A man who had all the keys.
To everything.
My happiness.
My health.
My hope.
Dammit.
The floppy cream hat I wore blocked one eye as I stood and padded my way from the deck and across the pristine floor of my villa, leaving breadcrumbs of golden sand behind.
My heart skittered from its normal rhythm, worrying that my visitor wouldn’t be the friendly girl who brought my breakfast this morning. I’d yet to ring for lunch. I’d cocooned myself in an oasis of loneliness and had no desire for an interruption.
Of course, I knew who it was before I opened the door.
Bracing myself for the inevitable buffeting of awareness, hate, and heat, I wrenched open the thick barricade and came face to face with my nemesis. “You.”
He jolted, his gaze instantly devouring my body.
My nipples pebbled despite myself. My stomach melted against my control.
I should’ve changed.
Despite the tropical temperatures, I should wear jackets and sacks to hide myself as much as possible. I didn’t want him looking at me. I didn’t want him anywhere near me.
Ignoring the need to cross my arms and hide my figure, I snapped, “Leave me the hell alone.”
His eyes found mine again. A lazy smirk twitched his lips rather than the fiery snarls from last night. For a moment, we locked in another battle of piercing proximity. The hair on my nape stood up. Whenever we were together, the island seemed hotter and cooler all at once. My body became overly sensitive and totally troublesome with its responses.
I blamed the first morning and the memory of elixir.
I blamed him for all of it.
With a noble incline of his head, he bowed graciously. “Good afternoon…Jinx.”
His suit of choice today was light grey with the finest chalk pinstripes. His tie was silver. His shirt white. His shoes as polished and as perfect as any CEO who worked in a city rather than one who ruled over an atoll.
I hated that he once again managed to steal what little air I had left. I loathed that despite my rancour—that only increased the longer we interacted—I found him indescribably attractive.
Once again, his perfectionism made me detest him all the more. “It was good until you appeared on my doorstep.”
His eyes flashed, but he swallowed back his temper. “You and I…we need to get something straight.” He cricked his neck as if I’d interrupted his script on how this meeting would go. Whatever cordial response he might’ve delivered died beneath a whip of anger. “I dislike you as much as you dislike me.” I froze as he planted his hand above my head on the door frame. “Actually, dislike is too gentle a word. I’d say what I feel for you is more like—”
“Disgust.”
He clucked his tongue in reprimand. His gaze snagged mine, blazing blue. “If I disgusted you, I wouldn’t be able to make you wet.”
I sucked in a breath. “We discussed that. Don’t mistake biology for—”
“I made you wet because there’s something going on between us. Just like you make me hard because, for some reason, I have a morbid fascination with fucking you.”
I struggled to stay standing and not punch him or run into the sea. “There’s nothing going on between us.”
He signed condescendingly. “Such a little liar.” His hand slipped from the doorframe and traced gently down my arm.
Instantly, goosebumps sprang, shivers attacked, dampness gathered.
No.
Just no.
I was mortified.
I was horrified.
I hated myself…not just him.
Removing his touch, he raked his hand through his hair and leaned back, giving me space to breathe and room to drown in despair.
“Something is going on between us, and neither of us are interested in the mess it’s causing.” He swallowed hard. “Contrary to what it seems, I despise arguments. I much prefer smooth waters, Eleanor Grace, and I’m willing to make a compromise to ensure our co-inhabitation doesn’t end with one of us killing the other.”
I blinked. “Excuse me?”
His jaw clenched as if battling against his next phrase, but he pushed on anyway. “I’m…sorry for giving you the elixir without a proper welcome on my island. It was reckless and has blurred lines that I won’t fucking cross.”
I would’ve choked if I had any saliva in my mouth.
Did he…did he just apologise?
“You are here to work for me. I won’t jeopardise the value you’ll bring to my business by…making you unhappy. These fights have to stop. This lust has to end.”
I hugged myself, unable to stop the need to curl close and protect. “And how do you propose we do that? Are you going to let me go?”
He shook his head, his canines flashing as he smiled. “No, I am not going to let you go.”
“Then…what are you saying?”
“I’m saying, I will no longer torment you, and you will no longer be given liberties to talk back to me. I am your owner. You are my belonging. I will treat you with civility and respect as long as you obey without question.” His voice lowered. “Believe me…this proposition is much better for you, Jinx. I suggest you stop pissing me off, stop antagonising me, stop making me so fucking hungry, and we can return to a simpler relationship.”