“No way.”
“Forty days and forty nights. The number of days the Nazarene wandered in the desert.”
“Or like the trial period for WinRAR.”
My lips twitch at Gabriel’s perplexed look.
“It’s a file archiving software.” I consider him. “How do I know you’re not going to renege?”
“My word is my bond.”
“All right, then.” Forty days and forty nights aren’t so bad. I get to live out my princess in the castle dreams and then bail. “A three-hour tour,” I sing and make a face when his face remains blank. “Come on, you don't know Gilligan’s Island? I need to work on your modern education, so you get my references. Let’s put that on the to-do list.”
A trace of indulgence settles on Gabriel’s face, the tension leaving his jaw. He’s relieved that I’ve agreed to stay, even for the limited duration.
“But I need to contact my friends. And my mom. They need to know I’m all right.”
“You earn the right to call your friends when I feel I can trust you. I will not have you giving those wolves the location of my castle.”
“What about an email?”
“I will consider an email.”
“Fine. I'll take it. Though an email from me would raise more red flags in my friend’s minds than a text or call…”
“There will be no texts or calls, Tabitha.” He lowers his voice. “Perhaps I should keep you in the cage for the duration of our bargain.”
“That wasn’t the agreement,” I say, but my inner thighs squeeze together, reacting to the threat as if he just promised me pleasure.
He dips his head close. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” he murmurs. “Being locked in the cage while I work. Naked and at my mercy.”
“No,” I croak. I’m lying. My core throbs like he’s stroked my clit.
“Are you sure? I could tie you up with a toy between your legs. I’d take breaks often to give you…relief. If you’re good. And punish you if you’ve been bad.”
“That sounds awful.” That sounds great. I squirm, impossibly turned on. “Is it hot in here?”
His dark chuckle sends thrills up my spine. “You love it when I force you to obey me. I could keep you like this forever. You’d spend your days locked in the cage and your nights cuffed to my bed. Eventually, you’d forget what it was like to be free.”
I swallow. “You promised.”
“Yes, I promised. My word is good. But for the next forty days and forty nights…you are mine.”
9
Gabriel
I swoop Tabitha into my arms and carry her in the direction of her chamber.
“Where are we going?”
“To your chamber.”
She kicks her pretty feet. “Nope. Not happening. We just made a deal.”
“I wanted you naked in that bedroom waiting for me when I got off work. I wanted to think of you lying on the bed, bare, ready, and impatient for me.”
Her laugh is throaty. “You’re ridiculous, dragon. The most ridiculous man I’ve ever known.”
Do I detect traces of affection in her tone? Certainly, it’s there in the way her arms twine loosely about my neck. She’s comfortable in my arms, being carried by me.
“I can’t have you running about my castle naked. That is not acceptable.”
“I’m not naked, I’m in your robe. Which is quite comfortable, by the way. But if you want me in clothes, you’ll have to give me back my wardrobe. There’s no more locking me in the bedroom. We made a deal.”
“I’ve already told you that caging you is within my rights.”
“You have no right to me, dragon.”
We’ve reached her bedroom, and I stride over to the bed. “I have every right.” I toss her on the bed and climb over her.
She laughs like it’s all quite amusing to her. She doesn’t realize it’s the truth.
“I’m your mate, little human. That makes me your keeper. Your protector. Your punisher. And your provider.”
“Am I supposed to swoon over those words? Because I find them a bit lacking in the poetry department.”
“You’re supposed to swoon over this,” I tell her, pushing her knees wide and settling between her legs. I lick into her, parting her ripe flesh with my tongue.
“Mmm. Oh,” she pants, but she pushes my head away. “Wait, wait. Wait, Gabriel.”
“What is it, my treasure?”
She pushes herself up on her elbows. “Is this your plan?”
I arch a brow.
“Give me orgasms morning, noon, and night for forty days? Is that how you plan to convince me to stay?”
I blink at her. “Is it working?”
“No,” she lies, rubbing her lips together. I want to kiss them, but I don’t trust myself not to lose control.
“What would work, my treasure?”
“I want an end to the secrets and the riddles and the games. I want to know the real you.”
“Games are who I am. They are what I love.”
She shakes her head. “No. Games are what you hide behind.”
My brows drop. I can’t decipher what it is she wants from me. I can’t read into this. I’m at a total loss.