Page 38 of Alluring Darkness
For almost an entire minute, I just sit there, staring at the clock in complete and utter disbelief.
I’ve slept for almost ten hours.
Ten hours.
Ten hoursof deep and restful sleep.
Incredulity clangs through my skull. I can’t even remember the last time I slept like this.
Turning slowly, I stare down at the woman lying next to me in my bed.
Raina is still sleeping, her chest rising and falling with deep breaths.
My mind spins.
Was this her doing?
Is she somehow the reason why I have been able to sleep properly for the first time in nine years?
Panic shoots through my spine. She can’t be. I can’t let someone have that kind of power over me. After what happened back then, back when I was thirteen, I swore that I would never let anyone have any kind of power over me again. If Raina somehow figures out that this night with her was the only time I’ve really slept in nine years…
Cold sweat breaks out across my scarred skin at just the thought of it.
Shaking my head, I scramble out of bed.
The mattress bounces due to my movements, which at last wakes Raina. Keeping my back to her, I put on some clothes while I work to put my calm composure back together.
“You still haven’t untied me?” she says, her tone half question, half accusation.
“You still haven’t groveled.”
“Which I will never do. And if you keep me tied to your bed indefinitely, I will die.”
“That sounds more like a you problem.”
“Ah, you’d think so. But if I die, who will you torment then?”
A soft laugh escapes my throat. Pulling the final piece of clothing on, I turn back to face Raina. She has raised her head and is arching an expectant eyebrow at me.
The sight of her tied to my bed like that just makes me want to fuck her hard enough to wipe that stubborn expression off her face. But once again, I can’t let her know how much she affects me, so I click my tongue casually and instead reply, “Fair point.”
I move over to the bed and deftly undo the knots.
The moment she’s free, she darts off the bed, as if she’s worried that I might change my mind. After brushing her hands down her clothes to straighten them, she rubs her wrists. I rake my gaze over her.
There are imprints on her skin where the ropes have been, her clothes are rumpled, and her hair is a mess. A wicked grin slides home on my lips. She really looks freshly fucked.
“Coming?” I say.
Without waiting for a reply, I open the door and walk out into the corridor beyond. For a few seconds, all I can hear is the sound of my brothers talking in the kitchen downstairs. Then Raina’s footsteps come from behind me.
We descend the dark wooden staircase in silence. It takes us to the wide hallway that connects the kitchen, living room, study, and the other couple of rooms on the bottom floor.
When we’re halfway down, my brothers stop talking and instead move to the hallway so that they’re standing there when we get down.
Kaden flashes me a knowing smile. “Did you have fun?”
“I did.” I match his grin and incline my head as I sweep my gaze over all three of them. “Thanks for the gift, guys.”