Chapter Fourteen
Romy
T he last time I accepted a drink from Theo, I ended up in a nightmare. Now that I’m already in the nightmare, how much worse could it get?
“Why aren’t you dating anyone?” I blurt out before taking a swig of the alcohol.
We’ve been drinking ever since our delicious, shared dinner after Caius left. It’s only been a couple of hours since then, I think. But with liquor buzzing through my veins, details such as the passing of time are a bit murky. When my mind is sharp, I can put puzzles together at rapid speed. Inebriated, though, I have trouble getting hardly any pieces in place. Theo sucks even worse.
He holds up one of the colored pieces and squints at it. Then I watch with barely contained amusement as he attempts to force it to fit into another piece.
“Too busy,” he grumbles, abandoning his efforts to stare down at his work. “I don’t think those fit together.”
I let loose a giggle that makes him flash his boyish grin at me. Warmth surges through me, but I don’t berate myself for it. This is the most relaxed I’ve felt since I realized Megan was missing. It’s been nonstop stress ever since.
“Too busy? You have time to spend with me.” I gesture at the two of us and pass him the bottle. “It’s not like you can’t get a girl. You don’t have to drug them.”
He smirks. “Again with this drugging dream.”
“In my ‘dream,’” I say as I make exaggerated air quotes, “I thought you were hot. Just saying, you could have asked me out and I’d have said yes.”
The humor on his face fades. “Really?”
“You’re actually more my type than my ‘boyfriend.’”
His gaze falls to my lips. I lick them because they’re probably dry and gross-looking. This action causes him to jerk his eyes back to the puzzle.
“You shouldn’t be talking like that,” he grumbles. “It was just a dream.”
“All of this feels like a dream.” I wave a hand in the air and sigh. “I don’t know what’s real anymore.”
“This is real,” he says, voice husky. “ I’m real.”
My head is fuzzy and my heart races too fast. I know the point of getting him drunk was so I could pick apart his brain. But I don’t want to show my hand too quickly.
I flash him my flirtiest grin to see if I can even work this angle. When his eyes darken and he sets the liquor bottle on his crotch to hide his erection, I know I can definitely do this.
“I want another drink,” I say, reaching for his lap. “Please.”
He groans and practically shoves the bottle into my hand. To save him from embarrassment, I stretch out my leg and set my boot on his thigh.
“Can you untie it?”
His hair hides his eyes from me as he clumsily starts untying my boot. I don’t drink because I need to slow down. Instead, I pretend to take a long swallow and shudder at the imaginary burn.
“Take it off,” I murmur once he’s untied it.
The muscle in his jaw ticks. He really is a good-looking guy. Too bad he’s a monster just like the rest of them. What a waste of a pretty face.
“You’re demanding.” He glances my way before going back to pulling off my boot. “How does Caius put up with you?”
We both know this is his pathetic attempt to put space between us.
“He can barely stand me,” I say to him. “Maybe that’s why my brain is trying so hard to forget him.”
He tosses the boot and I wriggle my toes.
“I didn’t forget you , though.” My voice is barely a whisper. I set my other foot in his lap. “This one too.”
We’re quiet as he sets to removing that boot as well. Once he drops that boot to the floor, he doesn’t push my feet away and I don’t move them. I hand him the bottle back.
“I could set you up with my friend Megan,” I say as innocently as I can. “She’s sweet. Quiet but nice. Cute too. Plus, you’re way hotter than the barista guy she was crushing on.”
He drinks from the bottle and his gaze peruses up my jean-clad thighs before stopping at the swell of my breasts under my sweater. Then he gives his head a slight shake so as to chase away the thoughts plaguing him. “Yeah, sure.”
“I’d text her, but I can’t find my phone.” I nudge his hard stomach with my toes. “Can you look for it next time you’re…” I wave toward the lodge, knowing he understands where. “Plus, I need to check in with my brother.”
Theo straightens and grabs hold of my ankle like he might push my feet off him. He doesn’t. His thumb rubs under my foot, along the arch. It tickles and makes my skin warm. I don’t exactly hate his touch.
“I’ll look.” He gives me a lopsided grin. “What do I get in return?”
“What do you want?” I purr, poking out my bottom lip a bit. “I’d give anything for my phone.”
His eyes flare with heat and he stares at my mouth. I’ve seen this look in a man’s gaze before, right before he kisses the life out of me. Theo wants me. My plan is working.
“What would you give?” he asks, voice husky. “I already have everything a guy could want.”
I stretch my arms and arch my back, knowing my sweater will inch up my stomach. Once the skin is showing, I relax and then tease it with my fingertip. “My virginity.”
Theo gapes at me, blinking in shock. He takes his hand off my foot and fists it. His teeth grind noisily together. A ragged sigh escapes him and he tilts his head back to stare at the ceiling.
“This is fucking hard.”
“Your cock?” I ask in a sweet tone.
He groans as though in actual pain. “You have to stop, babe.”
Babe.
A thrill of victory shoots through me. I don’t want to have sex with him or anyone, but I can lead him on until I get what I want. This is a game I must play for Megan’s and my sake.
