Dark Need (House of Sin 3)

He goes to his knees right in front of me, my heart almost beating out of my chest as his hand reaches for my face.

This is it. He’s going to kill me. Close your eyes and pray.

A soft brush of his thumb along my cheek makes my eyes burst open again.

I blink a couple of times, staring straight into his beautiful blue eyes that could make any woman crush hard. Then he holds up his thumb and shows me the dirt and blood on it.

“You’re filthy.”

I gulp.

Is that supposed to mean something?

He’s not going to wash me, is he?

“So you’re not going to kill me?”

A smile pops up onto a face, and it’s truly a strange thing to witness from such a gigantic beastly man. He lets out a short but low rumbling laugh that pushes all my buttons.

“No.” He fishes his knife from his pocket and leans in. “But I could.”

I swallow hard.

He moves to my back, and suddenly, I’m very, very aware of the fact that his bare chest is right behind me and his hands are on my arms. Within seconds, the ties around my wrist snap loose.

I rub my skin, which is red and sore. “Thanks.”

He gets up and towers over me. “I can trust you … or I can hurt you. Your choice.”

I smile awkwardly. “I choose trust.”

He cocks his head and points the knife at the stream. “Good. Go.”

I nod and dart off toward the water, glancing at him every other second. He doesn’t look away. Not even as I take off my shirt with my back turned to him.

A blush creeps onto my cheeks.

It’s not that I haven’t seen a man before …

But I’ve never been looked at like that.

Like he wants to take in every inch of my body.

Like he’s memorizing it.

Like he wants to own that too.

And for some reason, that makes my pussy thump.

Fuck.

I must be really losing my mind out here.

I sigh to myself. “Can you please look away so I can get undressed?”

He fishes a towel from his bag and throws it to the ground right behind me. “No.”

Of course not. He trusts me … but only enough to let me wade around on my own … not enough for me to have some alone time.

I roll my eyes and take off whatever’s left of my dignity, stepping out of my shell and into the lake naked.

His eyes never left my skin.

Not even as they skimmed my ass.

Took in every ample curve.

And fuck me if it didn’t make me all hot and bothered.

Lucky for me, this stream feels icy cold. At least it tempers some of the filthy thoughts swirling through my head. I really should not be thinking of him that way. But then why can’t I shake the thought of him naked in this very same water?

And what was that metallic thing around his dick?

I shiver from the cold and dive under to wash my hair and body. When I come back up, he’s sitting down on another smaller rock, burly legs wide open, hands on his knees, his eyes hidden underneath bushy brows.

His eyes are glued to my body, and something tells me he’s not going to look away when I get out. It’s like he both wants me more than anything and despises me for it.

But I didn’t do anything to him.

Except make his job harder, obviously. And I refuse to feel guilty for it.

He’s the bad guy, not me. I didn’t choose to become a prisoner.

I’m innocent, and I will never stop rebelling.

So I hold my head high as I march back out of the water. If he wants to play this the hard way, he can have it. I’m not scared. Even though I’ve never shown my body to a man before, if I have to use it to make a point, I will.

And as my body comes up to the surface, his eyes slowly swipe over my body, pausing on my nipples which are peaked from the cold water, only to slide down toward the crevice between my legs. His hand shifts from his knee, two fingers brushing his lips and beard as he takes me in.

I’d be lying if I said it didn’t make me feel sexy.

But I can’t succumb to his gaze, not unless it will give me my freedom back.

I pick up the towel he so generously threw in my direction and wipe myself dry before I grab my clothes and put them back on, even though I’m still not completely dry. I don’t care anymore.

He wanted a show? Hope he enjoyed it.

And as I approach him, I quip, “Had a nice look?”

Chapter 13

Soren

I have to physically will my cock to stay down.

That’s how fucking hard she makes me.

But the pain is too much to bear.

I cannot let myself go like that. Even when she flaunts her body in my face, I must resist. She’s doing it on purpose, which also means she’s discovered my only weakness.