my heart galloping ahead. A growing awareness pulsed behind my ribcage, clawing at me like a frightened animal as we crossed Boston’s deserted streets. Somehow, I preferred his outrage to the unpredictable silence that hummed between us. I climbed the staircase to my brownstone, refusing to acknowledge him, clinging to a desperate hope that he’d disappear.
I searched for my keys, and then dropped them twice. “You can go.”
The heat of his body warmed my back. His head hooked over my shoulder. “I’m coming inside.”
“Do I need a condom or a gun?”
His soft laughter tingled every nerve, and regret sunk into my stomach at the joke.
Vinn’s voice smoothed into a purr. “Well, I’ve got both.”
I fumbled with my purse, dropping it.
He stooped, picking it up. He’d taken control in the guise of helping me, and now he had my key. He slid it into the lock, opened the door, and strolled in. A fiendish expression lit up his face.
Terror stirred in my belly.
“Vinn, you need to leav—”
He grabbed my arm, yanked me into the apartment, and locked the door. Vinn cradled me, and a shudder heated my body. Darkness carved a vulgar smile between his cheeks.
My alarms blazed red as Vinn’s six-foot-something frame pushed me deeper into my home. I bumped into a wall and rolled into the kitchen. The expression in his eyes made me wish I were closer to the door. Vinn gripped the counter, caging me in his arms.
“You’ve given me an interesting night.”
“H-how so?”
“I came here to punish you. Again. Now I’m rethinking that. Spanking you didn’t work because you liked it,” he whispered, awed. “You enjoy my hands on you. Don’t you?”
I jerked my head in the negative. ”There’s nothing pleasant about being tied up and beaten.”
“Don’t exaggerate.”
“You hit me. It hurt.”
“Good.” Vinn grabbed my chin, staring me down. “Some lessons hurt worse than others. Especially when they’re given by someone you like.”
“I don’t like you. I find you revolting.”
“Really?” He passed a thumb over my bottom lip, showering my skin with sparks. “Is that what you tell your friend when you talk about me?”
The only thing more infuriating about being outed by Queenie was the fact I’d been completely off his radar. He’d needed someone to tell him about my feelings.
Pathetic.
And now he was throwing them in my face, humiliating me like a monster.
Heat lashed my mouth. “Get out of my house.”
“Oh, come on.”
“I mean it. You’re not welcome here.”
Vinn wasn’t in the listening mood. His touch fluttered across my waist, sending off a chain of electrical impulses that begged me to march us to bed.
“I haven’t gone to Michael,” I said, shoving his chest. “That doesn’t mean I never will.”
Vinn’s smile and raised eyebrows suggested he didn’t believe me, but
he allowed me to retreat. I left the kitchen. He followed like a giant shadow, barging into my bedroom like he belonged there.
It wasn’t much. A queen bed and desk covered with trinkets from my youth. Blasts from the past decorated the walls in the form of posters, things I’d never outgrow, the most important one standing in front of me.
Amusement flickered over his face as I stumbled into my desk. My ass hit the corner, and I hissed in pain.
His self-satisfied smirk seemed to mock me. ”Did you bruise?”
“Yes,” I murmured, hating him. “I took photos.”
“I’d love to see them.”
I ignored the thrill shooting down my belly. “I plan to send them to Michael after I tell him what you did.”
“Just what every brother wants—pictures of his sister’s ass.”
“Maybe I’ll put them on Tinder.”
“Do that, and I’ll bend you over. You’ll get another reason to hate me.”
I sat on my bed, arms crossed. “Why are you here?”
An unfathomable look smoothed his face. “I want you.”
I forced myself to settle down. I’d worked hard to cut Vinn from my life, and I couldn’t afford to be distracted by a fantasy. I wouldn’t fall under his spell.
“Well, I don’t want you, so it’s time for you t—”
“Li, I can’t go back to treating you like Michael’s little sister.”
His flat eyes prolonged the moment, my skin prickling as I gazed into their infinite depths.
“Put it behind you, and I’ll do the same.”
“That’s not an option.”
“Why not?” I clenched my jaw to kill the waver in my voice. “Why the fuck did you spank me?”
“Why did you grab my cock?”
I met his accusing eyes. “To mess with you.”
Vinn’s lips parted. He ripped open the first button of his shirt and glared as though I’d made him too hot.