“What kind of fucking doctor are you, insulting your patients?” I growled.
She smiled. “You’re not my patient. Remember?”
“Careful, Violet,” I drawled. “You don’t want to start a war with me.”
Her eyes flicked up to meet mine, that sorrow and sadness still lurking in their depths. But there was also strength. Determination.
“I know exactly who you are, Lykos Costello. And if you’re trying to scare me, you’re failing spectacularly.”
I smiled, flashing my teeth. “I’ll have to work harder, then, won’t I?” I said quietly. “You’re standing in my home. You will be sleeping under my roof. I would advise against provoking me, or you won’t like the consequences.”
“Consequences?” she parroted, her delicate brow furrowing.
“Yes, ever heard of them?” I asked evenly. “So far, you’ve gotten away with evading accountability, but maybe it’s time you got a taste.”
She let out an incredulous laugh. “Are you done, Lykos? If so, take me to the patient so I can get on with my work.”
“You’ve changed,” I said suddenly, straightening to my full length.
I had no idea what possessed me to even say it. We weren’t given time to get to know each other ten years ago, but her whole aura was different then. She was more vulnerable. Yes, she had a backbone, but it was more subtle. Now, her confidence and power rolled off her in waves, and fuck me, it was a huge turn-on.
That alone pissed me off more than anything.
“Your vibe is different,” I added, gritting my teeth.
“People tend to change,” she stated matter-of-factly as she stood up, smoothing invisible creases from her skirt. But the tremble in her hand didn’t escape me. “It comes with age, a part of growing up. God willing.”
“God willing, huh?” I repeated. “You don’t strike me as a religious person.”
“I’m not,” she murmured. “But you are.”
I frowned. “What makes you think that?”
She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “I seem to recall you had a cross tattoo.”
It made me feel smugly happy that she actually remembered that.
“Maybe there’s a God after all, huh?” I said sarcastically, although internally, my heart was beating wildly.
“Maybe,” she retorted dryly. “But it isn’t you.”
I smirked. “I distinctly remember you calling me God once upon a time.”
I watched her pale skin in fascination as crimson climbed its way into her cheeks. Dammit, I liked that look on her. I remembered pounding into her, her body writhing underneath me as her whole body flushed with arousal.
“I was calling out to God to save me,” she said coldly, her eyes narrowed on me. “There’s a difference.”
“That’s not how I remember it,” I drawled tauntingly.
She rolled her eyes, but a blush still stained her cheeks. “Just take me to the patient.”
She strolled past me, her violet scent making every cell in my body tremble. I closed my eyes, reveling in it, and decided right there and then.
To hell with everything.
I would have this woman wrapped around me again, and it better be sooner rather than later. I had a decade of abstinence to make up for.
FOURTEEN