“Stop what?” I scrunch my eyebrows together. “Telling you the truth. We both know we’re a better match, Theo.”
I sit up and reach for his fisted hand. He peers down at my fingers as they pull back the long sleeve of his shirt. An angry red welt and scabbing is a painful reminder of what I did this morning. I lift his arm and kiss him where I left my mark. Soft, gentle, apologetic. When I glance at him, his eyes are nearly manic as he drinks me in.
“Don’t do this to me,” he begs in a soft, pleading tone. “I don’t have the control Caius does. I’m…impulsive.”
And that’s what I’m counting on.
“I know,” I whisper. “In my dream, you were impulsive too.”
His hand slides behind my neck and his fingers caress my scalp. I’m glad I’m tipsy because his touch scares me, but I’ve had enough alcohol to keep my nerves at bay.
“It should have been me instead of him,” he murmurs, a bite in his words. “You should have been mine.”
As he leans forward, like he might kiss me, I try not to recoil. I have to do this. I have to. My lips part as I wait for the next part of this game.
Boom!
A slamming door downstairs makes both me and Theo jump. He shoves me back onto the couch and rises unsteadily to his feet. The bulge in his pants is evidence of his attraction to me. His panicked eyes meet mine as he sets the bottle down on the table and I almost feel guilty.
Almost.
“This didn’t happen,” he hisses, glancing quickly toward the stairs and then back at me. “This can’t happen.”
I give him my poutiest frown. He groans again, scrubbing a palm over his face. Footsteps can be heard climbing the stairs. Theo tenses and clasps his hands in front of him to hide his arousal that’s still straining in his pants.
The temperature in the room drops several degrees despite the cozy fire and liquid heat in my veins. I don’t even have to look up to know who’s taking in the scene. His silence is more terrifying than if he were to come up here yelling.
Now I feel guilty.
Why?
He’s not really my boyfriend.
“Gotta go,” Theo blurts, stumbling past Caius. “See ya later.”
I meet Caius’s icy stare as Theo clomps down the stairs. Sitting upright, I pull my knees together and hug them.
“What?” I arch an eyebrow at him. “What’s wrong?”
The only telling cue that he’s angry is the narrowing of his eyes. I hate when he looks at me like this—like he can get right inside my head to discover my motives and secrets. Emboldened by the liquor, I glower back, imagining I have a scalpel, cutting into his mind and his mysteries.
“You seem pissed,” I blurt out, again trying to get him to speak. “Are you?”
“Nope.”
Liar.
“Well…” I give him an exasperated look. “What do you want from me?”
“I want you to be smarter than that, little girl. You’re not a whore. You’re my girlfriend.”
I flinch at his word choice. “I hate when you call me little girl . Do you get off on it? I’m a grown woman, not a child.”
“Grown women don’t try to fuck their boyfriend’s younger brother. Bratty little girls do.”
Hatred for this man boils deep inside of me. I jump to my feet and then nearly topple over the coffee table. If it weren’t for his quick reflexes, snagging my bicep, I’d have a few new bruises.
“Let go of me,” I snap, not bothering to be thankful for his save.
He releases me and steps out of the way. “Theo is like a cat. He brings in his prey to toy with. Eventually, though, he goes in for the kill. You’re revealing yourself to be a weak mouse, little girl.”
“I’m not weak.” I shoot him a withering glare. “I like to play games. Looks like I’ll fit right in around here.”
I try to walk straight, but my steps are wobbly. I’m sure I look every bit the small mouse, ready to get devoured by his brother. But I’m not. I won’t let these evil men win.
Before I reach the steps, an arm hooks around my middle. I let out a screech of surprise. Caius hoists me off the floor and manhandles me down the stairs, not letting me walk down them alone.
Since he’s stronger, I don’t fight him off, but I do curse like a sailor, all of which are aimed directly at him.
He carries me down the steps and then to his room. I tense in his hold, suddenly apprehensive about what comes next. Moments ago, I was considering if I could have sex with Theo to use him to get a ticket out of here. Now the idea of Caius raping me has terror clawing up inside me.
“No,” I croak out. “No, no, no, no.”
“Sorry. Unfamiliar with that word.”
I let loose a blood-curdling scream, twisting and turning, trying to get out of his grip. “Let me go, you monster!”
We enter his bedroom that smells like him, only stronger and more intense. I shriek when he tosses me onto the bed. When I start to crawl toward the other side of the bed, he grabs hold of my hips and drags me to him.
What have I done?
What’s happening?
Fat tears well in my eyes and roll down my flushed cheeks. I squeal when he flips me onto my back. With one hand on my stomach holding me down on the bed and his legs pressing into mine, Caius towers over me like some wicked overlord about to claim his unwilling bride.
I think I’m going to be sick.
“Time for bed, little girl. Night night.”
He shoves a pill down my throat like our last encounter in a bed together, and I gag around his fingers. And when my body eventually loses all will to fight, he finally pulls away.
My lids are heavy despite my desperation to keep my eyes open. The last thing I see is Caius unbuckling his belt.
Everything goes black.