Spicy Mouth

Spicy Mouth
Dante Scout POV

“You really got some confidence since you turned eighteen, baby bunny.” My eyes narrowed on her. Her sweet scent burned through my nostrils, sharp and maddening.

There was something different about her since that day. I would be lying if I said her smart mouth did not turn me on. She only had to exist for me and my wolf to lose our minds, which was exactly why I stayed away from her most of the time.

She did not respect me at all. And the irony was that, for the first time in my life, I had wanted something soft between us. Something simple. I knew how much she loved strawberry, so I bought her a strawberry cake on her birthday.

Vin never came home that night.

I spent the entire night wired, restless, until I found out she had gone clubbing with Amanda. I did not want to be calm about it, but it was her day. The day our parents died. Grief twisted people in ways I understood all too well.

So I did not make an issue of the club.

What burned me alive was that she got drugged there and ended up in a VIP suite. I was certain nothing happened. I did not know what went on inside that suite, but I knew Vinorca too well to question her dignity, no matter how much I hated her, or tried to.

“Thanks for the compliment, even though it was not.” She grinned up at me, irritation flashing clear as day.

I yanked her even closer, my hand locking around her waist. “I am totally turned on by your spicy mouth, bunny.” Horror flickered across her face, and pride settled deep in my chest. I affected her. No matter how hard she tried to hide it. “Can I taste it?”

Her eyes widened as her lips parted. “Are you asking for permission?” Sarcasm dripped from every word. “Now you learned about consent?”

“Baby, I always knew about consent.” My voice dropped as I leaned in, my lips brushing her earlobe. “Yours just does not apply. You are not your own person. You are mine. My mate. My prisoner.” I let my breath sink into her skin. “And criminals do not get free will in my prison.”

Her entire body shivered. “Then why ask now?”

“Because I can.” My mouth hovered, deliberate. “And because it changes nothing about what I want. I gave you a chance.” I closed my lips around the edge of her ear, drawing it in slowly. I wanted her so badly it hurt.

I had never touched another woman. Never let anyone cross that line. Only my mate could touch me. Only she was allowed under my skin. And that person was Vinorca.

“Now we are not going to your office. You already made me miss the university just to behave like a pervert?” she shot back.

A low chuckle slipped out of me. I pulled my hand away and stepped back, but not before pressing a brief kiss to her cheek—restrained, deliberate.

“No, bunny. We are definitely going to the office.” I opened the car door for her, holding it steady. “Since you still cannot shift into your wolf form, the car is safer. Get in.”

She paused, then glanced at me sideways. “You are driving?”

“Of course.” I shut the door once she was seated and moved around the car. “I know my driver usually handles it, but for you, baby, I will be the one behind the wheel.”

I slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine. The quiet hum filled the space between us. She crossed her arms, staring straight ahead, pretending I did not exist. The lie of it amused me more than it should have.

As I pulled onto the road, her scent filled the car—clinging, familiar, dangerous. My grip tightened on the steering wheel, forcing control back into my bones. This was why distance mattered. Why restraint mattered.

“You are quiet now,” I mocked, my eyes staying on the road.

“Enjoy it while it lasts,” she muttered.

The corner of my mouth lifted. Even irritated, even fighting me at every turn, she owned the space around her. And no matter how carefully I drove, how calm the ride appeared, I knew one thing with absolute certainty.

Getting her into the car was the easy part. Everything after that was not going to be easy at all. “I used to love your scared little version, baby. What happened to my bunny? When did you turn feral?”

The Vinorca who once flinched at my presence had learned how to stand her ground. Three years. That was all it took. I came back, and she was someone else now. Or maybe she was finally becoming who she always was, at least with me.

I did not hate it. I liked the way her words clawed at me, sharp and unapologetic.

“Tell me one thing, Dante. Why are you like this?”

“Like what?”

She turned toward me while I kept my eyes on the road. “You hurt me. You hate me. You act like I am your mortal enemy, and then, out of nowhere, you pretend everything between us is normal.”

The question hit harder than I expected. A clean strike. What could I say? I never hated her. Hurting her was never the goal. She was my mate. But every time I saw her, anger surged through me—wild and uncontrollable—drowning out reason.

No matter how many times I promised myself I would do better, I always ended up in the same place.

“Because in the end, you are my mate,” I answered quietly. “My wolf cannot be cruel to you.”

Her laugh was soft, bitter. “Then how does your wolf let you be an asshole most of the time?”

My grip tightened on the steering wheel. The road blurred for a second before snapping back into focus. She was not wrong. That was the worst part.

“Because my wolf feels too much,” I mumbled. “And I am the one who does not know how to handle it.”

“I want to make one thing clear to you. No matter how many years it took me to find my footing, I hate you. Nothing will ever mend what lies between us.”