Page 49 of Brutal Reign

CHAPTER

NINETEEN

PAVEL

Hope takesoff barefoot across the manicured grounds, silk dress hiked up to her knees, her hair streaming like a flag of defiance behind her.

I let her get a head start. It won’t be fun if I catch her too quickly, but I will catch her and make her pay for her defiance.

The estate sprawls ahead as she veers toward the marina, her focus locked on the dock at the far end of the property, where most of the Black Company’s security was concentrated. Not anymore. We made sure of that.

She believes I’m here to drag her away in chains, extract whatever secrets she might possess through whatever means necessary. Hell, that was the plan, and what my brothers expect me to do.

But everything changed the moment I watched Simon press a gun to her throat.

A combination of blind rage and fierce possession took over in that moment. Protecting her was all that mattered. Even if it meant letting Simon get away.

If that’s what it took to keep her alive, I’d make the same choice a thousand times over.

I roll my neck once, then give chase, following the path she cut through the property. She’s fast; I’ll give her that. The dress slows her down, but her legs are strong, every movement full of raw desperation, like she’s being hunted. Which, in fairness, she is.

She cuts left then right, dodging around a sculpture and vaulting over a stone bench like she’s been training for this her whole life. But she’s not quick enough.

In less than a minute, I shrink the distance between us. My hand closes around her arm, and I spin her around, the momentum sending us both tumbling. We land hard on the grass in one breathless motion, but I brace her fall with my arms, elbows buried in the earth.

I cage her beneath me, chest to chest, our legs tangled in the ruin of her dress. She twists under me, clawing at my jacket, legs kicking before I gather them between mine to stop her struggle. Having her this close, feeling her heart hammering against my chest, is everything I’ve craved and never thought I’d feel again.

She lets out a frustrated growl when she realizes I have her completely pinned down and at my mercy. Her dark eyes are wild with panic and fury, her hair spread like silk across the grass. I lean down, breathing in her delicate scent.

“Fight me all you want,” I say softly, my lips tracing her ear. “But I’m not letting you get away.”

I made that mistake once, and I won’t make it again.

She’s mine now, in every way that counts.

A breath shudders out of her, and she jerks her head to the side, refusing to meet my gaze. “Get off of me.”

Betrayal is written across her face. The man she knew as Lukas turned out to be the very person she was hiding from.That might be true, but she needs to understand that how I feel about her is as real as it gets.

“I dreamt about you every night for five years,” I rasp. “The way you tasted, the way you came for me, the way you said my name when I was buried deep inside you. I didn’t forget a single moment.”

Something flickers across her expression, like she’s considering the possibility that I’m telling the truth. Her lips part, and for a heartbeat, I see the woman who melted in my arms in London. But then her walls slam back into place.

“I don’t believe a word you say. You’re a liar.”

She claws at my shoulders, trying to push me away. Her hips shift once more, but there’s no escaping the fact that we’re locked together, heat rising between us like steam off pavement.

“You’re the one lying to yourself,” I point out, dragging my hips forward so she feels how hard she makes me. “But see, your body remembers. Your body still craves me, even if you hate yourself for it.”

She lets out a low, feral sound—half protest, half warning—and twists hard beneath me, trying to get free. All she manages to do is rub against me again, the friction only winding me tighter. I’m breathing hard, my jaw tight, cock throbbing against her.

Hope goes completely still. Her pupils are dilated, lips parted, and her lashes flutter like she’s fighting herself. For a moment, the whole world narrows down to the space between us and my desperate need to be inside her again.

“Pavel, come in.” Eva’s voice crackles in my ear, cutting through the haze of lust.

Hope’s face hardens, and she pushes my upper body away from her. Our legs remain entwined as I press my comms.

“I’m here,” I say, my voice thick.