Page 28 of Knot So Sweet (Leather and Lace #1)
Chapter 27
Candi
V iper appeared in the doorway, his presence instantly thickening the air with a suffocating tension. My pulse quickened, my body responding to him instinctively, a sensation I hated, yet couldn’t suppress. His gaze flicked between us, confusion creasing his brows.
"What’s going on?" His eyes lingered on me, searching, before shifting to her. "Tiffany?"
Her name on his lips hit me like a punch to the gut.
Tiffany .
The way he said it, the ease with which it rolled off his tongue, sent a flare of white-hot jealousy ripping through my veins. It was like someone had poured gasoline over the fire already burning inside of me, fueling the inferno of emotions I barely held back.
"Viper! Baby, I missed you!" Tiffany squealed, her voice a high-pitched mockery of sweetness as she flung herself into his arms. Her perfectly manicured claws curled possessively into his cut, her entire body molding to his as though she had a right to him—like she belonged there.
My hands twitched, the urge to rip her off him nearly overpowering, but I held back. I waited for him to peel her off, to throw her aside like the trash she was. But he didn’t.
What the fuck?
My heart thudded in my chest, a sickening rhythm of confusion and rage. Why did I care so damn much? He wasn’t my alpha. He couldn’t be, no matter how much my instincts screamed otherwise.
And yet, that primal part of me, the part buried beneath layers of stubborn pride and fierce independence, wouldn’t listen. I couldn’t extinguish the burn of betrayal that sliced through me, sharp and searing. My stomach churned, twisting into a knot I could barely breathe around.
My mouth moved before I could think, venom pouring out in a voice I barely recognized as mine.
"Fuck you, Viper. You let this bitch touch you?" I spat, my words low and lethal, dripping with the acid of jealousy and hurt I refused to acknowledge. My hands balled into fists at my sides, nails biting into my palms as I tried to contain the storm raging inside me.
"You talk about loyalty and trust?" I let out a bitter, incredulous laugh, sharp and jagged with my pain.
Viper’s eyes darkened, the familiar smoldering heat flaring up in them as he tore himself away from Tiffany. He took a step toward me, but I stepped back, the distance between us a barrier I wasn’t ready to cross.
"Candice," he growled, his voice low and warning.
"Don't, ' Candice' me," I snapped, mocking the deep timbre of his voice. My body trembled with the intensity of it all—anger, need, frustration, and something dangerously close to heartbreak.
"This is why I will never fucking trust an alpha." I jabbed a finger toward Tiffany, her blonde curls bouncing as she looked between us in confusion and rage.
His expression hardened, the lines of his jaw tightening as the tension between us thickened, making the air almost impossible to breathe. His eyes were molten, burning with a mix of frustration and desire as he stalked toward me, his body coiled tight with barely restrained control.
"You think I’d choose her over you? Never," he growled, his voice like gravel, rough and unapologetic. The heat in his gaze sent a shiver down my spine, but I refused to let him see how much his words affected me.
Behind him, Tiffany let out a shriek, her perfectly composed mask cracking as she clawed at the back of his cut. "You’re seriously choosing this slut over me, Viper?" Her voice was high and shrill, tinged with disbelief and desperation. "After everything we’ve been through, you’re going to throw me aside for her?"
Viper whipped around, his movement swift and predatory. He grabbed her wrist in a vise-like grip, much like he had done to Gears’ throat earlier. His fingers tightened around her, his body exuding an ice that made me want him more.
FUCK…
"Didn’t you hear Candice?" His voice was calm, dangerously so, but underneath it simmered a violence that made my skin prickle. "She doesn’t want you touching me. And if I were you, I’d respect my omega’s wishes. You wouldn’t want to see me truly pissed off, Tiffany."
My omega .
That phrase sent a rush of heat coursing through my veins, but I was too pissed to let the possessive thrill take over. I crossed my arms, glaring at him. The authority he carried was absolute, and for a second, even I felt the pull of his dominance, the raw power that made my instincts want to submit.
"Remember who’s in charge here," Viper finished, his voice cold and final.
