away to suck my fingers clean, she curses under her breath. I swat her ass and chuckle at her little shriek.
“I told you. Bad girls don’t get to come.”
I give her one more smack. Another urge overtakes me and I welcome it, leaning down to bite her ass cheek. Her body trembles, thighs pressing together.
“Oh god!” Rowan pants. “Just let me—”
“No.”
I want to see her come, but not yet.
She gets another spank for her insolence. It tears a choked noise from her as I sooth her flushed skin. When the fight bleeds out of her at last, I stroke her back. Body relaxed, she sprawls across my lap, finally pliant for me. I take the time to explore, brushing my touch over her skin, earning faint hums of pleasure from her.
I get lost in the moment, longer than I ever would with someone else. Each shiver and tremble my caresses earn stokes an ember glowing in my chest. I need more. Want her in every way imaginable.
“You look so goddamn gorgeous like this,” I rasp, tracing the length of her spine to the curve of her ass.
Rowan’s backside is warm to the touch when I pick her up and deposit her on her back, peeling her thong off and tossing it aside. She closes her eyes and writhes for a moment at the initial sensation of the cool sheets against her tormented flesh. The corner of my mouth lifts. She left her arms overhead where I put them. When I step back, she moans in protest.
Another low chuckle rolls through me. “Spread those legs and let me see how fucking wet you are.”
At my demand, her eyes fly open, the green almost swallowed by her blown pupils. I swipe my thumb over my lip and press a palm to my straining cock, watching her intently. After a few shallow breaths, she swallows and does as I say, opening her legs.
Fuck. Her folds are glistening. Glorious body naked and splayed for me.
She’s perfection. She’s mine.
With effort, I drag my feral gaze up to meet her eyes. “Your pussy is begging to get fucked. Begging me to wreck you.”
Her gaze doesn’t waver as I strip out of my shirt. She drinks my body in, tongue darts out to wet her lips as she stares at my tattoos. Instead of fear or shying away from the damaged monster before her, the only thing alight in her eyes is desire.
It stirs an unfamiliar and elusive yearning in my chest when she looks at me like that. The shock of it almost startles me out of the moment. I’ve never felt anything like that around someone.
Emotions have evaded me after Charlotte—I only care for my best friends. Otherwise I’m nothing but anger and emptiness. To have Rowan inspire more than lust messes with my head.
Shaking myself out of it, I remove my pants, not caring where they end up for once, and throw a condom on the sheets.
“Tell me,” I order. “Tell me how much you need my cock right now.”
Heat pulses in my groin when she rolls her lips between her teeth and spreads her legs wider. Wicked, tempting little devil. A deep rumble leaves me as I prowl back to the bed.
“You have to use your words.”
An unspoken challenge blazes in her eyes. One I’ll answer until she’s screaming her need. I close my mouth around one of her nipples and torture it with my tongue. Satisfaction shoots through me at her gasp. When she’s whimpering my name, I move to the other, pinching the first one.
“Say it, Rowan,” I growl against her tits. “Or I’ll leave you here and make sure you can’t get yourself off. Break for me, baby.”
She remains quiet and I go back to ravaging her nipples. A beat later, she shatters.
“Please.”
It’s a single, wobbling surrender.
And it’s beautiful.
Bracing over her with one hand, I smooth hair back from her face. “Please, what?”
“I…I want…” She sucks in air through her clenched teeth, distracted when I dip my fingers between her thighs to rub her clit. “Nngh, I need to feel your cock. Fuck me, Wren.”
Leaning down further, I lick the tears staining her cheeks. “Are you still going to be a brat?”
She arches against me, raking her teeth over her lip when my barbell piercing teases her sensitive nipple. “Probably. It’s a character flaw.”
A surprised huff of amusement punches out of me at her honesty. I can’t help myself. I have to taste those lips. With a rough sound, I cover her mouth with mine in a hungry kiss. She melts into it, her fierceness resurfacing. I could kiss her for hours, but I tear away, needing to be inside her right now.
“Come on,” she urges as I roll the condom on.
“Do I need to teach you a lesson on patience, too?” I chide, nipping her thigh with my teeth before burying my face in her sweet cunt.
“Ah! Fuck yes!” Rowan cries, legs closing on my face.
