What we’re doing is going to end in death and destruction. Mine, Sin’s, the whole world if we burn bright enough. The promise lay in the heat of his hands, the strength of his hold, and my responding heartbeat.
Taking my bottom lip between his teeth, Sin bites down. “No one fucks with you but me.”
I bite back a moan. “No one fucks with me, period.”
Saint claps his brother on the shoulder. “Dude, pump the brakes. Or, better yet, put this thing in reverse. We’ve got shit to do, remember? The night isn’t over yet.” His gaze darts between Sin and me. “Temple, you need to cool it, girl.”
“Bite me.”
“Sin already did.” Saint exhales. “Swear to God, you’re worse than he is sometimes.”
Sin shakes his brother off. Cupping my face between his hands, he tips my head back. “You knew your shit in The Collector’s office, it’s why we didn’t jump in to save your ass. Get off that high horse you’re riding like a dildo and accept the truth.”
My eyes flare. “The truth? The truth is, you’re a gutless prick who used me to save your sorry ass.”
“Never lied about it, babe. If you want to read into shit, that’s on you.”
Ouch.
But I won’t let him see me hurt. “Tell me what’s going on.”
“No.”
I wait him out, but he doesn’t offer up anything else. “That’s it? That’s all you’re going to say?”
He presses his hips against my lower stomach in answer.
I try to push him away. Only, he doesn’t move. “Get off me. We’re finished.”
He tightens his hold. “Not a fucking chance.”
Kneeing him in the balls would be so satisfying. “If you want a woman who’s going to accept the scraps you’re offering, you’ve got me confused with someone else. I’m no one’s puppet. Not yours, Jack’s, or even The Collector’s. If you can’t fill me in on what’s happening, get your hands off me before I break them.”
A ghost of a grin appears. “You would, too.”
Saint curses. “This is some fucked-up foreplay.”
Holding my stare, Sin lets go. But he doesn’t move back. Instead, he gestures to his cousin. “Give me my keys. You’re going to finish what we started.”
In my periphery, Angel watches me, his calculating gaze oscillating between grudging respect and accusation.
No cares to give.
“Want me to burn the car?” He swaps his keys for my client’s.
Sin nods. “Make sure it can’t be traced back to any of us.”
“Done.”
“Are you insane? I’m not going to let you burn the Mustang.” I try to step out from behind Sin. Only, he wraps his arms around my middle, holding me close.
Angel glares. “You won’t have a choice. It’s a done deal.”
“Like hell it is.” Struggling, I attempt to unlock Sin’s iron hold.
Impossible.
“Jesus, are you made of granite or something? Let me go.”
Dipping his head, his breath tickles my ear. “Already told you. Never going to happen.”
Saint looks between us then backs up a few steps. “I’m gonna go with Angel. Make sure he doesn’t fuck it up.”
“Dude, that was one time,” Angel grumbles. “Give it a rest already.”
“You sound like Eve,” Saint jokes.
“Don’t say her name to me again, fucker.”
Saint smirks. Like a porn star on the cusp of an orgasm, he chants, “Eve, Eve—”
Angel punches him in the stomach.
Saint’s body folds in half as he clutches his middle. “Goddamn, you hit like a girl,” he wheezes, laughing. “Even Eve could do better than that pissweak excuse of a hit.”
“Screw you, Saint. Everyone knows you can’t fight for shit.” Angel slides into the driver seat, coaxing the engine to life.
Sensing he’s about to be left behind, Saint jumps in the car. He winds down the window, resting his forearm on the frame. “It was nice knowing you, Temple.”
With screeching tires, the car peels from the parking lot.
Before I can follow, Sin kicks my legs apart.
“You’ve got some explaining to do,” he growls.
Chapter Nineteen
Temple
Indignant, I exclaim, “I’ve got some explaining to do? Are you out of your mind?”
“I’m here, aren’t I?” Releasing me, Sin rests his fists on the car either side of my hips. He’s so close he could brush his fingers against my jeans. He could undo my top button, lower the zipper and shove his hand—
No.
Sin’s a selfish prick who left me with a predator. Sure, he was right when he said I could handle myself. But I can’t give in to desire. I’m stronger than that.
Sin flexes his hands against the panel. It’s like he’s trying to suffocate the car with his palms. Or, he’s imagining it’s me he’s squeezing the life out of.
Either way, I’m not giving him anything. “Screw you, Sin.”
He rolls his hips. “Planning on it, babe. But I told you before, you’ve got to beg for my cock before I give it to you.”
My mouth pops open on a sharp inhale, my tongue darting out to wet my top lip.
His eyes track the movement, darkening. “You owe me answers.”
The force of his gaze sends warmth pooling in my core. Potent desire morphs into desperate need the longer we stare.
Angry at my weakness and furious at my body’s response, I grit out, “You want answers?” Wrestling my arm from the sleeve of my hoodie, I show him the bruises on my upper arm left by Jack. “Is this answer enough for you?”
The marks don’t bother me. I’ve had worse. It’s the way Sin’s stare blazes with unshed rage when he takes in the dark purple marks that has me questioning my sanity.
Hate.
Wrath.
Revenge.
They flash across his face like the film reel from a psychological thriller.
A normal woman wouldn’t like watching the promise of vengeance. She’d back the hell up before going into hiding, terrified of the monster she’d unleashed.
But I’m not normal.
That chance was taken from me before I could claim it as mine. Which is why I don’t run. Instead, I tease, taunt, and coil Sin’s wrath around me.
I gesture to my arm. “Go on, big man. Touch it. I want you to feel what he did to me.”
His expression is hard. “Get in the car. We’re leaving.”
I right my hoodie. “Hard pass. After you left me with Jack, I’d rather take my chances and find my own way home.”
“It wasn’t a question.”
“Does it look like I care?” I’m being a brat. I’m better than this, but there’s something about Sin that makes me want to push him until he loses control.
What would happen if he snapped? Would he break loose from the tight confines he puts around himself and unleash the primal, animalistic power that drives me wild?
Being near Sin is like teetering on the brink of insanity. It’s no longer knowing if the life I’m living is real or imagined. It’s the realization that at any second the world as I know it will detonate, and I’ll fall into chaos, surrounded by pandemonium and hellfire. It’s wondering what it’ll be like to survive the experience with a man like him by my side.