Which is probably proof that I’m not really a Morelli after all.
My legs are wobbling, and I know if I don’t start making my way toward the exit, I may fall to the ground at any second.
“I’m sorry for coming to Wonderland uninvited,” I say, turning my back to him as I leave. “I’ll get Sasha and we’ll get out of your—”
Before I can say another word, before I can even blink, Nick has me pinned with my back smashed against the wall, his hand wraps around my throat, his other hand in my hair, pulling it painfully as he yanks my head to the side, his face a fraction of an inch from mine.
“Why would you think Wonderland would be safe?” he nearly growls. “And why would you use Morelli as your name? Do you have any idea of the beast you just unleashed tonight?”
Confused at the smirk on his face—not sure if he’s angry or amused—I try to pull away, only to feel him pressing against me. “I’ll leave then—”
“You can’t rewrite history,” he says, not allowing me to finish speaking, his fingers tightening, blocking not only my speech, but my very breath. The smirk he gives isn’t one of amusement, but one that has my body trembling with the unknown. “You’re here now. You’re in the middle of this storm. It’s raging and will only get worse.”
My thoughts return to Maxim trying to kidnap me. If Nick hadn’t stepped in, if he hadn’t… “After the Morelli party,” I squeak out, his hand making it difficult to speak, “the Sidorovs left me alone. I didn’t know why, but….”
“Your debt was paid,” Nick says, his dark eyes locked with mine. “But that doesn’t mean you’re safe. In this world—in the world you chose to enter the minute you took money from the Russian family—you’re never truly safe or forgotten.”
I open my mouth to speak, but I have nothing to say. His hand loosens on my neck, but he still holds firmly.
“Foolish,” he says, his lips so close to mine that I wonder if he’s going to kiss me rather than hurt me.
“Did you pay my debt?” I ask, though I already know the answer. Deep down, I’ve always known the answer.
“I told you that night that I’d help, and I’m a man of my word.”
“Then if you paid my debt, why did Maxim try to kidnap me?”
“That’s an answer I don’t have… yet,” he says, his hand releasing my hair to run slowly down my side, his fingers brushing the slope of my breast as if he owns my body because he bought it already. “And your debt is paid to the Sidorovs, but it’s far from being paid. You owe me now.”
“I’ll find a way—” I manage to whisper, this time cutting myself off as I realize I don’t have a plan. Paying Nick Hudson off will be just as impossible as paying off the Sidorovs. I simply traded one devil for the next in line.
I can blame my pounding heart, my racing blood on the fact I’m being restrained, but what can I blame for the ache I feel growing between my legs, the heaviness of my breasts, the throbbing of my nipples beneath the lace of my bra? The press of something hard against my body has my breath catching in my throat as Nick grinds his erection against me. When I realize I’m pushing up against him, as if wanting more, I freeze.
No!
What is wrong with me? This man almost chopped someone’s fingers off.
He has me against the wall, hand around my throat, with darkness in his eyes, and all I can think of is how seductive he smells. He’s making me weak. It’s part of his game. I can’t simply give it to him. If he wants my body, if he’s going to demand me in return for my debt like he threatened to do months ago… Well…
He’ll have to take it.
I reach my hands to his that’s around my throat and try to break free. My eyes don’t leave his, and though I’m trying to free myself, I’m not going full force yet. Something is holding me back. I want to believe it’s the fear of the unknown and not my lust keeping me respectfully in check.
“Go ahead. I love a little fight. Makes winning all the better,” he says, licking a line from my collarbone up to a spot behind my ear. “And know this—I always win.”
I yelp as he takes my earlobe between his teeth and bites down, my eyes closing as I try to get myself under control, to make any kind of sense out of this… this… whatever the hell this is.
Suddenly, I can breathe fully again, my eyes snapping open to see Nick stepping away, grinning as if he understands the turmoil I’m having with myself… with my reaction to his frightening—yet alluring—dominance.