Page 154 of Madness & Mercy

“I’m going to bed,” I mutter, shoving up from my chair like it’s my idea.

His eyes narrow. “Is that what youreallywant,amore mio?”

The words sink into me like a blade. I don’t know much Italian, but I know what that means. And from his mouth…it’slethal.

“Do whatever you want,” I say, voice rougher than I intend.

Nico’s smirk curves, dark and knowing. “Get upstairs. Strip. Wait for me. Iwon’tbe gentle.”

I flip him off as I walk out, but the sound of his low, amused laughter follows me up the stairs.

In the bedroom, I shut the door and lean against it, forcing in a breath. My heart’s still pounding, my cock still straining against the fabric of my jeans. I step into the bathroom and splash cold water on my face, but it barely dents the heat. All I can think about is the sound of his voice and the promise in it, one I knowdamn wellhe’ll keep.

I shove my pants down, fist my cock, and work myself hard and fast until my breath comes rough in my throat. The spit-slick slide is good, but it’s not enough.

In my head, it’s his hand. His grip. His pace. Nico wouldn’t be gentle. He’d own every second of it, pin me where he wants me, and watch me fall apart.

My head tips back against the wall.Almost there…

The door swings open.

I freeze.

His low chuckle drags over my skin like a blade.

“Please,” he murmurs. “Don’t stop on my account.”

“Crazy bastard,” I mutter, heat flooding my face.

“That’s one way to put it.” He leans on the doorframe, his eyes locked on me like I’m already stripped bare. “Keep going.”

I swallow hard. My hand moves again, slower now, every stroke feeding the burn under his gaze. My pulse won’t settle. It spikes and spirals until I’m shaking.

Still, I can’t finish.

He sees it and smirks.

“Get on the bed,” he murmurs, stepping into the bedroom.

God, I want to stab him.

But I want his hands on me more.

“Fuck off,” I mutter.

“So that’s how it’s gonna be?”

His grin is pure sin, all teeth and danger, before he slams me back against bathroom wall. My chest hits the cool tile, his body pressing in. My arms are wrenched behind me, one of his hands pinning them there like I’m nothing but prey.

“You’re such a damnbrat,you know that?”

I don’t get a chance to answer before the sharp crack of his palm explodes across my ass. The sound rips through the air. The burn hits a second later, and I bite down hard on my lip when an embarrassing, needy sound claws its way out of my throat.

“What the hell—”

Another strike, harder this time, pulls the air from my lungs.

The blood rushes south, thick and fast, until I’m throbbing. I glance down, catching the obscene drip of precum sliding from the tip.