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I slow my pace.
I can’t help but remember what Aria told me before I left.
“There’s something that she’s hiding. I’m not sure what, but two plus two isn’t five, yet every time I try to do the math…that’s what I come up with. Something’s not right about Harper Bianchi. Just be careful.”
I laughed. “She’s a hundred pounds soaking wet. Why do you think I can’t take her?”
“No, no, it isn’t that…. It’s that she’s hiding something and it’s driving me crazy. Whatever it is has been covered up… It’s like… like there’s a filter in place, you know? At first glance it seems fine, but every once in a while, there’s a…shimmer that tells you things aren’t what they seem.”
So she isn’t a saint. That makes two of us. I don’t need a woman I’ll love. I need a woman to take my name and my ring, and my goddamn dick so she can have my babies.
She only knows this place better than I do, so it’ll take a little more time.
I slow my pace and sharpen my senses. Even though I’m determined to catch and punish her, I have to admire her pluck. I’m torn between frustration that she’s drawing this out and begrudging respect. Her evasion’s a gauntlet thrown into the ring. My need to capture and claim her feels rooted in the primal need to master.
I look around for a sign of her but see nothing.
Where is she? I flip on my phone’s flashlight and scan the wooded area. She hasn’t gone far. She’s right here.
I look for a large rock or tree, a pile of leaves. Somewhere for her to hide. She’s a clever little thing. She knew she couldn’t outrun me, so she decided to throw me off the chase.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are,” I taunt. “You know it’s only a matter of when, not if, I find you.” I lower my voice, so she hears the threat. “The longer you waste my time, the worse it will be for you.”
A glimmer of moonlight falls on a glimmer of pale pink in the dense foliage to my right.
I pretend I don’t see it, that I’m heading in the other direction. Each second that passes heightens the tension. There she is, crouched behind a the trunk of a large tree. I draw a breath and lunge at her hidden form.Score.My fingers latch onto a mane of hair.
She screams and smacks at my hand. I barely feel it. I could reach for her arm or leg, but she could bite me or twist away. I tighten my grip on her hair instead.
“Ow! Let me go!” she screams as I haul her out in front of me. Victory pounds in my chest.
Now that I’ve got her, I won’t let her go.
I tug her hair back, baring her neck. Illuminated in the beam of my flashlight, her eyes are wide in terror, her hands flailing out in front of her. My dick throbs.
“You’re done now.” I’m not playing anymore. The need to punish her for running claws at my chest.
I consider tossing her over my shoulder or cradling her in my arms and quickly think of the easiest way to get her out of here.
“Come here.” If she moves away from me, it’ll hurt her. She reluctantly steps in front of me, and the world falls away. The only sound is our rapid breathing in the dense quiet of the forest.
“Please,” she whispers. I don’t know if she’s asking for mercy or freedom, but she’ll get neither.
“Please what? Let you go? Or consider easing up on your punishment for running? The answer to both of those questions is no.”
I lean in, relishing the sound of her rapid breathing. Even damp with perspiration, she smells like spring, a delicate, sweet, floral scent with a slightly exotic undertone. Whatisthat?
She licks her lips and swallows but doesn’t look away. Her eyes, as warm as molten honey, fairly glower at me. She clamps her lips together.
“You’re clever, aren’t you?” Her eyes spark with intelligence and wit even though she’s furious with me. “I don’t know why you’re so angry. You’re the one who ran. Tell me.” I shake my head. “Did your family never tell you what your future would hold?”
I don’t know why I’m talking to her. I don’t know why I’m not tossing her over my shoulder or dragging her by the hair back home, or at the very least, punishing her, right here, for putting me to the test and making me chase her.
“Of course I knew they’d marry me off to some high-paying creep,” she seethes.
I quirk a corner of my lips. “You’ll learn to respect your husband, Princess.”
Fire sparks in her eyes. “You are not my husband yet, and I’mdefinitelyno princess.” She swallows and I wish I could look more clearly into her eyes in the dark. I will, when she’s spread beneath me taking my cock. “I promise I’ll go with you, I just can’t go right now. I have…I have things Ihaveto take care of.”
