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TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE.
BROTHER H: ENJOY YOUR ONE-NIGHT HONEYMOON.
WILL DO.
ChapterTwenty
CLAIRE
Coleman turns away from me,holding his phone in his hand as his fingers quickly glide over the screen. I don’t know who he’s talking to, standing in front of me completely naked as he does it. I’m not sure how to feel about this.
The few times we’ve been together, I didn’t know who he was, and he didn’t stay long after we both came, so this is different. New and uncharted. I want to ask him who he’s texting, but I also know that it isn’t my place to ask any questions… at least I don’t think it is.
I’m his wife, but nothing about this is conventional, and I’m unsure of my boundaries. Chewing on my bottom lip, I hold my breath, trying to think of something to ask and how to ask it. I can’t just come right out and be blunt about anything. I’m not sure he would like that.
I watch as his head turns slowly and he looks back over his shoulder at me, arching a brow. His dark gaze finds mine and holds it for an intense moment. Tugging the sheet tighter against my chest, I release my teeth from my lip and begin to breathe in and out of my nose, my nostrils flaring over and over as I stare at him and wait for whatever comes next.
Sucking in a breath, I stay completely silent, trying not to breathe or even move. I’m not sure what the hell he’s going to say, how he’s going to say it, but I can tell the wheels are working inside of his head.
When he faces me fully, he dips his chin, his gaze still focused on mine. “You hungry, hummingbird?” His voice is rough and sexy as sin.
He’ssexy as sin.
Shaking my head, I hold my breath. “I’m not hungry,” I whisper. Then I decide to ask him. “Who were you texting?”
His brow arches higher, almost reaching his hairline, and the other joins it. He watches me for a split second, his face expressionless. I’m sure his arm is going to come up and he’s going to hit me or something. I cannot read this man at all.
Then he grins and chuckles before he crawls into the bed beside me. His hand slowly glides up my body, and he curls his fingers in my sheet before he pulls on it with one swift yank.
I gasp, lifting my arms in an attempt to cover myself, but his fingers grip my wrists before he pulls them down to my sides. “Don’t cover yourself from me, Claire.”
Chewing on my bottom lip, I roll the skin on the inside between my teeth as I stare at him. “But…” I begin.
He shakes his head once, stopping me from saying another word. I snap my mouth closed, pressing my lips together as I watch him, my eyes wide.
“No, Claire. You are mine. Your body is mine. Never hide yourself from me.”
My heart slams against my chest, threatening to burst through and land on the bed between us. This is a vulnerability I’ve never experienced before. This is about control and nothing else.
He wants to control me.
He wants to keep me.
He wants to own me.
And he does.
“I don’twantto control you, hummingbird. Idocontrol you. There is a difference. I own every fucking piece of you, but I will never purposely make you feel like my object. However, when it’s us in this room, like this, together, I will see you, all of you.”
“Why if it’s not for a game?” I ask.
I feel brazen, bold even, and he’s talkative now that we aren’t hiding who we are from one another, or maybe I never did hide who I was, but he sure as hell did.
“No games between us, Claire. We’re married. This is real, even if it’s unconventional. This is a true marriage. I will not play them, and I do not expect you to, either.”
Gulping, I glance down at my lap, then slowly lift my eyes to meet his. “Okay,” I whisper.
“I was texting my brother about work. We have a meeting tomorrow evening. We need to go over some ground rules, hummingbird.”
