Chapter 24 Chapter 24
Sloane
What was happening?
WHAT WAS HAPPENING?
I paced up and down the length of my room, my mind going a million miles an hour. I had known going to the party, especially dressed like someone special was a bad idea. And it had only got worse when they had started to treat me like a last!
Their lady.
I wasn’t their lady, I was their prisoner. And I wanted to go home.
Tears prickled behind my eyes as I froze and took a deep breath. And then another one. Why did it feel that bad things were all happening to me? They swirled around, like shadows that whispered to me that I needed to see something.
Only I didn’t understand. I hadn’t understood a damn thing since a wolf had barged into my life and uprooted me.
I missed my brother.
Hell I even missed my father and the villagers than had made my life hell for years.
I just wanted to go home.
Spinning on my heel, I flopped face down on to the bed and sobbed.
How could they expect me to keep my promise to stay with them when I didn’t know what that meant? I’d been unhappy before.
Most of my life in fact but I had never felt this helpless.
Like my entire life was in the hands of others. I wasn’t sure those hands would actually take care of me.
“You.” The bed dipped next to me and a hot hand touched my shoulder and then slid towards my back. My head snapped around but all I could see was a muscled arm.
It could have belonged to either of them.
“Can’t sleep in this dress.”
Ty, it was Ty that had come into my room unannounced.
He let his hand drop lower, tracing my spine. I fought the urge to shiver.
“You can’t be in here.”
His chuckle was like velvet. Brushing against my most intimate areas. I’d never heard him sound like that before.
“I can be anywhere I want. This is my house.”
Cheek pressed against the brocade bedlinen I rolled my eyes. “It’s not right or proper that you are in my room.”
“Oh you are sweet with your silly human rules and customs. You’re mine Sloane, well ours.” He didn’t sound too happy about that. “People will talk more if we are not in your room.”
I knew the shifters of the world had different rules to the humans. They were physical creatures after all. But I wasn’t raised that way.
Rolling away his stroking fingers I sat on the edge of the bed. My shoulders hunched and my hands laced together on my lap.
“I want to be alone.” I mumbled. “Please leave.”
The bed squeaked as he stood up and I let out a sigh of relief.
My relief was short lived because his feet didn’t head towards the door, instead he came to stand right in front of me. “No.”
I lifted my head before I could stop myself. And our eyes clashed. “What do you mean no?” My voice wobbled at the look on his face. There was a darkly dangerous kind of heat in his eyes.
One that made my heart run away at a gallop and my breath hitch in my throat. I was in danger here. Real danger and my body was screaming at me to run.
“I mean no.” Cocking his head to the side, he studied me. His deep eyes grew darker and darker as they swept my body.
My skin erupted in goosebumps and I trembled. When his eyes lingered on my breasts my nipples hardened under the thin material, and my body betrayed me.
Angry at myself I crossed my arms around my chest. “If
You are going to force yourself on me then get on with it.” I snapped.
A flicker of surprise entered his eyes and his features tightened. “Force you?” He hissed. “I have never in my
Life had to force a female to lay down with me, Sloane. I don’t plan to start with you.”
The bite in his words cut into me.
“Unless that’s what you want.” He finished softly.
I did a double take, my face flushed. Suddenly I was too hot , the room was stifling and my dress was suffocating. “Of course I don’t want that.” I snapped. “What kind of woman do you think I am?”
A small smile curved up his lips. “I think you are a passionate one. I think you just pretend that you don’t want us because your upbringing tells you it’s wrong.” Reaching down he brushed his knuckles across my cheek. “I’ve felt your body against mine, how needy it is when my lips are on yours. Even now,” again his eyes drifted down the front of my dress and my core clenched.
“Even now, with nothing but my eyes caressing you, you can’t help your body's reaction to me. Maybe if I forced you to feel it, you could enjoy yourself without the guilt.”
I shook my head. My hair curling loose around my face as the tears I had held back finally spilled down my cheeks. “That’s not how I feel at all Ty, I feel out of control, I feel imprisoned. I am scared.” Slowly I lifted my eyes to meet his. If he could smell desire then he would be able to smell that I was telling him the truth. “I will never willingly give my body to a man that isn’t my husband.”
His eyes widened and his nostrils flared. “You aren’t lying.” He said in a flat voice. Taking a deep breath, he turned in his heel and headed towards the door.
“Where are you going?” I called out after him. He turned, throwing a look over his shoulder and his face was murderous. “To Eirian. I thought you understood Sloane. I thought you were going to help us. I thought,” his eyes raked over me. “You would keep your word but I can see the truth of it now. You will run the first chance you get.” He shook his head as he swung open the door and stepped through. “And I’m sorry I just can’t allow that to happen.”
And then he locked the door.