to face him and found myself sailing through the air exactly the way I warned him not to toss me. The landing was marginally softer this time, though.
Groaning, I looked up at Merdon, who was carefully pinning me with just his hips.
“See? You didn’t throw up.”
“And what would you have done if I had thrown up.”
“Feed you again.”
I couldn’t stop my grin at his absurdity. As he stared down at me, something shifted in his expression. And in his pants.
It wasn’t a small twitch, either. The thick length of him grew against me, giving credence to Mary’s claim of a rolling pin. He was huge. Like, bludgeon something with it, huge.
My smile faded. Teasing thoughts fled, replaced by an image of a different kind of wrestling we could do.
Gaze flicking to his mouth, I recalled the last time he’d kissed me. It’d been angry and intensely hot and had left me breathlessly confused and tingling in all the right places. Would I feel the same way if he kissed me like that again? My heart fluttered behind my ribs, and my breathing grew shallow.
Without thinking things through, I threaded my fingers in his hair and lifted my lips to his. He jerked in my hold but didn’t pull away. I brushed my lips against his. They were warm and firm with slight bumps due to his longer canines.
My fingers brushed against his ear, and his hips jerked against mine, sending a rush of heat through me. And a warning. I was playing with fire.
I pulled back and looked him in the eyes.
“I don’t know what I’m doing.”
“I know.”
“Should I stop?”
In answer, he dipped his head, nipping at my bottom lip. I returned the favor then licked the spot. He growled and pulled my hands from his hair, pinning them to the mat above my head.
I looked up at him, seeing his tense jaw and the way his pupils had dilated. Was this what Emily meant when she’d said he was struggling? Was he fighting his fey urges to bury his face, or other parts, between my thighs?
My insides clenched at the thought, and my body had a mind of its own in response. My legs wrapped around him as my hips arched into his. Cradled against my sweet spot, his hard length rubbed me just right. I gasped and went to do it again.
Except, he wasn’t there.
I lay on the mat, spread out like a starfish, and he stood near the base of the stairs with his back to me. I scrambled to my feet.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. “I thought you wanted that. I thought you wanted me.”
He didn’t say anything, just continued to stand facing away.
“What do you want from me?” I asked, my hurt and anger creeping in. “You say you don’t like being mean to me but yell at me all the time. You claim to want me, but you’ve taken off twice now. Dealing with my everyday Hannah thoughts is confusing enough. Don’t expect me to guess correctly about what you’re thinking or feeling if you’re unwilling to clue me in.”
“I already told you,” he said lowly. “I won’t be manipulated.”
“You think that’s what that was?”
His silence spoke for him.
“It sucks knowing you think so poorly of me. I’m not trying to manipulate you. I’m just trying to figure out how I feel.”
“How do you feel?”
I thought about it for a moment.
“Free. Alive.”
He turned toward me, a tempest of emotions in his gaze.
“Don’t toy with me, Hannah.”
“I’m not. I won’t.”
He stalked across the room and grabbed the back of my neck.
“My patience is limited.”
“I know.” I grinned at the irony.
His gaze dipped to my mouth, and a moment later, I was the recipient of another of his hot, intense kisses. It robbed me of thought and air. It ignited my whole body on fire.
When he pulled away, I could only blink at him stupidly for a minute.
“For the record,” I said when I could find my voice again. “I have never used my body to get my way. I knew that would be crossing a line I didn’t want to cross.”
“You offered hugs.”
“A hug was not what I was offering you just now. You know that, right?”
He grunted and looked into my eyes.
“You can’t offer what’s already mine.” His hands slid down my arms, prickling my skin in their wake. “I’ll have what I want…when I’m ready.”
He kissed me hard again then left me alone in the basement.