Since he was pretty damn mean to me in class, I feel like giving him a little dose of his own medicine. “And yet when you asked me to stay with you, I told you no thanks.” I cock my head, tapping my chin as if confused. “Funny, that doesn’t sound like someone who wants you.”
Easily deflecting my well-placed shot, Carter smiles at me. “I can do ‘mean’ a whole lot better than you, princess. I wouldn’t go there, if I were you.”
“You think so?” I ask, lifting an eyebrow. “You make me feel pretty mean sometimes. For instance, right now. I’d like to scratch your face off.”
“How ‘bout you drag those nails down my back instead?” he suggests.
“How ‘bout I drag them down someone else’s back?” I offer back, bitingly. “You’re not the only one with urges, you know. You’re not the only one who can play.”
“Let me make something crystal clear, Zoey,” he says, shifting his hold on me. He releases my arm and takes my books, setting them on a nearby desk. Then he drags me fully against him, locks his arms around me, and gazes down at me patiently, like a teacher with an unruly pupil. “If you fuck someone else just to spite me, you will regret it. Not as much as he will though,” he adds, silkily. “I might not have the heart to destroy you, but I damn sure won’t feel so merciful toward him. Any asshole who is seen alone with you from now on will wind up between my crosshairs. Understand?”
Rage bubbles up inside me, heating my skin. “How dare you. You’re allowed to do whatever you want with any damn girl you want, and I’m, what, supposed to stay home and knit?”
“No, you’re supposed to stay home and study. That’s why you dumped me, right? Can’t have a boyfriend and do well in school? Well, I’d say that applies to other guys, too. I’m just looking out for your best interests.”
Glaring up at him, I tell him, “No, you’re being a jealous asshole, and over a girl who isn’t even yours. How would your new toy feel about that?”
I’m caught off guard when his arms drop from around me and he grabs a fistful of my hair. I gasp as he uses it to pull my neck back. Leaning forward, he doesn’t stop until his head is bent, his lips hovering mere inches from mine. My heart thuds in my chest and I try to pull away, but that only causes his grip on my hair to tighten.
“Not mine?” he asks lowly, dangerously. “Oh, you’re still mine, Zoey. You’ll always be mine. You made the mistake of letting me be the first. No matter what happens, no matter the circumstances, you never forget your first. They always own a little piece of you, whether you want them to or not.” With his free hand, he grabs me between the legs. I gasp, surprised, but my body is so accustomed to his roughness already, it responds with interest. Arousal swirls inside me and my eyelids grow heavy. They want to drift closed, to give him free rein, since he’ll take it even if I don’t. My body doesn’t care about the stupid words he’s saying, it cares about the warmth of his hand against my pussy, the closeness of his lips and the lovely things he can do with them.
Shit, I need to get out of this classroom.
“I think ‘letting you’ might be a slight overstatement,” I tell him, my chest starting to work too hard. Hopefully if he notices, he attributes it to anger and not the stirring of arousal. “Now, get your hands off of me.”
“Who is the guy?” he asks again.
“There is no guy,” I state evenly. It’s the truth, but the funny thing is, now he doesn’t believe me. Now he thinks I’m just protecting someone else because he threatened to target them for daring traipse on his territory.
“All right, I’ll guess. Can’t be the pastor; he’s married and you’re too Christian to do something like that without immense shame. No shame, so… Not Jake, you don’t like him. I guess you could go out with him out of spite, but I don’t think you’d do that. Too principled to use someone so blatantly.” When I show no signs of guilt, I guess, he nods. I see him going through the mental inventory, then his gaze sharpens and his eyes lock on mine. “The cashier. The pastor’s brother. The one you didn’t want to see us together.”
“No,” I say quickly. Too quickly. Carter’s eyes light up with momentary victory, then dull a little, then shift to amusement. “Really? That fucking guy? He’s gotta be a virgin.”
I’m tempted to say “He was,” just to piss him off, but I don’t want to put a target on Luke’s back, so I hold my tongue.