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“Come here, Tessalyn,” he growled again, his eyes darkening at her defiance.

She rolled her eyes and moved towards him. As soon as she was within reach, Theon snatched her off her feet and lifted her onto the island dresser. She gasped at the unexpected movement. His hands lingered on her hips before he slid them down the outside of her thighs, her calves, all the way to her feet. He unbuckled her heels, sliding them off. When both of her shoes were removed, he braced his hands on either side of her, caging her within his muscular frame.

“I need you to accept this Source bond, Tessa,” he said, his voice low and heated.

“I don’t care what you need, Theon,” she replied, steeling herself to face his fury at her words.

To her surprise though, he didn’t immediately snap back at her. He leaned forward, bringing his nose to the crook of her neck and inhaling deeply. “I want to hunt down Pavil and Metias and peel the flesh from their bones, then make them eat every piece of it,” he murmured against her skin. “Then I want to break each bone in their body in multiple places before taking them up the mountain and leaving them there for the beasts of the woods to pick off piece by piece.” Tessa sucked in a breath at the violence he was describing. “No one touches what is mine,” he snarled, his lips brushing her throat as he spoke. “I said I would take care of you, Tessa, and I know what you need. You need to accept this bond.”

“You don’t know anything about what I need,” she breathed, her heart pounding out a weird rhythm at his closeness.

“No?” he questioned, pulling back and bringing a hand to cup her cheek. “Then enlighten me, little storm. What do you need?”

“I need to go home.” It was the first thing that came to mind, and she didn’t give herself a chance to hesitate when saying it.

“You are home,” he answered, that dangerous note sounding in his voice once more.

“This isn’t my home. My home is with Dex and Oralia and—”

“I do not know how to make this any clearer to you, Tessa. You were going to be separated from them eventually,” Theon interrupted, his hand falling from her face. “Do you know what it means when I signed those documents assuming complete dominion?”

“I know what you think it means—”

“Complete possession and retention. They are no longer yours, and you are no longer theirs. You are certainly no longer his.”

“What the fuck does that mean?” Tessa demanded.

Theon huffed a humorless laugh. “I saw you wrapped up in that Fae’s arms at the Opening Selection Ceremony. I can only assume that was this Dex you refer to so often. If you are expecting me to apologize for not giving you a chance to say goodbye to your lover, you are not going to get it. You are mine, Tessa.”

“He is not my lover, you arrogant son of a bitch,” Tessa snapped, and Theon’s brows shot up at her words.

“Care to say that again?”

His voice was barely a whisper as he stared her down, and Tessa didn’t give a shit anymore. This day had been pure and utter torment. She had been chased through the gardens, had barely escaped Pavil and Metias getting a hold of her, had dealt with Theon’s on-and-off again moods this evening, and had been used in a power play against his father.

“Which part?” she purred back, bringing her face right up to his. “The part about Dex not being my lover or calling you a son of a bitch? Because both are true, and I will gladly say them both again.”

Theon’s hand shot out, gripping her by the throat, and he was pushing her down onto her back. Her hands flew to his wrist, wrapping around it and trying to pull his hand away, but it was no use. She would never be any match for his strength.

“Theon,” she gasped, squirming to try to get away from him, but he held her firmly in place with that one hand.

He smirked down at her as she struggled, his dark magic coiling like snakes around his forearm. “Tell me this, Tessalyn: Did your precious Dex ever touch you?” His hand wasn’t tight enough to cut off air, but he made it clear she would not be moving until he allowed it. His eyes slowly raked over her, and his other hand came up, his fingers trailing along the flesh exposed by the slit of the dress.

“No,” she rasped, shaking her head in emphasis. “Never like that. He’s never been that.”

“So who has touched you?” he asked, his head tilting to the side as his gaze followed his fingers skating up her leg. More and more dark shadows were drifting around him, tendrils reaching for her, and she tried to flinch away from his power. “One of the other Fae with you that night?”

Tessa shook her head, but when she didn’t speak, his fingers flexed around her throat, air getting trapped. “No,” she gasped, and he immediately loosened his grip. “Fae have never touched me.”

Theon’s eyes snapped to hers. “You are untouched?” She shook her head again, and his eyes narrowed. “A Legacy touched you? Who?”

“No,” she rasped. His fingers had tightened again, and she wasn’t even sure he knew he was doing it. She dug her nails into his skin, trying to suck down air. “I’ve only ever been touched by mortals,” she managed to gasp out.

He couldn’t hide the shock at that admission, and his fingers slackened around her throat. “Why the fuck would you let mortals touch you?”

“Because I didn’t know where I was going to end up after the Selection, and I didn’t want to have an intimate relationship with someone when I would likely be separated from them. So we would sneak off the Estate on a regular basis, and I fucked around with mortals,” she snapped in reply. “No attachments made, and no feelings required.”

Theon stepped back from her, his hand dropping to his side. Tessa slowly pushed into a sitting position, her hand massaging her throat where he had gripped her.