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“It is not my fault you went inside. You’re the one to blame, Kaston. Not me.” I retorted, my anger fueling my response. How dare he blame me for his own actions?
The sting of his palm on my cheek took me by surprise. I could feel the heat spreading across my skin and the tears welling up in my eyes. My hand flew to my cheek, trying to alleviate the pain. Kaston's face twisted in anger once again.
He’d just slapped me.
“I asked you to meet me, you will do as you are told. Have I made myself clear?” he demanded, his voice cold and unforgiving.
I could not stop the bitter words that came out next, “Why? What do you want from me, Kaston?”
His laugh was low, deep, quiet enough not to draw attention. “You, Serra. I thought I had made that perfectly clear the other day.”
“So, what am I to be? Your whore? Your mistress? Certainly notyourwife, you madethatvery clear.”
The smile that spread across his face was undeniable.
I’d spoken the truth. That was what he wanted from me. Not only would he not marry me, but he would not let me be with anyone else. His finger traced the spot he had marked, the bite he had left. While it had healed and disappeared it was the memory of it that lingered.
“You aremine.” He towered over me, his body pushing against my own. His heat caused my stomach to turn, it was stifling and suffocating. “Understand this, if I wish it, you will comply. You will not belong to anyone else. This whole thing my mother has planned will end tonight. Do you understand me, Serra? No. One. Else.”
Of all the things that could have happened, this was not what I had expected. He had taken me, used me, threw me aside and then wanted to come back? And he fully expected me to comply with his wishes, indulge in his whims, be his mistress, his whore. The word was out before I could stop it.
“No.”
“What?”
The shock and disbelief on his features had me standing up straighter. I would not cower, I would not bow down to this man. “I said,no.”
“You are treading dangerous ground right now.”
“I will not be your whore. I will not be your secret. You made your bed, now you will lie in it.” I moved to slip away and to head back toward the ballroom, back to the crowd of people- if only I was strong enough to fight him off.
His hand flew out and grabbed me by the arm again. His face turned red with violence and burning desire as he yanked me down the dark hallway and through a door. The force behind his shove had caused me to stumble into the room, trying my best to catch my balance as he shut the door behind him. The terror that ran through me at that point was unmistakable and I prayed that he’d come to reason, but that did not seem to be in the cards for me.Not when he was like this.
The room was pitch black as my eyes strained to adjust to the lack of light. I stumbled backward again as I tried to put as much distance as possible between Kaston and myself. But I didn't see the desk until it was too late. I slammed into it and the pain that radiated through my knees was excruciating, I bit down on my lip to stifle a scream but a whimper escaped anyway.
I needed to get away from him.
As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I could make out the shapes of bookshelves lining the walls, their spines barely visible in the gloom. I knew I was trapped and the panic started to set in as Kaston stalked closer. Even in the dark I could see the fury in his eyes. He lunged toward me and I dodged to the side to avoid him- my hand brushing against the cold metal of a paperweight on the desk as I did so. My fingers curled around it, hoping it would be enough to fend him off. But he was too quick, and he knocked it out of my hand with a sharp twist of his wrist.
The sound of things shattering and hitting the floor echoed through me as he cleared the top of it. His fingers gripping my arm as I struggled against him. The coldness of the wood hit my exposed back as he pinned me down on top of it. I couldn’t stop fight him, struggling against him with all the strength I had left in me. His breath was hot on my face as he leaned in close. His voice was a low growl in the darkness. “If you scream, if you make any noise, you'll wish you hadn’t.”
I could see the fury in his eyes as he pulled away to look down at me, my heart was pounding so hard I thought it might burst from my chest. I felt for anything I could use to defend myself, my fingers groping wildly over the empty desk to smash into his head. But Kaston had cleared it of anything that could be used as a weapon.
The edge of my dress was pushed up as he lifted my legs and forced himself between them. I watched his hand go for the buttons of his trousers- freeing himself before yanking me to the edge, his grip on my thighs bruising. I had enough freedom to push him off as adrenaline coursed through my veins. With as much force as I could put behind it, I shoved my feet into his chest. It was enough to send him staggering backwards, allowing me enough time to get up and try running for the door.
But not enough.
His arms found my waist before lifting me up as he carried me back toward the desk and bent me over. A scream lodged in my throat as the air in my lungs forced out. My face hit the top of the dark wood- no matter how much I struggled, he was still stronger. Pushing me into the desk as the hem of my skirt was yanked up again. Exposing me to him as he yanked at my undergarments.
No.
Tears welled up in my eyes as a sob escaped my lips, the realization hitting me hard. He was really going to do this, right here and now, mere yards away from the crowd of Nobles and his own family. Panic surged through me, and I fought the urge to scream out for help, to alert everyone to what was about to happen. But his threat, coupled with the shock of the situation, paralyzed me- like a sharp knife slicing through my resolve to fight him. My eyes darted around the room, desperate for a way out, but there was no escape. I was trapped, and he knew it.
“Stop,” I whispered, my voice barely audible over the pounding of my own heart. But he didn't listen, didn't care. He had all the power, and he knew it. And in that moment, I knew that I was truly alone, trapped in a nightmare with no way out. I was losing. This man was going to take me against my will if I stopped struggling, and I would not stop.
Ever.
Bucking up against him, doing my best to get some traction to get my arms under me,anythingto push him off. But before I could, he was shoving me back down again.
