A first, fat drop of rain plopped right on the end of her nose, and she wiped it away just as the next twelve hit her face simultaneously.
“You and your walking fetish,” Grant growled.
“You didn’t have to come with me. I’m a big girl. I can walk off leash.”
“You think you’re safe because you dress like a boy, but even boys can get themselves hurt if they’re alone in a deserted part of town like this.”
The rain was falling in earnest now, soaking into her T-shirt and the thighs of her jeans.
“Has anyone ever told you that overprotectiveness is irritating?”
“Most submissives don’t mind having someone fuss over them.”
“Fussing is one thing. I may be three apples high, but I’m not a child. I don’t need a Dominant babysitting me. If you didn’t want to come you should have jumped in a cab with someone. I’m sure Tarka could’ve dropped you off. He has to go past the club to get to his place anyway.”
“Been over there a lot have you?” he asked, his voice suddenly chill.
“I haven’t been there at all, not that it’s any of your business.”
“You should stay away from that guy.”
“That guy? That guy is one of our best friends. Why on earth should I stay away from Tak? Sure, he whores around like we do, but he’s not one to play mind games that aren’t consensual, and he’s not one to make promises he doesn’t intend to keep—and he won’t throw away a perfectly good friendship because of a one-night stand!”
Anger surged, not doused by the cold rain that was now plastering her hair to her head and streaming in cold rivulets down the back of her neck. They stopped walking and glared at each other, any warm feelings she’d had from the night gone in the blaze of anger that burned through her. There had to be steam coming off her.
Grant looked just as pissed, his beautiful face grim, his brows lowered dangerously. They’d stopped under a streetlamp and it cast a shadow across his face, lending him a sinister, sadistic air.
He opened his mouth and snapped it closed hard enough that she heard his teeth click.
r /> Yeah? Well, me too, bitchface.
“Boohoo. I fucked you and then wouldn’t date you,” she snarled at him. “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but just because you stick your dick in someone a few times doesn’t mean you own them.”
His head jerked back as though she’d slapped him, then he turned and stomped down the street. There was a sound like a roar of an enraged animal and then he strode back toward her. She fell back a step and then two. The streetlight completely illuminated the savage expression on his face. Adrenaline shot through her and she turned and ran away from him, half staggering as she rounded a corner and splashed through a puddle into an alleyway. She could hear him behind her—close, so close, his breathing angry and heavy.
“Where the fuck are you going?” he shouted after her.
She peered through the rain. The alley was a dead end, of course. She turned and bared her teeth at him, feeling like a cornered beast.
“You’re a jerkwad, you know that?”
“Oh, I’m the jerkwad?” There seemed to be more words crowding to get out of him, but he bit off them off.
“I stuck to our agreement. You’re the one who had to go and make things complicated. I wish it had never happened. I wish I could go back to that night and tell you not to come over.”
He blinked at her then looked away, his mouth pressed flat.
“I had no idea that once I stepped over the line there’d be no going back!” she yelled, embarrassed that she couldn’t calm down. “I didn’t know that one impulsive decision would ruin my life. It’s not like I decided to try crack or something. It’s not like either of us were the relationship type. I had no idea . . .”
“Yeah, well, I had no idea either,” he growled back. “We were so close for so long it hadn’t occurred to me that I wasn’t good enough for you to date.”
“It’s not like that!”
“We’ve been there for each other through so much shit, Arabella. It was easier being friends with you when you were just the mouthy little tomboy I hung out with. Now I can’t look at you and think innocent thoughts. I can’t forget the feel of you under my hands, kneeling for me. I can’t forget the way your eyes deepen when you hit subspace. I can’t forget how making you submit made me feel.”
She felt drugged by his words. Stupid Dominants and their stupid . . . speaking abilities! She wanted to hit him for making her so weak.
“Stop trying to make me feel bad! I already feel like shit for not giving you what you want, but I don’t think you want to collar me if I’m letting you do it out of sisterly affection.”