Page 51 of Ruthless Salvation
“I’m going to head out,” I said, draping my yoga bag over my shoulder.
“Where do you think you are going?”
The words doused me in icy water. We’d both been in the kitchen carrying about our morning routines in our normal fashion. I had my yoga gear on and had told him the night before that I planned to go to class, so I wasn’t sure why he was asking except to insinuate that I wasn’t allowed.
Had I already done something to upset him?
Adrenaline spiked my heart rate to a frenzied pace.
“I’m going to yoga. I thought I mentioned it last night.” I used every ounce of acting skills I had to sound blithefully unaware. Each muscle was loose with forced calm, my posture the epitome of unbothered.
Damyon came around the kitchen island, slowly stalking toward me. He was dressed for the day in a white button-down and black suit pants, his hair still damp from a shower. Even knowing what I did about the man, he was still breathtakingly beautiful. But now I saw that beauty for what it was—the cobra’s way of mesmerizing its victim before it kills.
I flirtatiously peered up at him through my lashes, hoping to implement my own brand of enchantment. Sometimes he called me to him just for a kiss or a touch. He liked to know I was always within reach. I was silently praying this was one of those times.
He approached, towering over me, and lowered his lips to my ear. “Surely, you were not going to leave without this.” He nipped my earlobe playfully, then displayed my phone in his palm. I’d left it on the counter while I was getting ready.
“Oops!” I grinned, taking the phone from him. “What would I do without you?” I raised up and kissed his cheek. “I better get going, or I’m going to be late. I’ll see you after work.” I flashed one last smile and turned toward to collect my driver when my bag snagged on something and stopped my progress.
Damyon stood with his finger hooked on the strap. His piercing eyes studied me.
“Your heart. It is racing.” He tugged me closer, tracing his fingers over the pulse point at the base of my neck.
If it wasn’t before, it certainly was now.
“You startled me before. I thought you were upset that I was going to class.” True enough, and all too reasonable considering his hair-trigger temper. Wouldn’t it be expected for a woman to get nervous around a man whobeatsher?
Unfortunately, logic wasn’t part of the equation where Damyon and I were concerned.
He took the bag from me and began to extract its contents. A small towel for sweat. A water bottle. My wallet. A plastic bag of granola. A small bag of toiletries, including a travel-sized brush, a toothbrush, an emergency tampon, lip gloss, and a small bottle of painkillers. Damyon took the toothbrush from the zippered pouch and stared at it.
“Why would you possibly need a toothbrush at your yoga class?” The suspicion in his stare stripped me bare until I felt like a helpless child.
“It’s just an emergency bag—like if I realized my breath was bad or something,” I stammered, desperation taking over.
“Who do you think will be smelling your breath? Huh?”
The acrid taste of panic coated my tongue. “I don’t know. I’ve always taken those things with me to the gym. Why are you questioning me about this?”
His glare turned cunning. “Do not try to make this about me. If I could trust you, I would not have to question such things.”
“Youcantrust me.”
“Then why the fuck are you taking a toothbrush to yoga?” he roared. “Is this some fancy new tongue yoga where you suck your instructor’s dick? You think you can make a fool of me in front of the world?”
The trigger on his temper snapped, and once he’d crossed that line, there would be no going back. Not until the storm had run its course.
He grabbed my arm and shoved me toward the kitchen.
“Please, Damyon, don’t do this.Please, no.” I could try to tell him he was wrong or attempt to explain, but it would only make things worse. The one thing I knew to do was beg. For my life. For his forgiveness. For the end to be quick. Without the option of reason, the only other thing to do would be … to fight back.
I hadn’t considered it an option because my chances seemed so minuscule. He was so much stronger than me. But what if I didn’t survive this fight to try another escape?
Instinct took over when I realized this might be my final moments. I didn’t have to decide whether to fight; my body demanded it.
I stumbled around to the other side of the island so he couldn’t reach me. “Please, Damyon. I love you. I promised myself to you. I wouldnevercheat.”
“You cannot lie to me. I saw the way your heart raced on your way to the door. You could not wait to get your lips around another man’s cock.” He sneered as he prowled closer.