But the stupid bitch didn’t know when to quit. Her hand reached for him again, desperation clinging to her like a stench. "Viper, please. You don't really mean that."
I saw red.
"Get your hands off him, bitch ," I growled, the sound feral, ripping from deep in my chest. My body trembled, but it wasn’t from fear. It was rage. And something darker.
Possession.
Tiffany froze mid-reach, her fingers hovering in the air like she had been slapped. Disbelief flashed across her face, and she turned to Viper, her voice dripping with irritation, almost whining. "Are you really going to let her talk to me like that?"
Viper didn’t respond with words. Instead, a deep, guttural growl tore past his lips, low and dangerous, reverberating through the room. It was pure alpha, primal, and it sent a shockwave of heat down my spine. My core wept at the sound, and I hated how much my body betrayed me, how turned on I was by the sheer power radiating from him.
I was shaking—whether from desire or fury, I couldn’t tell anymore.
But Tiffany?
She wasn’t so bold anymore. Her eyes widened, panic flashing across her face before she tried to cover it with a sneer. But the damage was already done. The fear had taken root, and she knew her place now, even if she despised it.
She wouldn’t challenge him again. Not when he looked at her like that—when he growled like that. He could end her with a single command. One bark of his alpha authority, and she would be nothing.
"Leave," he barked, his voice like the crack of a whip, sharp and final.
Tiffany didn’t need to be told twice. She took off toward the door, her heels clicking in her haste, her pride left shattered in the dust.
"This isn’t fucking over, bitch! You can’t just take what’s mine!" Tiffany’s shrill voice grated against my ears as she hurled her final words at me, her fury burning hot.
I smirked, not even bothering to turn fully toward her. Just a quick glance out of the corner of my eye, a challenge in the lift of my brow. "Watch me."
Her face contorted with rage, trembling as she stormed out of the room, the door slamming behind her so hard it rattled the walls.
The room went deathly silent.
Viper’s eyes were already on me the moment she left, and I hated—hated—how my body responded to his attention. The intensity of his gaze was like a storm, dark, turbulent, and ready to destroy anything in its path.
My pulse quickened, heat flooding my body as if my skin had become hyperaware of his proximity. His scent—whiskey, leather, and danger—wrapped around me, pulling me under like a tidal wave.
My breath hitched, the air between us too thick, too charged, too hot.
But I wasn’t about to let him off that easily.
"Where’s Ghost?" My voice came out in a shaky whisper as I took a step back, needing space—any space—between us. My back hit the bookshelf, and suddenly, I was trapped.
Viper’s lip twitched, that slow, predatory smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. His eyes gleamed with something dark and possessive, something dangerous.
"Ghost had to have a little chat with Gears. He’ll come see you later. But for now, sweetheart…" His eyes darkened, narrowing as he took a deliberate step closer. "You’re all mine."
My heart pounded in my chest, every beat reverberating in my ears. His words—you’re all mine—tugged at something deep inside me, something primal that I couldn’t ignore no matter how hard I tried.
There was a possessiveness in the way he said it, something that made my blood run hotter, my muscles tense. My body screamed for him, even as my mind fought back.
I wasn’t just going to roll over for him.
"Gears?" I blurted, trying desperately to latch onto anything to keep the distance between us, to stop the walls I’d built from crumbling to dust under the weight of his gaze.
Viper nodded, that dangerous smirk still lingering as he crowded me against the bookshelf, leaving me no room to escape. His presence was suffocating, in the best and worst ways. His breath ghosted over my skin, his lips so close to mine that I could feel the heat of him, could almost taste him.
"You need to understand something, sweetheart," he whispered, his lips brushing my ear, sending a shiver down my spine. His hand slid up, his fingers trailing against my jaw with a soft touch that belied the power behind them.
"I almost killed my VP for touching you the way he did."
The weight of his words sank in. My breath hitched as his hand slipped around my throat, not squeezing, just holding me there, claiming me. His fingers pressed lightly against my pulse, which thudded beneath his grip, wild and frantic. His dominance was everywhere—surrounding me, flooding the room, making my knees weak, making my body betray every ounce of resolve I had.
