Page 23 of Hateful Prince
See? Clever.
Kai was next, making a point of grabbing Dahlia by the back of her neck and spinning her around for a kiss before he exited the room. She was still swooning when a scowling Tor removed any hint of Kai’s kiss with a lingering one of his own.
I rolled my eyes and cleared my throat when hands started wandering. “Still here, fucker.”
By the time he released her, she was panting. Her lips were swollen and pink, eyes glazed.
“It’s fucking weird having you all in my room like this. Taking turns and passing me around like a bottle of beer on the wall.”
“You say weird, I say enticing,” I murmured. “I’ve read your book. Chapter seventeen starts very much like this.”
She laughed softly. “I’m pretty sure they were coming, not going.”
I wasn’t going to touch that one with a ten-foot pole. Not when I was actively playing the role of her respectful hero.
“Come on, big guy, let's leave our darling to write her cliterature.”
Tor grumbled, his disappointment etched into every line of his body. Furrowed brow down to slumped shoulders and stomping steps. If you ever wanted to see a grown man throwing a silent temper tantrum, Tor was your guy.
But he did as she bade, and I? Well, I lingered until the very last, needing to keep her in my sights as long as possible. I finally headed for the door as she pulled out her chair and opened her laptop.
“Not you, pirate. I need to talk to you.”
Ding dong. Had my plan worked even better than I expected?
“Yes, love?” It was all knight in shining armor instead of my usual ruinous rake. Hey, I had a part to play, and I was committed to my character.
“I had a couple of questions for you about the night of your attack.”
A chill raced down my spine, and those bloody whispers echoed in my memory. I hated the whispers.
“Go on,” I said, as cavalier as possible while on the inside, I was a knotted mess of unease.
“Did you see his face?”
“No. He was wearing a mask. A plague mask.”
“And you’re sure it was a man?”
“Of that, I have no doubt. He was too strong, his voice clearly male although modified by some sort of device.”
She nodded, jotting down notes as I spoke. “You mentioned he’d gone underground. Do you remember specifically whereabouts that was?”
My mind became a mess of images, all jumbling together, visions of the forest superimposed with endless stretches of blue sea. “No.”
“How did you escape?”
I swallowed. “I didn’t. He left me there because of you.”
“Me?”
“Yes, love. Did you think I was just roaming the woods for fun?”
She set her pen down. “I don’t understand why I, of all people, would have scared the Ripper off.”
“It wasn’t you specifically, so much as the idea of him being caught. The three of you were quite loud. It’s easy to mistake roars of passion for those of an enraged predator on the prowl.”
She blushed. “So he just chased you through the woods, pushed you up against a tree so he could take care of business, and then vanished into the night.”