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Ellie swallowed hard, her heart pounded, her breathing was uneven. His scent, that maddening mix of cologne and Sawyer’s body, clouded her thoughts. She wanted nothing more than to close the distance between them and kiss him, to feel his lips and pin him underneath herself.
"Sawyer…" Her voice was shaky, almost needy, but before she could finish, the sound of footsteps outside the door shattered the moment.
In a flash of instinct, she kicked Sawyer’s stomach, sending him stumbling back and off the bed. She flipped her head to the side, desperate to hide her burning face.
Sawyer scowled and blinked, ragged breaths escaping his lips. He barely felt the kick, but the shock of it left him reeling.
"Just get out and bring me food!" Ellie ordered, her voice unusually high-pitched.
Right then, Jessica walked in. Hearing Ellie’s tone, she raised an eyebrow.
"Ellie, don’t do that. Don’t order him around like that." Jessica scolded lightly.
Ellie glanced at Sawyer, who was standing frozen, eyes burning dark with desire. The expression on his face—obsessed and intense—was hard to miss. Jessica’s arrival had ruined whatever plans he had in mind. He was clearly dying inside, but Ellie was enjoying the chaos.
Ellie bit her lip, tucking her hair behind her ear. "It’s okay," she said with an exaggerated sigh. "You don’t have to bring me lunch. Just get out of my room."
In an instant, Sawyer was by her side again, his puppy eyes back, grabbing her hand.
"Don’t say that." He turned to Jessica quickly, "She’s not ordering me around, Mrs. Whitlock. Don’t say anything to her."
Then he looked back at Ellie, sincerity shining in his eyes. "I already told Henry to drop off your lunch. I’ll go grab it for you right now."
Ellie nodded, watching as he shot to his feet and practically sprinted out of the room, a little too eager to please her.
"Heh," Ellie grinned smugly, settling back on the bed.
Her hand instinctively reached up to touch the mark on her neck, brushing over the bite mark lightly. She winced slightly but smirked. She would get more neck kisses from him soon enough. But the chance to order around Sawyer Stark, the narcissistic tyrant, like her servant was too rare to pass up right now.
"Ellie, have you had enough now?" Jessica scolded with a laugh, a smile playing on her face. "Stop tormenting that poor man, it’s been a week already."
Ellie propped herself up on the bed and grinned at Jessica. "I will soon. But first, he needs to learn who his boss is."
Jessica sighed, shaking her head. "Sawyer’s been running around for you for seven days. He wakes up with you, goes to sleep with you. He’s living here more than we are, just so he can take care of you. He’s miserable at the thought of Jeremy coming in and taking you away."
Ellie burst out laughing.
"Ellie!" Jessica scolded. "You have to tell him now that you've been pretending to forget him. He's half out of his mind, freaking out, doing everything he can to make you remember him. And you won’t stop ordering him around! That’s not a good thing!"
"Ellie Whitlock!" The voice came from the doorway, making Ellie snap her eyes up in shock to see Sawyer at the door, seething.
He rushed in at once, grabbing Ellie and pulling her into him. "I knew you were lying!"
Ellie let out a laugh, pushing at his chest, but his hold was tight. "Sawyer, let go!" she chuckled, though there was a nervous edge to her voice.
Jessica tried to intervene. "You kids need to talk! Why are you wrestling with each other?"
Sawyer ignored her entirely, his focus solely on Ellie. He spun her around to face him, gripping her wrist tightly behind her back as she knelt on the bed. "You’re really starting to get on my nerves," he growled. "Seven damn days? Should I make you pay for it now?"
Ellie giggled. "No, you don't have a right. What are you going to do anyway? Stare at me and cry? Like when you used to when we were kids, and I refused to hold your hand?"
Jessica suppressed an amused smile before slipping quietly out of the room, leaving the two of them alone.
Sawyer’s expression darkened, the memory of their childhood flashing in his eyes. His grip on her tightened as he lowered his head, closing the distance between them. His heated gaze locked onto hers. Ellie’s smile faded, her heart skipping a beat.
“We aren’t kids anymore, Ellie,” he said, his voice rough, and dark with intent. “I have a lot more ways to make you cry underneath me.”
Ellie’s breath hitched, her pulse quickening. His words sent a shiver down her spine, but she forced herself to hold it together. Then, as his fingers grazed her stomach and slid up toward her chest, she snapped, but the voice came out all shaky.