"And if he does it again," Viper growled, his voice a deadly promise, "I’m not sure I’ll be able to control myself." His thumb brushed over my pulse point, sending heat coursing through me.
"Ghost is the only one who can keep him in line, the only one he listens to. Because if I go talk to him…" He paused, his lips hovering over mine. "I’m not sure I’ll have a VP much longer."
The tension between us crackled like lightning. His hand slid from my throat down my arm, his touch light but burning, leaving fire in its wake. Every nerve in my body screamed for him, even though my mind still tried to hold on to some semblance of control.
But I was losing. Losing to him. Losing to myself.
With one last desperate effort, I pressed my hand against his chest, glaring up at him even though my body trembled from the contact. "Why didn’t you push her away sooner, Viper?" I demanded, my voice sharp, though my heart raced like a drumbeat.
"I’m not some weak omega you can dangle in front of Tiffany to make a point. You don’t get to play with me like that."
His grip around my throat tightened just enough to make my back arch, forcing my body to press against his chest. My breasts pressed into the hard planes of his torso, making the heat between us unbearable.
His eyes blazed with fire, his voice a deep, low growl. "I’m not playing, sweetheart." He dipped his head, his nose brushing through my hair, inhaling me. "Stop fighting me, Candice. You’re mine, and it’s time you fucking realized it."
"I hate you," I hissed, but the words came out weak, hollow, empty. My body was a traitor, trembling under his touch, aching for him. My heat clawed at me from the inside, demanding him, pulling me under, even as my mind waged a losing battle.
"You don’t hate me," Viper growled, his hand moving from my throat to grip my chin, forcing me to look up at him. "You hate how much you need me."
I swallowed hard, unable to look away from him. My pulse raced, my breathing shallow, my body leaning into his touch, despite every bit of defiance I tried to cling to. Heat pooled low in my belly, and I could barely think beyond the primal need taking over.
"You claimed me," Viper said, his voice rough, animalistic, as he pressed even closer, his body pinning me against the books. "You fucking claimed me."
"You claimed me first," I shot back, my voice breathless, my chest heaving as the raw, primal hunger between us surged.
A wicked grin spread across his face, his eyes gleaming with a dangerous, predatory gleam. "Fuck yeah I did," he growled, his lips brushing against mine, teasing. "And now, I’m going to show you exactly what being mine means."
But just as the intensity between us hit a boiling point, my stomach let out a loud, angry growl. The sound shattered the heated moment like a slap, and I froze, mortified. Viper blinked, the tension in the air still heavy, but his brow lifted as amusement danced across his face.
For a second, the silence stretched, and then, a low sexy as sin, chuckle rumbled in his chest. He shook his head, still impossibly close. "You’re hungry," he murmured, his tone softening just enough to make my pulse stutter.
I swallowed hard, my body still humming from the electrifying tension between us. I hated how his laughter felt like a tether, drawing me closer despite my best efforts to resist.
"You're not going to kiss me?" I muttered, trying to summon some semblance of defiance, but it came out weaker than I intended.
Viper’s smirk widened, his fingers brushing my cheek in a tender contrast to the earlier storm of his dominance. "Not yet," he said, his voice dripping with certainty. He leaned in, his breath warm against my skin as he whispered, "First, I’ll feed you."
My heart thudded in my chest as his lips ghosted over my ear, the warmth of him too much, and yet not enough.
"Then," he continued, his voice a promise that sent a shiver down my spine, "we’ll finish what we started."
I exhaled, shaky and uneven, the moment shifting again—less dangerous, but no less charged. I knew this was far from over, but for now, the hunger gnawing at my stomach was undeniable, and Viper… he was right. He always seemed to be right.
Without breaking his gaze, he pulled back slightly, his smirk still in place. "Let’s get you something to eat, sweetheart. You’ll need your strength for later." The way he said it made my heart skip, a mixture of anticipation and dread rolling through me.
And damn it all... I was looking forward to whatever came next.