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The addiction.
The desire.
I didn’t think I would let things get that far, but as soon as they started, I didn’t know how to stop him. I could’ve tried to push him away and make a run for it the second my hands were untied. So why didn’t I? Is it because he was too strong, his bodyweight too solid as he pressed me into the mattress?
Or is it because in that insane, fucked-up moment, I didn’t want to?
Because for one wild second, I would’ve traded my life and freedom just to feel Zaid inside me again?
You’re fucked in the head, Grace.
There’s a crunch as Hale’s fist meets Zaid’s face without warning, vicious and brutal. Zaid’s body absorbs the impact, and he stumbles to the side of the room, rocking the dresser that’s set against one wall and leaving dents in the plaster behind it. Before he has time to recover, Hale rushes at him full-force, hitting him again, blood from his fists splattering their shirts.
Oh my God.
My heart pounds as I watch the fight in horror. Hale gets in another hard punch, and Zaid grunts.
“What the fuck were you thinking?” Hale shouts, rage burning in every syllable. “Don’t you know who she is?” His fist swings again. “She’s the daughter of our goddamn enemy. That makes her our enemy too. Did you forget that? Did it slip your fucking mind?”
There’s a crash as Zaid’s body falls to the floor, at last giving up. He put up as much fight as he could to keep his dignity, but ultimately, Hale is his leader.
“You can’t be distracted by her. We can’t fucking trust her.” Hale stands over his friend, his hands still clenched into fists, blood smearing his knuckles. It smears Zaid’s face too, leaking from his nostrils and from a small cut near his eye.
My heart is thudding painfully hard, but as Hale stares down at Zaid, my gaze darts to the door.
This is my last chance to escape, I realize. The two men are distracted by their standoff, and I’m still untied. Maybe my attempt doesn’t have to be worthless after all.
As quickly and silently as I can, I scramble toward the end of the bed. My bare feet touch the floor, and I’m already sprinting toward the door. But before I can reach it, Hale’s focus snaps back to me, and he moves like lightning.
He slams the door shut again before I even open it an inch, and then I’m hauled off my feet and carried back to the bed, where he throws me down on the mattress.
The heavy landing on the hard, old mattress jars my fresh wounds, and I cry out in pain.
But any pity Hale might’ve once had for me has evaporated, burned away by the fury that still consumes him. Unrelenting, he pins me to the bed with his weight, reaching for the ropes that rest near the headboard.
Then his hands freeze in mid-motion. His eyes narrow.
Slowly, he pulls his body from off mine and looks down at my unzipped pants, then back at Zaid.
Shit. He didn’t notice that before.
Which means if Hale was pissed before, it’s nothing compared to the look that now takes over his face—his features contorting in anger and deadly rage. Fear washes through me as my breath stutters, my lungs unable to draw in enough oxygen. I don’t know what he’s thinking or what he’s planning to do, but the way his body has gone unnaturally still makes me feel like I’m staring at a predator about to strike.
His fingers settle at my navel as he watches Zaid, drumming a pattern into my skin. My body is already crawling with arousal from earlier, and my stomach clenches under his touch, my skin flushing with heat.
“So you really were… fucking with the enemy, weren’t you, Zaid?” Hale’s voice is calm. Too calm. Zaid shakes his head, pressing his lips together as if refusing to answer. His pants are half-unzipped too, hanging off his hips slightly.
Hale makes a noise in his throat, watching me in silent contemplation.
I close my eyes and swallow, trying to bite back the panic in my bones.
Put up a fight, Grace. Die fighting.
I need to be screaming and kicking and fighting my way from him, at least distracting him from whatever is on his mind, but I can’t. My body is frozen under the tips of his fingers as if they each weigh a thousand pounds.
“I thought you knew better.” Hale speaks to Zaid, but he never takes his gaze off me. “We can’t let the past blind us. We can’t let her fool us. She’ll lie, and she’ll use whatever we think existed before to manipulate us. Can’t you see that?”
Zaid still doesn’t respond, but Hale doesn’t seem like he expects an answer. His dark blue eyes burn with an inner fire as he drags his fingers down the flat plane of my stomach, then slides them beneath the waistband of my panties. One thick finger slides through my folds, and my breath hitches in my throat.
