Ryker's body cages me in, pressing me against the silk sheets, his scent thick in my nostrils, dark spice and danger. His hands roam over me, slow but possessive, like he's mapping every inch of my body, claiming it.

Heat coils deep in my stomach, a pulse of something dark and dangerous thrumming through my veins. I hate this. I hate him.

But when his fingers drag lower, grazing the sensitive skin just above my hips, my breath stutters. My body betrays me.

His lips graze my jaw, his breath hot against my skin. "You're so warm, little hellfire," he murmurs, voice rough with hunger. "Do you know what that does to me?"

I bite my lip, fighting the response threatening to escape. But my body is already answering him, my thighs tense, my pulse erratic, heat pooling between my legs.

He notices.

Of course, he does.

His smirk is wicked against my neck as he trails his mouth lower, his sharp teeth grazing my collarbone. A soft gasp slips from me before I can stop it, and Ryker's grip tightens.

"Your body knows who it belongs to," he rasps, his palm sliding up to cup my breast. His thumb flicks over my nipple, teasing, coaxing a reaction.

I arch before I can stop myself, pressing further into his touch.

A low growl vibrates through him, his other hand sliding between my thighs, pressing them apart.

I freeze, my breath catching. "Ryker...."

"Shh." His lips press against my ear, his voice a dark whisper. "Let me hear you."

I shake my head, trying to resist, but his fingers trace slow circles over my clit, teasing. My body is betraying me in the worst way-heat, need, an ache I don't want but can't ignore.

His touch moves higher, his fingers brushing against my core through the thin fabric of my underwear. My hips jerk at the contact, a choked sound escaping me.

"Fuck," he breathes, his voice strained, dangerous. "You're already wet for me."

Shame burns through me, but it's drowned out by the pleasure coiling in my stomach, winding tight, threatening to snap.

I clench my teeth, twisting beneath him, trying to break free, but he only tightens his grip, his fingers pressing more firmly against my throbbing center.

"You can fight me all you want, Serena," he murmurs, pressing a slow, lingering kiss just below my ear. "But your body is honest."

I shake my head, gasping as he applies more pressure, teasing me, pushing me closer to the edge.

This isn't happening.

I can't let this happen.

Gathering every ounce of strength, I shove against his chest. He doesn't move. Instead, he grabs my wrists and pins them above my head in one swift motion.

A dark chuckle rumbles from his chest. "So weak against me, little hellfire."

My breath is ragged, my body trembling beneath him. "Let me go," I grit out.

His lips brush against my ear, his voice dripping with dark amusement. "Say it like you mean it, and maybe I will."

I open my mouth, to curse him, to spit venom-but the words never come.

Because his free hand slides beneath my underwear, his fingers brushing over my slick heat.

I suck in a sharp breath, my body betraying me again, hips instinctively tilting toward his touch.

He groans, low and primal. "So fucking responsive."

I bite down on my lip, trying to suppress the whimper threatening to escape.

But he feels it. The way I tremble. The way my thighs part just a little more, as if begging for his touch.

"Still fighting?" he taunts, his fingers tracing slow, teasing strokes over my sensitive flesh.

"Or are you finally ready to admit the truth?"

I shake my head wildly, refusing to give him what he wants.

But then, the door suddenly bursts open.

Ryker curses, his body going rigid, his head snapping toward the doorway.

The sudden loss of his warmth is like being yanked from a fever dream, and my dazed mind barely registers the man standing there.

But when I do, my breath catches.

He looks like Ryker.

The same dark hair, the same sharp, striking body-but where Ryker is all lethal intensity, this man's smirk holds something almost playful, something wicked. His blue eyes flick between us, amusement dancing in there.

"Well, well," he drawls, lips curling. "Did I interrupt something?"

My face burns.

I scramble up, wrenching myself free from Ryker's grip. I should be running out the door, but my body is still trembling, still traitorously aware of the man I just escaped from.

"What the fuck do you want, Alec?" Ryker growls low in his throat.

Alec.

His brother?

I know it instantly. The resemblance is too strong, the arrogance too familiar.

I take my chance, darting toward the exit. But before I can slip past them, Alec's voice stops me.

"Who is she?"

I freeze.

I shouldn't care what Ryker says. I shouldn't care if he calls me his prisoner, his plaything, or nothing at all.

But something inside me resists leaving.

"No one." Ryker exhales sharply.

The word slams into me harder than it should.

No one?!

Of course.

I swallow hard, my throat tight, and storm out of the room, ignoring the way Alec chuckles behind me.

I don't need to hear more.

I don't need to stay in that suffocating space where Ryker's scent still lingers, wrapping around me, like a poison.

I slam my door shut and head straight for the bathroom, twisting the faucet on as hot as it will go.

Steam fills everywhere, curling around me as I step under the punishing spray.

I scrub at my skin. Hard. Harder.

But no matter how much I try, I can still feel his hands on me. I can still hear his voice in my head.

"You're mine."

I squeeze my eyes shut, pressing my forehead against the cold tile.

Why?

Why is this happening?

Why can't I stop feeling him?

The way his touch burned, the way his voice wrapped around me like a dark promise-I should be repulsed. I should be plotting my escape.

But instead, I'm trembling.

And the worst part?

I don't know how to stop it.

Chapter 8 A fire she cant extinguish

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