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CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Ellery

Determined to break free of the ironclad hold, I swung my foot back, hoping to connect with whoever held me, but caught only air. My fingers dug into the hand covering my mouth, tearing at the flesh as muffled sounds of panic issued from me.

“Shh,” someone hissed in my ear. “It’s me.”

The sound of Ryker’s voice wasn’t a relief. I would have preferred to be trapped in this small space with someone who wished to kill me, instead of someone who could so easily devastate my heart.

At least I could fight off a killer. I couldn’t fight this man, his pull over me, or my love for him.

He kept breaking my heart, but I couldn’t stop myself from melting into his rigid chest and taking comfort in the security he offered. Having his arms around me was one of my greatest joys in life… it was also one of my biggest sorrows.

It took some time for my eyes to adjust to the gloom, as the only light source in the small space was the dim glow coming from the edges of the trapdoor. When I stopped sputtering against his palm, Ryker slid his hand away from my mouth, grasped my shoulders, and turned me to face him as he pushed me into the stone wall at the back of the pillar.

His massive size hovered over me as flashes of lightning flickered through irises that had turned pitch-black. I didn’t know what had him so riled that he’d lost control of his lightning-bearer ability, and I didn’t care.

He had no right to manhandle me, and he was taking a huge risk by doing so at this party with so many of our enemies present. If he was so desperate to talk to me, he could have done so yesterday morning instead of slipping away while I slept.

“What are you doing?” I hissed. “If your father saw this, he’d?—”

“Who the fuck is he?”

I was so caught off guard by his question and the vehemence behind it that my ire slipped away as I stood there, blinking in confusion. His face hovered inches above mine as lightning fired through his eyes.

One of his hands settled on the stone wall beside my head. The tensed muscles beside me vibrated as every part of him was poised for an attack… on me?

No, that wasn’t right. He was clearly enraged about something right now, but no matter what it was or how much I’d pissed him off in the past, he’d never physically harmed me, and he never would. If he didn’t kill me after I revealed I was the Hooded Robber, then he wouldn’t do so now over… what?

“Who is who?” I asked.

“That lute player. Who. Is. He?”

“Callan?”

“Is that his name?”

“If you’re talking about my friend?—”

“ Friend .”

He practically spat the word at me as he edged closer. When his chest pushed against mine, he was so rigid it felt like stone.

I’d seen him incensed before, but something was different about this. Before, he’d always maintained some control over himself.

I could feel that control unraveling. While trying to draw lightning past the rods covering the top of the castle, through the thick floor, or past the doors would be extremely difficult, Ryker might be able to do it.

And this was the worst place for him to snap… over what? I was so confused by all this and had no idea how to make him stop being deranged.

“Is that what you call him?” Ryker growled. “A friend ?”

I frowned as my confusion started giving way to anger. I had no idea why he was so mad, and if it was about Callan, then he had no right to be angry about me talking to my friend.

“Yes, that is what I call him. I’ve known Callan since I was a child . We went to school together and grew up together. So yes, he is my friend.”

“Is that why you let him touch you?”

“Let him… what ?”

Had Callan touched me? I couldn’t recall it happening, but it might have. What did it matter to him ? It’s not like he wanted me anymore.

Ryker pulled the hand beside my head away from the wall and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. When I flinched from him, he bared his teeth at me.

“So, he can touch you, but I can’t?”

“ No one is touching me. What is wrong with you? Callan is my friend.”

“He wants to be more.”

I folded my arms over my chest as I glowered at him. “So what if he does? You’ve made it repeatedly clear you can’t forgive me and don’t want me. Why do you care if someone else does?”

He lowered himself so his eyes were level with mine and only inches separated us. More lightning flashed through his black irises while sparks danced across his fingers.

I didn’t know where he was drawing lightning from as everything around me felt devoid of the electrical spark, but he somehow pulled it forth. The sparks of electricity called to something inside me; I squashed it.

He was acting worse than a poltergeist throwing a tantrum. I would not give in to his shitty behavior, no matter how much I longed to touch that lightning… and him.

His inherent smell of cinnamon and the more subtle aroma of horses teased my nose. I couldn’t stop myself from taking a deep breath to savor it.

“That’s not going to happen, Ellery .”

“What’s not going to happen, Ryker ?”

“There will never be another man for you.”

I didn’t want any other man, but I’d be damned if this imbecilic, impossible baboon dictated my life. “You have no say over me.”

“Yes. I. Do,” he bit out through his teeth. “You’re mine.”

It was taking all I had not to stomp my foot or punch him in the face. “No, I’m not. I’m not anyone’s , and I’m certainly not yours . You can’t go around fucking countless women and?—”

“What I do doesn’t matter.”

“The hell it doesn’t! And don’t”—I thrust my finger into his chest—“cut me off again!”

“Lower your voice unless you want them to find us.”

“I’m not the one who started this.”

But I lowered my voice as I glanced at the tapestry. I was sure the music and voices had drowned out my words, but anxiety still clutched my chest as I waited for the tapestry to pull back and someone to discover us here.