“What do I do, Pika?” I whispered, towelling myself off and picking up the brush to run through my wet hair. The little bird chirped and flew to sit on the vanity tap, slipping on the chrome. “Pet. Pet, Pika!”
I tried to smile, yet another catastrophe hit me.
Sully was heartless and haughty and held the view that all humans were as disposable as any other living, breathing creature. That man I found terrifying. A man with such black and white ideals that there wasn’t a single shade of grey in his entire soul.
But the man who’d stood before me when I’d come up for air in my bath, the man nuzzling into a tiny parrot and smiling such a soft, sincere smile…he made my heart pound for entirely new reasons.
Unsafe and unhealthy reasons because it made me thaw toward him just a tiny bit. To know he had a heart, after all.
“Jinx!” His snarl shot through the glass.
I dropped the brush, letting it clatter to the vanity. The noise made Pika squawk and launch into the sky, circling my head indignantly.
For a second, I allowed a glance at my reflection in the mirror. I’d avoided looking at myself much since I’d arrived. I didn’t want to see the girl I knew, trapped and alone, homesick and afraid. I didn’t want to see the pain in my eyes or the helplessness.
Balling my hands, I caught my gaze.
And once again, my heart scrambled to find a lifesaving beat.
Who was that girl?
Who is this total stranger?
As I touched my cheek with a trembling hand, my reflection mimicked me, but I didn’t recognise the woman staring back. Her skin glowed a golden hue instead of the permanent snow of white heritage. Her hair seemed longer, darker, coils and ropes protecting her back and shoulders. Her breasts seemed bigger, her limbs leaner, her stance like a warrior ready to battle.
But it was my eyes and mouth that betrayed me the most.
My eyes were wild but also surprising clear. Two grey crystal orbs full of bad omens and concerning premonitions. And my lips looked exactly what a vixen who served men would look like. Bright red, plump and bitten, thoroughly well used by a man who hadn’t been given permission.
I’d never been a superstitious girl. I’d always accepted facts and made conclusions based on reality, but standing there, with a parrot landing on my shoulder and a body I no longer recognised, I felt like a seer suffering some awful clairvoyance.
Sully Sinclair will change my life. My world. Me.
In so many more ways than I feared.
With a gulp and a shudder, I broke the trance between me and the mirror, squared my shoulders, and strode toward the door.
Chapter Thirty
THE DOOR OPENED.
A naked goddess stepped from the humid bathroom with her neck arched, her body braced, and a flitting little parrot flying beside her.
I had more than a visceral reaction.
I had a full anatomy incineration.
I didn’t know this girl.
We’d barely spoken.
Hardly touched.
Yet…fuck me.
She was different.
Different to anyone I’d ever met.
Only she made me act like a monster and a moron all at once. Only she made my pulse pound and sweat soak under my suit. Only she made me fucking rage at the weakness and sexual starvation she caused.
Why?
What made her special?
And most importantly…how did I fucking stop it?
I couldn’t speak as she padded toward me. Her jaw clenched and damp hair still releasing glistening droplets on the tips, allowing moisture to temptingly roll down her flawless skin.
Snapping my fingers, I backed away, guiding her toward the centre of the room.
Tearing her gaze from mine, she allowed curiosity to win, scanning the space, faster and faster as she noticed the pulleys and wires, the netting and strange contraptions.
To her credit, she didn’t try to hide her nakedness. She owned her flesh. She moved as if she wore a gown made of impenetrable silk.
Pika, the little traitor, remained by her side as she drank in the odd facilities. His little wings tucked up tight as he landed and stole the crook of her shoulder and neck as his new home.
It did things to me…seeing an animal I’d raised, loved, and told my every secret to glare at me from the care of another. It made me jealous that he’d accepted her when he was fussy on which people he liked. It pissed me off that he wasn’t as loyal as I believed.
And it made me angry…because what the fuck was I doing? What the fuck was I feeling? How the fuck did I stop?
“What is this place?” Her voice never rose above a whisper.
I swallowed the growl permanently living in my chest around her. “This is Euphoria.”
She looked at me, causing my cock to throb and heart to stop. “I don’t understand.”
Raising her hand, she waved at the equipment that looked better suited for a Cirque du Soleil troop rather than a sex destination. “Why do you have aerial harnesses? Wires? Pulleys?”