I
groan into her folds as I suck on her clit. She whimpers out a litany of pleading for more when I sink a finger into her pussy. It doesn’t take long before she comes with a sob, clenching on my finger. As she shakes, I lift up and press my cock into her inch by torturous inch. Once she adjusts to it, I pull back and sink back in. Her cries of pleasure grow louder on the first thrust.
“That’s it.” I reach up to grasp her bound wrists against the bed, fucking her with hard snaps of my hips. My lips graze her throat and I bite down, groaning again at the way her pussy tightens around me. Being inside her is better than I imagined. “Shit, the way you take it. I could get addicted to you.”
“Such a romantic diabolical asshole,” she snarks, wrapping her legs around my hips.
“That goddamn mouth. You drive me fucking crazy.” I punctuate each gritted word with a powerful thrust. I’m not stopping until the outline of my cock is permanently embedded inside her.
“The feeling’s mutual,” she bites out. “Fuck, harder. Make me come again.”
Fisting a hand in her hair, I part my lips to remind her who is in control here, but the words evade me before I can get them out. I’m too caught up in driving my dick into her. More than that, I have to make her come again. I want to take her apart so thoroughly she’s ruined for anyone else because this girl is mine.
We’re not done yet and I’m already thinking of next time. I could fuck her all night, for days, until we’re both wrung out and still not have my fill of her.
I push a hand between us to stroke her clit while bending to kiss her. I swallow her moans and bring her closer to the edge with each touch as we fuck. When she comes, her body bows against mine. I tense as the pleasure crests and crashes over me. We ride out our orgasms in a tangled embrace, my fingers in her hair and my cock buried deep inside her while she shivers.
Blood rushes in my ears, the aftershocks taking a while to fade. We stay like that for long minutes, panting raggedly. When I can think straight, I pull out and discard the condom. The confusing tender feeling from before returns when I meet her eyes. She hasn’t moved and a pretty soft smile plays on her lips.
A faint sound slips out of Rowan when I remove the belt and rubs her wrists. They’re pink, but no lasting damage was made by my rough treatment. She sways drowsily, blinking as if her delicate eyelashes are weighted while I tug her closer in bed. I lock my arms around her, my chest pressed against her back.
Rowan stretches, releasing a yawn and my hand automatically finds one of her tits, massaging it as I kiss a line up her neck. Another delicious little noise escapes her. It makes me want to flip her onto her belly and drive my cock in her tight pussy again.
The possessiveness I feel for her doesn’t fade, even with her tucked into my embrace. I’ve never been this guy in bed. I fuck women and send them on their way. It’s a transaction, nothing more. The thought of sending Rowan home is one that my whole body revolts against. She’s right where I want her.
Only dangerous part is, it’s not just here. I want her with me everywhere. It’s a different sort of possessive urge to know she’s mine whether I need to devour her or brush my lips over her temple—to not only rule her body, but her heart.
Can I trust her when she refuses to follow my rules? It doesn’t matter anymore. Keeping her safe is what’s important, and if she insists on following her impulses then I need to bring her in further.
“That was great sex, but don’t think it will work to distract me,” Rowan murmurs with a sated exhale. “We’re totally talking about what I saw tonight later.”
“Fight me all you want, kitten,” I mutter in her ear in a somber tone. “But don’t be an idiot. You could’ve gotten yourself killed going off alone. The people you saw at the docks are dangerous.”
“Like you?”
I hold her closer, stomach tensing. “Like me and worse. Don’t pull that again.”
Rowan huffs. “Fine, King Crow. Have it your way.”
My lips twitch, the corner of my mouth hitching up. I graze my fingers over her skin, mapping a path down between her breasts, across her stomach, and over her hip. The gala at the Thorne estate will be short notice for her, but a thrill of anticipation tugs at me.
“How do you feel about formal wear?”
“Fancy isn’t really my style unless it comes in plaid flannel or leather.” She turns her head to peer at me from the corner of her eye. “For what?”
A chuckle rumbles in my chest. “I quite like the idea of you in leather.” I reward her soft laugh with a kiss beneath her ear, then grow serious. “There’s a party at my family’s estate. You’re coming.”
“Am I now?”
“Yes. If I can’t keep you out of this, then understand you’re in my world now, Rowan. That means you play by my rules. From now on, if you get the urge to go somewhere dangerous, it’s with one of us for your protection. Understand?”
She shuffles to her back to face me, worrying her lip with her teeth. “So you won’t tell me I can’t do something anymore?”
