and the headboard splinters where he was tied to it. Before I know what is happening, Gabriel has swept me onto my back, with one hand holding my wrists in a tight grip above my head while the other snakes under my shirt to find my bare breasts.
“I don’t need to tie you up to teach you a lesson,” he says in a gravelly voice. “And I certainly don’t need to do so to prove that I’m the one in charge.”
His hand slides over my rib cage, toward the waistband of my pajama shorts. I don’t know why, but while my body is absolutely thrilled with the turn my night has taken, my mind is furious. Whether he says so or not, Gabriel’s ego feels threatened.
Without warning, I twist my hips and jam my knees into his solar plexus. Gabriel wheezes and loosens the hold on my wrists, giving me the opportunity to slip out of his grasp and roll toward the edge of the bed.
“Get back here,” he growls, grabbing my shoulder, and goddammit if I don’t nearly listen. But he’s not the only one with something to prove.
I kick back at him and then tumble forward onto the carpet, landing on my stomach with an oof. Before I have a chance to get onto my feet, however, Gabriel swings over the side of the bed and straddles me. He wrenches my arms behind my back and holds them there, leaning over to whisper into my ear.
“Where are you going, Tiger?”
I struggle, but he’s got me well and truly beat in this position. My heart races. My blood sings as lust and frustration mingle together in a heady mixture. All I want to do is give into my animal side, gnash my teeth at him and roar.
“Anywhere but here!” I hiss.
He laughs, and his breath tickles my ear. “We’ve been over this, Alexis. You’re mine. And that means you’re not going anywhere.”
I feel him, hard and wanting, against my ass. My sex throbs with the need of him. I’m just like all those purple heroin addicts who shake between doses of their deadly medicine, except my fix is the sweet surrender of giving myself to Gabriel.
Gabriel slides down until he is resting on my thighs instead. He snakes his free hand between my legs and rubs his fingers against my mound. I let out a whimper without meaning to.
“That’s a good girl,” he says huskily. The sound of his voice is like a feather down my spine. “I bet you’re wet already, aren’t you?”
I am, but I’m not giving in that easy. Maybe it’s time for me to teach Gabriel a lesson.
“Why don’t you roll me over and find out?” I ask in a sultry voice.
Gabriel flips me on my back without hesitation, grinding his knee between my legs and letting his mouth hover over mine. I can feel his breath on my lips, and I long to kiss him. My hands come to rest against his hard chest. The grooves of his muscles are smooth under my fingertips.
I trace lazy circles into his skin with my fingers, lightly scraping against him with my nails. He lets out a low moan and closes the gap between us. He kisses me softly, his hand gliding slowly over my belly, as though he has already forgotten the game.
I guess it’s time for a reminder.
I dig my nails into his chest and claw down. Gabriel roars with pain, and I slam my hands against his ribs, pushing him off me, then roll onto my knees and start a mad dash for the door. I am just staggering to my feet when I feel his fingers close on my ankle. He yanks me back, and I fall on my face, fingers digging into the carpet as he drags me back.
“That hurt,” Gabriel growls.
“That was the point,” I snap back at him.
Gabriel twists me onto my back and closes one hand over my throat, squeezing just enough to allow only the barest amount of air through. I pull at his arm with both hands, but he’s too strong. Adrenaline is coursing through my blood in a way it never has before during sex. The fight or flight compulsion makes me squirm and kick, but I am so turned on that it only takes him guiding his hand into my shorts for me to seize up completely.
Gabriel roughly shoves two fingers inside of me, and that’s nearly enough to make me come right then and