AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The terrifying part is not knowing what he plans on asking me. It could be anything.
No, scratch that. Thereallyterrifying part is knowing what hecouldask of me.
And the fact that I’d want to do it for him.
Especially if he keeps looking at me like that.
“Yes.” I nod with the word, just in case it sticks to my tongue. “Anything. I’ll do anything—just keep my daughter safe.” Out of some deep-seated instinct, I crawl on top of the blankets and kneel in front of him, literally on my knees to beg for Willow’s safety. “Anything you want. As long as Willow is safe.”
Demyen steps closer to me, so close I can smell his musk through his shirt.Just like my fever dream…
He tucks his fingers under my chin and tilts my head up to look him in the eyes. One knee settles on the bed, then the rest of him leans down until I’m surrounded by him.
Nowhere to run.
Nowhere to hide.
Nowhere he can’t get me.
“And if I want to start collecting on your debt now?” His mouth hovers over mine. I catch his eyes flickering between mine and my lips, dipping down lower for half a millisecond. At this angle, he can probably see clear down the threadbare top barely covering me as it is. “Right here, right now.” His thumb slowly rubs over my bottom lip as he holds my gaze. “You’ll be my good girl and do exactly what I say?”
The stubborn mother in me needs to keep demanding for more leverage.
The heat quickly pooling between my legs wants him to start making more demands.
“Show me Willow again.” I need to make sure I don’t lose focus on why I’m doing this. “Please.”
I expect him to get angry, or slap me, or something else for my bold demand. But instead, he regards me for a moment, then pulls out his phone. A few taps later, he holds up the screen so I can see her.
She’s in the same stretch of garden, now a few yards away from where I can just make out the chalked hopscotch grid. A beautiful, richly-tanned woman is with her, and they’re laughing and pointing at different desert flowers and exotic cacti.
“Okay.” I swallow back the lump in my throat and nod. My gaze meets his and I nod again. “I’ll be good. I promise.”
A smile tugs at one corner of his mouth. He tucks his phone back into his pocket. When his hand lifts, I inwardly brace myself for him to grab my hair and pull me somewhere to do something salacious and dirty.
He cups my face, leans in close. “First thing? Take a shower.”
I blink.What?
“Bathroom’s around the corner, through the double doors.” He nods his head toward an archway I hadn’t noticed before. This room is a hell of a lot bigger than I thought. “Don’t take too long. You need to eat something before the real work begins.”
I swallow hard. “Yes, sir.”
That flame of hunger lights up in his eyes at my word choice. He hesitates before he pulls away and strides to the door.
When he’s a safe distance away, he turns to look at me once more over his shoulder, hand lingering on the doorknob. “You might survive this after all.”
And then he’s gone.
27
CLARA
I should be righteously offended that anyone, let alone Demyen, told me to “take a shower.”
But one sniff of my shirt tells me the man’s got a point.
Woof.