My nostrils flare with the breath I force out. Bracing over her on my forearm, I shift a lock of auburn hair from her face. “I’ll still tell you not to do it. The difference is, you won’t go alone.”
“Okay.”
I smirk. “Good. Now, about this party…” I thumb her lower lip. “This time I’m going to dress you, since you’ll need to look the part. This is a different world than when I took you to dine with the dean of a rival college.”
Rowan’s eyes hood. Watching how turned on she gets from all the wicked thoughts that run through my head when it comes to her is the sweetest sin.
For the first time ever, I willingly break one of my biggest rules. I fall asleep with someone else in my bed. And it doesn’t feel wrong. It feels like something clicks into place that’s been smashed to pieces.
Nineteen
Rowan
Wren might have called this a party, but I don’t think it’s an accurate description when we pull up to his family’s estate. The place is huge, even from a distance, and older than the Crow’s Nest Hotel. We drive through an arched iron gate onto a long path that leads to a circular drive with a gothic fountain that reminds me of the hedge maze at the hotel.
Stretch limos and luxury brand cars fill the driveway. Valets rush to greet them.
I fiddle with the black gem bracelet on my wrist, carefully tracing the gold beads separating the stones. It matches the gown and shoes he bought for me—all designer. Even a small purse to complete the ensemble.
“What did you say this party was for again?”
Wren’s fingers brush the back of my neck. The gesture is comforting, grounding me. “The founders gala. It’s held in honor of all the families descended from the founders of Thorne Point every fall.” His tone shifts from cool disdain to amusement when he glances at me. “You’re going to unclasp that by accident if you keep playing with it.”
Something shifted between us after the other night. The sex was incredible, but it was the way he held me after that stuck in my heart. He clutched me so close as we slept, it was as if he feared ever letting me go.
“I can’t help it.” My face flushes and I lay my hands across my lap. “This is the nicest everything I’ve ever worn.”
Not to mention far outside of my price range. He insisted, not listening to any of my feeble protests. Truthfully, despite being a comfort queen who lives in my Vans and a worn denim jacket, I feel beautiful in the backless black dress. It stirred a warmth in my heart because if I had to pick something fancy, the choices he made suit me.
Knowing he picked every piece of my outfit out, I imagined his hands on my body when I put it on. The intimacy of the little fantasy still lingers.
Isla insisted I get ready with her for tonight. Her stylist pinned my hair into an elegant twist before Wren picked me up from Senator Vonn’s estate in his sleek Aston Martin.
“I can’t decide if I like you more in it, or if I’m dying to get you out of it.” Wr
en’s smoky tone curls around me as he traces the shell of my ear with his thumb.
I suppress a shiver of excitement and peer at him through my lashes. “Later.”
It comes out husky, but I don’t care. The wolfish smile he gives me means he knows exactly where my mind goes.
The tenderness from being spanked faded by the following morning and I might have been seeking a way to repeat it. The roughness of sex with him was alluring. I’ve never been with someone who understands what I need before I consider it. Heat spreads over me in a rush just thinking of the other night. Maybe I was in danger of becoming addicted to him, too.
Wren pulls up when the line of cars moves and tosses his keys to the young valet. He circles the car before I can get my door open, then he’s there, helping me out and tucking my hand in his arm as if he’s a refined gentleman and not the brutal man who thrives on chaotic violence.
“Don’t let your guard down tonight,” he murmurs in my ear as we enter.
I dart my gaze up to meet his. “Why?”
He casts a veiled look around, his cool eyes hardening. “They can dress up all they want, but most of them are vipers waiting to strike. Remember what I told you. One of us with you at all times.”
I nod, a flutter tickling my stomach.
The inside of the estate is even more ornate with dark carved wood accents. A grand staircase leads up to a hall that splits in two wings. Thick curtains hang from the tall windows and antique art pieces that must have cost a fortune are everywhere. It’s hard to believe Wren grew up like this when he’s so rough around the edges. He can wrap himself in an expensive designer tuxedo, but it doesn’t hide the power in his body, the brutal animal waiting to be unleashed.
It doesn’t make him any less handsome. He stole my breath when he arrived to pick me up, his suit tailored to perfection to accentuate the strong lines of his broad frame. With his blond hair slicked back as usual and his signature cunning smirk, I admit, I may have gone a little weak in the knees.
We sidestep the crowd of mingling guests as he leads me into a room with masculine touches and plush leather club chairs. The rest of the Crows are inside, each decked out in their tuxes.
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