Treachery

Luca

Well...

Shit.

I did not expect this to happen.

When I came downstairs tonight, it was with the expectation that there would be people here for another few hours. I’d been pleased to have the buffers, even if Ta

For over two hours, it’s been a constant lifting of the hair at my nape, the feeling of being watched, of being tracked, of a set of eyes on me that can see everything I’m feeling.

He sits across the room now, a mischievous grin tilting his lips, those green eyes laser focused on nothing but me.

It reminds me of the night he first saw me at the party, of the way he stared across the room at me. I know now it was because I was targeted then. His newest game.

Now, I’m pretty sure I’m a game again, but this time it’s a hell of a lot more dangerous.

“I should go up to my room and go to bed. Since we leave tomorrow and all.”

My voice trails off as he nods his head slowly, his expression mocking me.

“I should probably get some sleep,” I finish weakly, willing my feet to move so I can escape. They’re stuck in place, my entire body frozen.

“You can try.”

His words are rough around the edges, a dare that echoes across the space.

Finally able to convince my legs it’s time to move, I take one step, only for Ta

When I dodge left as if to run around him, he moves faster to block my path.

Crap.

There’s a knot in my throat that won’t go away. A tension in my shoulders that aches. I dodge right, and he steps the same direction, his lips tilting at the corners.

“I’m a little tired of playing games,” he says, his voice so deep I can feel it in my bones.

Glancing to my left, the only place I have to go where he can’t stop me is the kitchen. But there’s no way out of that room except to go outside. It would be a little ridiculous of me to hide in the garage.

His voice drags my wide-eyed gaze back to him. My heart beating like a drum. “I think you’re a little tired of playing them, too.”

Just a bit. But I was hoping to drag this out a little longer, if for no other reason than to make him suffer.

“You don’t deserve me right now.”

He grins. “I don’t.”

That admission knocks me back a step. But what he says after is what surprises me the most.

“I never deserved you. And it’s about time you figured that out. You should have known that since the first night we met. I was disappointed in you when you ran.”

My eyes round as he takes a slow step toward me.

“But then you challenged me at the gauntlet party. Hell, not just challenged me, you brought me to the ground. That was the girl who stole my attention.”

I smile at that. I’d forgotten all about how we ended up ru

I feel that same adrenaline now.

“You can say all you want that you don’t want me. But I don’t believe you, and even if I did, it still won’t stop me from trying.”

Another step.

Another.

Like the idiot I apparently am, I don’t move away or try to run. Because I’m still in shock that Mr. Ego himself just placed me above himself.

He’s one step away from me when I tip my chin up to look at him. It’s impossible that he’s learned his lesson. Not Ta

“I’ll never deserve you,” he breathes out, his expression tight because truth is a foreign concept to him. But I see it clearly. The truth. For once, he’s not trying to deceive me with what he’s saying.

I’m shook. I can’t lie about that. Utterly stu

“What should I do with that? What can I do? After everything you’ve done.”

He looks so lost at this moment. So vulnerable. It shakes me to the core to see Ta

Moss green eyes lock on mine. “Look past it. Or forgive it. I didn’t want to do the things I’ve done. But I can make up for it. If you’ll let me.”

No. I don’t think he wanted to do what he did. Not after what both Ta

“It’ll take time for that,” I admit. “But for now-“

He steps closer again, his eyes holding mine with sincerity. I sigh because he’s right. I’m tired of playing games.

Laughing softly at the situation, I say, “For now, I think I can call a truce.”

A slow smile stretches Ta

He doesn’t hesitate to reach out and tug me to him by the front of my shirt. And when he leans down to kiss me in an utterly male claiming, his hands grip my ass to lift me up.

It’s like I weigh nothing, his arms holding me in place as mine move over his broad shoulders, my fingers wrapping in his hair as our mouths move together.

My legs lock around his waist, not that I need the support. Ta

He can devour me with no effort at all.

Steal my breath.

Pull me beneath his turbulent waters and seduce me into thanking him when I drown.

So much for taking this slowly. Now that he has me, I know he’s not letting go.

But then, torturing him only meant I was torturing myself. There’s no denying we belong together, even if the result is often explosive.

Ta

A warm mouth against my ear, his breath skating down my neck.

“I’ve wanted to take you here since the first night you showed up at my house.”

I do laugh then.

“So it was about the sex that night? I knew you were lying.”

He grins against my cheek. “Do you ever shut up?”

Gripping my ankles, he flips me onto my back and locks my legs over his shoulders, his fingers slip beneath the sides of my yoga pants and tug. As he drags them down my legs, his fingertips lightly scratch my skin, a shiver rolling through my body at the slow pace.

Every time this man strips the clothes from my body, it’s like he’s seeing me for the first time. Studying every inch of skin, dedicating it to memory.

I move my legs enough for him to pull the pants free, his large hand splaying over my stomach before he drags it down to rip the panties from my body. One tug and the thin fabric tears.

“You look good enough to eat.”

His hand wraps around my leg, and he pulls it open, his mouth moving to my i

Tongue sliding over the skin, he turns to torment my other thigh, mouth moving closer to where I need him.

“Ta

“Stop moving.”

His free hand grips my shirt to tug it up my body, but when I raise my arms to let him pull it free, he traps them with the shirt instead, tucking the tight fabric beneath my head to hold my arms in place.