I didn't stop. "Back to my room."
He was in front of me before I could make it to the door he'd kicked closed when he’d brought me in here. "No."
"No?" Was this guy fucking kidding me? "No," I repeated. Then I just shook my head. "Get out of my way, Luca."
"No. You're staying here. With me."
"Why?" You didn't want me. You left me.
He drew back, like that was the last question he'd expected to hear. Then his eyes narrowed on me. "Because I said so."
"Now you sound like my mother. Or my father. Depending on how horrendous my crime was at the time."
"I don't care who I sound like. I’m done letting you mope. You're staying in here from now on."
I crossed my arms over my chest, tilting my head as I studied him, trying to gauge his mood. His eyes dropped to my braless chest, my breasts pushed up from my arms, before rising back to my face. I left them there. Let him fucking look. “Give me a good reason why," I pushed him. "There are plenty of spare rooms in this giant house. And absolutely no reason at all I should stay in this one. With you."
"Other than the fact that I said this is where you'll be sleeping. With me," he emphasized.
Oh, my god. There was no reasoning with this guy. Again, I tried to walk around him. Only this time, when he stuck out an arm to stop me, I batted it away and kept going. My hand was on the door handle when he spun me around and pressed me back against the door, holding me there with his body.
I could feel the hard length of him against my stomach as he gently kissed my face where his hand had gripped me. My pulse picked up as my blood rushed through my veins, the muscles low in my stomach clenching. As though he could sense my reaction to him, he pressed his lips against the artery in my throat. And at that moment, I wouldn't have been surprised in the least if I suddenly felt fangs sink deep into my flesh.
"Stay with me," he commanded.
Chills ran down my spine as his deep voice vibrated against my throat. My legs went weak, and moisture pooled between my thighs. I was weak. God, I was so weak. I couldn't control the way my body reacted to him. But I could control what I did about it. Shaking my head, I said, "No," proud that my voice came out strong and steady.
He stilled, then pulled back until he could look at me. "I'm not asking, Veda."
His big body surrounded me, a hand on either side of my head, caging me in. I felt his heart beat fast and hard beneath my palms where they lay flat against his warm chest. A flair of panic shot through me. "So, it's rape, then? I thought you didn't do that?"
"I wouldn't have to," he told me, and I wanted to slap the cocky smirk from his face, even though he was right. It wouldn't take much to convince me to let him fuck me. However, after what had happened last time…yeah, no. He’d rejected me in more ways than one that night. There was no way in hell I would give him the chance to do it again, no matter how much I wanted it. This was a game I wouldn’t win, and I knew it.
This man had taken my life from me, but I refused to give him my body.
We stayed deadlocked for a long time, or perhaps it just felt like an eternity as my traitorous body warred with my mind. It's nothing but a bad case of Stockholm syndrome, I told myself. I should feel nothing but pure loathing for this man. Yet, here I was, lusting after him like a mare in heat, even though I knew that giving myself to him would break me to a point I wouldn’t be able to put myself back together again.
Finally, he pushed off the door and took a step back, his blue eyes like burning steel as they locked onto my face. Quickly, before he changed his mind, I turned and yanked open the door.
As I hurried down the hall, I heard him on the phone. "Enzo, I need you to stand guard outside of the blue bedroom with the balcony. Veda is sleeping in there." A pause. "No, she can go wherever she wants, just...keep an eye on her. Thank you."
I heard his door shut none too quietly, and then I was around the corner and heading down the opposite hall to my new room. Somehow, I managed to hold in the sobs until I was alone in the big, empty room.