Chapter 72 Chapter Seventy-two

Chapter 72 Chapter Seventy-two
Bella

After what felt like ninety decades trapped in sinful darkness, Gray finally pulled his lips away from mine.I was dizzy. Completely, deliciously dizzy.

My head spun like I’d been caught in a hurricane, my knees weak, my body still trembling from the intensity of his kiss. 

The world around me was hazy, blurry, spinning slowly like I was floating in some fever dream.

I swayed dangerously on my feet, but Gray’s strong arm wrapped around my waist instantly, pulling me flush against his hard chest. His heartbeat thundered against my bare skin, steady and powerful, grounding me when I felt like I might melt into the floor.

“She’s gone,” his murmur against my ear was husky and sinful. “I think we kissed long enough for one full seminar presentation.”

A weak giggle escaped my swollen lips before I could stop it. “Funny,” I whispered, still trying to catch my breath.

But deep down, I knew the truth. My mum had come here for a solid reason, and my guts told me it had something to do with Gray.

Gray’s expression darkened even in the dim lighting of the fitting room. 

Ah. He knew exactly why my mother had come storming into this boutique. It wasn’t just a coincidence. It wasn’t random. And it definitely wasn’t only because she might have tracked my ankle monitor.

“Gray…” I chided softly, searching his stormy eyes.

He didn’t even flinch. Instead, that wicked, dangerous smirk I both loved and feared tugged at the corner of his lips.

“Since you look like you're going to knee me in the balls if I don't speak, I'll tell you. I burned the hideous dress she got for you.”

My eyes widened. I took a shaky step back, but his firm hands on my waist didn’t let me go far. It felt like I hadn’t moved at all, like I was permanently anchored to him.

“You… what?” I breathed, my heart racing.

“I burned it,” he repeated, completely unapologetic. His fingers traced slow, possessive circles on my bare lower back. 

“That cheap, boring rag didn’t deserve to touch your skin. You’re not walking into that dinner looking like something your mother picked to control you. I said it earlier, Bella. You’re walking in looking like mine.”

He burned the dress. As in, set it on fire. Destroyed it. No wonder she'd marched all the way down here.

“Gray, that’s… that’s crazy,” I whispered, but my voice lacked any real conviction.

He leaned down, brushing his nose along my jaw, his breath hot against my neck.

“Crazy?” He chuckled darkly, the sound vibrating through my body. “Baby, you have no idea how crazy I can get when it comes to you.”

His hand slid lower, gripping my hip as he pulled me even closer, my naked body pressed against his fully clothed one. The contrast made my breath hitch.

“You’re going to wear the dress I chose,” he said, his lips hovering over mine. “You’re going to walk into that dinner looking like the goddess you are, and every single person there is going to know you belong to me. Especially your mother.”

He kissed me again, slower this time, deeper, like he was sealing a dark promise.

But then reality slammed back into me like a freight train.

He burned the dress. Without even letting me see it. Without asking. Without giving me a single choice.

“You’re using your charm on me,” I said, voice shaking as I stepped back. “You’re erasing my consent in this… situationship we have. My voice doesn’t matter to you, does it? You just assume I’ll go along with whatever you want.”

Gray’s expression shifted. The darkness receded for a moment, giving me a glimpse of the genuine confusion on his face.

“Do you feel anything between us is nonconsensual on your side?” he asked quietly, his eyes searching mine with genuine concern. 

“Do you feel bullied by me, Bella?” The question hit me hard.

Suddenly I remembered I was standing naked in the middle of a fitting room. I couldn’t think straight. 

Everything felt too much, too intense, too overwhelming.

“I need to go home,” I whispered, suddenly desperate to cover myself.

“You haven’t answered my question.”

“I said I want to go home!” I snapped, louder than I'd ever spoken to him.

For the first time ever, I saw Gray’s eyes widen in genuine shock. He actually looked taken aback.

He stared at me for a long second, before nodding slowly.

“Okay. I’ll—”

“I don’t need you to take me home,” I cut him off, already grabbing my clothes and yanking them on. 

“I can find my own way.”

I dressed so fast I scratched my own skin with my nails, but I didn’t care. I just needed out. Out of this room. Out of his overwhelming presence. Out of the feelings that were drowning me.

Gray watched me the entire time in heavy silence, his eyes tracking every movement like he was memorizing me. Like he was scared I’d vanish if he blinked.

I stormed out of the fitting room and nearly collided with the sales attendant.

She gave me a tight, awkward smile. “Where is he?” she asked in a low voice. “Your… brother?”

Something ugly twisted in my chest. I felt the pinch of the tag she'd used. Brother.

“He’s not my brother,” I bit out.

“Oh… I see. He—”

I didn’t wait for her to finish. I pushed past her, heading straight for the exit.

Behind me, I heard Gray’s deep voice as he paid for the dress.

“She’s not my sister,” he said, loud enough for me to hear. “She’s my whole goddamn life.”

My heart clenched painfully, but I kept walking. I didn’t even make it to the door.

Strong arms wrapped around me from behind, and suddenly I was lifted off the ground, dangling over Gray’s shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

I didn’t protest. I knew better now. When Gray put me over his shoulder like this, it meant he was really pissed.

He carried me outside without a word, set me on his bike, then leaned down until his face was inches from mine, his eyes blazing with barely contained fury and something deeper.

“I’m really tempted to teach you a serious lesson about never walking away from me,” he growled. “But your mother is probably watching us from somewhere close by, I guess I’ll wait for a better moment.”

I glared at him, trying to steady my breathing. 

“Just shut up and ride us home before it’s five.”

He fastened the helmet on my head a little too roughly. I winced at the sound it made on my head.

“I’m dropping you right in front of the gate,” he said coldly. “Then I’ll ride off to finish something real quick. Don’t be scared to tell your mother exactly where we were if she asks. She saw my bike here. But she can’t do shit about it.”

He was wrong.

With each passing day, my mother terrified me more and more. She was showing me sides of herself I never knew existed.

I could face her. I would face her. At least… that’s what I kept telling myself as Gray’s bike roared through the streets.

But deep down, I knew the truth. I was going home to meet fire.