AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He paused, and as he stared at her, butterflies unexpectedly burst to life in the pit of her stomach.
“You’re going to have to live by certain rules while you’re here,” he continued, lowering his voice. “They matter.”
“Okay, fine.”
“No, it’s notokay, fine,” he said sternly. “I’m serious.”
“I don’t understand. What are you trying to say?”
“From this moment forward, you’ll do what I say, when I say. I know you don’t have a phone, but that includes any form of communication.”
“You mean like smoke signals?” she snapped.
“I’m serious!”
“Or what, you’ll hit me again?” she demanded, recalling the sharp slap he’d delivered in the bedroom.
“I don’t hit women,” he retorted. “Spank them, yes, and that’s different, very different.”
“Why do you, uh, do that?”
As he tilted his head and narrowed his eyes, a thrilling, unfamiliar sensation rippled through her body.
“It’s in my nature,” he murmured, “and it’s not always about discipline.”
Heat suddenly flamed across her face.
Goosebumps popped across her skin.
Sparks fired through her nerves.
“Bianca, you will play by my rules or this won’t work.”
She wanted to say something, anything, but her voice refused to cooperate.
“You’re out of danger for the moment, but there’s no telling what will happen as this situation develops,” he said solemnly. “You need to be in the habit of following my lead. There may be a moment when our lives depend on it, but if you have a problem with the way I do things, I can always take you to a hotel and drop you off. As the old saying goes, it’s my way or the highway. In this case, it’s my way or a hotel. Which is it going to be, Bianca?”
* * *
The lack of a sharp retort, the lowering of her eyes, and the telltale blush crawling across Bianca’s cheeks told Nick all he needed to know. There were sparks between them, their attraction was picking up steam, and she’d been titillated by his remarks. But the question remained. Would she be brave enough to dip her toe in his dark, wicked waters? She appeared to be in deep thought, and he hoped she was fantasizing about the decadent promise hanging in the air, but they needed to get into the warmth and comfort of the house.
“I’m not going to sit in this car all night waiting for an answer,” he declared. “Is it really such a difficult decision?”
“Not at all,” she replied quietly, slowly raising her eyes and looking back at him. “I want to go to a hotel, but it has to be on the way to Vegas and on the main road.”
“Are you crazy?” he exclaimed, dumbfounded by what he was hearing. “I’m not taking you—”
“I was kidding,” she exclaimed, cutting him off, then laughed out loud. “Of course I want to stay with you.”
“You are such a—”
“Hey, chill,” she said, interrupting him again and punching his arm. “Everything’s been so tense I thought we could use a bit of fun. I really had you going there.”
Though a part of him was angry, her bubbly personality was contagious and he had to chuckle. “As I was about to say, you’re a brat, but trust me, I’ll have my revenge when you least expect it. Now I’m going inside and you can stay here for a while.”
“Don’t you dare!”
“Really? Did you actually just saydon’t you dare? Bianca, you just threw down the gauntlet. Now I can’t possibly let you inside… unless…”
