Page 106 of Prey

“You’re mine,” I gasp as the pleasure builds. “Say it.”

“I’m yours.” The words come out strangled. “Yours to hunt, yours to catch, yours to keep.”

“Mine to hurt if I want to.”

“Yes.”

“Mine to heal if I choose to.”

“God, yes.”

The knife’s edge finds the hollow of his throat as my rhythm becomes erratic. One small movement would open his carotid artery. One moment of lost control would end everything.

He looks up at me with absolute trust, and I understand this is what he’s been offering from the beginning. Not just his body or his protection, but his life. Complete and utter surrender to someone who knows exactly how dangerous he is.

The realization pushes me over the edge. My orgasm crashes through me with violent intensity, clenching around his cock as I cry out his name. The knife trembles against his throat but doesn’t break skin.

“Now,” I command through the aftershocks. “Come for me now.”

His release tears through him, spine arching as he empties himself inside me. My name falls from his lips like a prayer to a dark god, reverent and desperate.

We rest together, both breathing hard. The knife falls from nerveless fingers to land in the pine needles beside us. In the aftermath, I can feel the shift—not just in our bodies, but in the fundamental dynamic between us.

I’m no longer just his captive who learned to fight back. I’m his equal in violence, his partner in darkness. I’m the thing that hunts the hunter.

“Untie me,” he murmurs against my neck.

“Not yet.” I remain seated on his softening cock, keeping him inside me. “I’m not finished with you.”

His laugh rumbles through his chest. “What else do you want from me?”

I pick up the knife again, testing its weight. “I want you to understand that when I stay with you, it’s not Stockholm Syndrome or conditioning or fear. It’s a choice.”

“And this proves that?”

“This proves I’m not your victim anymore.” The blade traces the line of his jaw with feather-light pressure. “I’m your accomplice.”

“My partner,” he corrects softly.

“Your partner.” I cut through the ropes with quick, efficient movements. “In everything.”

His arms come around me immediately, hands mapping the places where adrenaline has left me shaking.

“The others are going to sense the change,” he says eventually.

“Good.” I lean back to meet his eyes. “Let them know I chose this. All of it.”

We dress slowly, neither wanting to break the spell of what just happened. As I slide the knife back into its sheath, I catch him watching me with an expression I’ve never seen before.

“What?”

“You’re beautiful when you’re dangerous.”

“I learned from watching you.”

He pulls me against him for a passionate kiss. When we break apart, his pupils are still dilated with more than just physical satisfaction.

“Ready to go home?” he asks.