Chapter 5 Sable
SABLE
Lying in bed, I stare up at the ceiling—slightly more familiar now but still foreign.
I can’t believe what he did to me.
I woke up countless times through the night, hot, sweaty, and tingling as images of him holding me down ran through my mind.
My neck is red from where he sucked me, and the hot sensation between my thighs hasn’t gone anywhere. In fact, it’s tugging at me…like a taunt he left me with.
He teased me. Deliberately. Brought me right up to the edge of release and then yanked me back, purposely denying me.
“Son of a bitch…” I mutter.
I was going to march straight down to Dominic’s office and spill the beans—tell him and my mother—but I decided not to.
What am I? A young girl who can’t fight her own battles?
No, I’ve already let him feel my fists and my heels. And there’s plenty more where that came from.
I slide out of bed and into new black Dior dress with matching Louboutin heels. It’s cute but not overly sexy. I don’t need Ryker thinking I’m trying to seduce him or something.
It takes me a good five minutes to cover up the mark he left on me too. Don’t want Mom asking any questions. She and Dominic would lose their minds if they found out what happened yesterday.
When I get downstairs, I find the family already in the dining room eating. Dominic sits at the head of the table, with my mom by his side and Ryker across from her.
“Oh, there you are, honey.” Mom smiles as I take my seat by her. “We started without you.”
“No problem,” I reply, my eyes on Ryker. I can see him searching my neck for his mark.
Sorry, pal. Not there.
His lips twist in frustration, and I watch the muscles of his forearms flex as he takes his fork and knife and cuts a slice of Canadian bacon.
Unlike me, Ryker is dressed informally today in a pair of gray sweat pants and a white tank-top that hugs his muscles like a second skin.
The hot sensation between my thighs blooms, and I quickly avert my eyes.
One of the house staff emerges from a door and sets a plate in front of me: scrambled eggs, Canadian bacon, and avocado toast.
“Thank you,” I tell him. He merely bows and leaves the way he came.
“Wow, polite to the staff,” Ryker remarks. I hear the sarcasm in his voice and ignore him, reaching for the orange juice.
“You have a lovely home, Dominic,” I say to his father as I take a bite of my eggs. “And apparently a wonderful chef.”
Dominic actually looks pleased and nods happily. “Former Michelin Star chef. Expensive.”
Ryker’s gaze burns into my skin, but I refuse to even give him a glance—not even out of the corner of my eye.
A single soft growl from his direction almost causes me to smile.
But I hold back.
“You going to a cocktail party or something?” Ryker asks. “Quite a fancy dress to wear around the house.”
“I’ll decide what I wear, thank you very much,” I reply, still not looking at him.
My mom glances at Dominic like, “What the hell is going on?” but he just shrugs, clearly not interested in our drama.
Despite the breakfast, I can smell Ryker from here. His scent rides the air straight into my nostrils, causing a flare inside of me, sparking feelings from when he had me pinned beneath him on his bed.
I’m blushing so hard it hurts as I quickly stand up and walk away from the table.
“Where are you going, honey?” Mom asks. “You haven’t finished your breakfast.”
“Yeah, Sable,” Ryker laughs. “Come finish your food.”
I ignore them both and step out into the hall where I find Ryker’s buddy, Kane, sitting on a bench by the front door.
“No offense, but you don’t look happy.”
“You calling me ugly?” I snap. His eyes narrow as he tries to decipher if I’m fucking with him or not.
“Whoa, I would never call you ugly—”
“Hey!” Ryker’s voice from behind me nearly causes me to jump. I hear his footsteps but refuse to turn. He strides right past me and leans down to get in Kane’s face. “What’d I tell you? Huh?”
Kane raises his hands like Ryker has a gun on him. “Relax, man. I was just trying to be friendly…”
Pulling a cigar from his pocket, Ryker snips the tip and lights it.
He looks back at me, but I turn away. I’m absolutely boiling inside. I’ve already got his mark on my neck that he’s forced me to cover, and now he’s marking his territory to other men?
Who does he think he is?
Moving quickly, Ryker strides past me toward the east wing. Kane raises his eyebrows at me as I follow, my heels echoing across the marble floor.
“Hey,” I call after him, but he doesn’t stop moving. “Hey!”
Without hesitation, I slam my body into him and drive him up against the wall, just like he did to me.
His lips twist into a cruel smile around his cigar, which I slap from his mouth.
“That was expensive, you know—”
“What you did to me,” I hiss, getting right up in his face, “was unacceptable and will never happen again!”
Ryker nods, a look of amusement on his face, almost the way a father looks at his young daughter when she’s acting out. He shrugs. “Sure. Whatever you say.”
His words streak through me like a poison, causing the already flaming hot anger in me to swell like a typhoon.
“Listen, dickhead, touch me again and you’ll see what I’m really made of!”
My teeth are clenched and my cheeks are burning as I stare him down. My hands are on his shoulders—solid slabs of muscle against my palms.
His scent is more powerful this close, and I start breathing from my mouth to avoid it.
“What’s going on here?” Dominic’s voice rings out from the foyer.
Shit, I curse, pulling away quickly. I glance his way and see Mom standing beside him, frowning at the two of us.
“What did we say?” she asks. “Do we need to hire someone to police you guys’ activities?”
“No, Mom,” I reply, turning away.
I walk to the door, grabbing my purse from the hook. I need to get out of here—go for a drive or something so I can get my head right.
But even as I step outside, I know his eyes are on me…
…watching, checking out every one of my curves.
My heart skips a beat, and I instantly curse myself out.
No, this can’t happen. Not again. Not with him.
He may have taken the upper hand, but he didn’t break me. He may think he’s tamed me, but this is far from over. I don’t submit.
And he’s going to learn that one way or another.