Page 31 of Poison Touch (Monarch Vipers #1)

EDGE

I purposely ignored Ninja all week. It’s been hard as hell.

I can’t get her out of my fucking head. I have to say, she hurt my ego a bit by not kissing me back.

I know it was a ruse. She wanted to, but she wasn’t about to let her walls down—not yet.

I have no idea who started the rumor about us fucking, but I sure as hell put a stop to it as soon as I heard the whispers.

Although, if I were smart, I would have let everyone talk shit about us.

Then maybe at least half the guys would stop fucking staring at her like she’s their next hookup.

Ninja’s bike is still in the parking lot when the guys and I leave for my house to train. There’s a fight coming up soon, and this time, I’ll be the one in the cage. A lot is on the line: large bets, big-name players, and very few rules.

Later, after practice, when I drive Kade back to school to get his car, Ninja’s bike is still in the parking lot. Like at the party when I saw her take off, I resist the urge to listen to my gut and leave her alone.

It’s almost eight at night, but several people are still in the library.

No one looks up as I enter. As focused as these students are, it’ll take a hell of a lot more than someone walking by their table to snag their attention.

I walk down the center aisle, glancing left and right until I spot my little Ninja.

I call myself out for what I am becoming, a fucking stalker.

She’s sitting at the far table in the corner, her usual table.

Books and notebooks are scattered over it.

Anyone paying attention would notice her head bobbing slightly to the beat filtering through her earbuds. I want to know what she’s listening to.

Just like in the lifeguard stand, I have no idea what my intentions are.

But after the other day, when I questioned her about Josh and her smug response, I couldn’t let it go.

The top several buttons of her dress shirt are undone.

Her tie is loose. The knot rests on the smooth skin between her breasts.

I pull out the chair in front of her and unapologetically sit down.

Her eyes pop up to me and then slowly narrow.

She doesn’t bother to acknowledge me further as she looks back at her notes.

With my intrusion, I know she’s not seeing her books, her notes, or anything else anymore.

Her head is consumed with me. I reach over and pluck one of her earbuds out.

The music blares from the tiny speaker. It’s an alternative rock band I can’t place.

“Don’t you have better things to do on a Friday night than hang out in the library?”

“Don’t you?” she retorts. She reaches across the table to grab her earbud back, but I yank it out of her reach.

“Yeah, like keeping you away from that asshole Josh.”

“And you’re not an asshole?” she snaps. She starts to pack her shit, then pauses.

I inwardly laugh. “Oh, I am an asshole, all right. I just don’t try to hide it.”

“At least you’re honest.” She closes her book and then opens it again. “You know what? I came here to study, so I won’t be the one to leave. You will.”

“Nah, not yet. I was thinking of studying myself.”

She looks around me, then at the floor. “Kind of hard to study when you don’t have anything to study with.”

“My studies require less bookwork and more observation.” And in my quick observations, I notice her plaid uniform skirt peeking out of her backpack. Fuck me. I run my fingers through my hair. This girl does not play fair.

She pushes back her chair and stands. I get up, too, following her down the main walkway to the back of the library.

Her untucked shirt falls just below her ass, making it look like she’s not wearing anything underneath it.

But I know she has on those tiny, tight-ass shorts underneath.

I don’t stop at her ass but continue to trace the back of her body.

Down the back of her tan thighs, then toned calves, all the way to her boots. Fuck… I rub my hand over my smooth jaw.

Turning down the science aisle, she peruses, or pretends to, the spines.

As I glance at the titles, I notice we’re in the biology section, so maybe she does need a book, and she’s not just trying to avoid me.

She pauses and pulls a book off the shelf.

Still holding onto her earbud, I shake it in my palm like a pair of dice, then tuck it into my front pocket.

When she tries to pass, I block her way. It’s a move she’s familiar with, so she turns to go in the opposite direction. I grab her wrist and spin her back toward me. Her hand darts up to jab me in my side. Catching me off guard, I let out a grunt and a harsh breath.

“What the hell was that for?”

“I warned you not to touch me on my first day of school.”

“You didn’t seem to complain when we were in the lifeguard stand.”

She looks away from me and attempts to pull her wrist free.

“Calm down, I just want to talk,” I say. She stills, but her eyes are fixed on me with fire. “See, that wasn’t so bad, was it?”

The lights in the library dim, signaling that it’s closing soon. The light over our section conveniently darkens to a shadowy glow. The emergency bulb is the only one to stay lit.

“Let me go,” she demands in a low, breathy growl.

“No.”

She goes for another hit, but I block it.

The book falls from her grasp with a light thud, not loud enough to draw attention from anyone.

I grab her other wrist and pull it behind her, gripping them both in one hand.

She stops trying to move or fight. I’m guessing if she wanted to, she would.

For some fucked-up reason, I enjoy taking her free will, making her work for it.

“What do you want, Edge? Another rumor floating around about how I fucked you in the library?”

“I didn’t start that shit,” I tell her.

Her eyes are like mesmerizing blue pools.

I can’t look anywhere but at her sublime face.

I tuck strands of her hair behind her ear.

Her body is rigid against mine, but for a brief moment, she closes her eyes before her gaze locks with mine again.

She’s not used to being controlled. With me, I think she internally battles against relenting and keeping up her tough girl act.

There’s a part of her that wants to taste this uncharted territory.

A part of me enjoys watching her struggle against what she should do and what she wants. For her, they are very different things. For me, they are one and the same. I want her to run so I can chase her. And I want her exactly where I have her, in the clutches of my depraved and devious grasp.

“Then who did?” she asks.

“I don’t know, but I shut it down the second I heard about it.”

Her eyes fall a little, and her face relaxes. I can tell she’s grateful, but she’ll never tell me as much. And I don’t expect her to.

Like in the lifeguard stand, I want to kiss her again, but this time, I want her to kiss me back.

Fuck, do I want her to kiss me back. I lean in.

She doesn’t turn her head, so I continue to push her out of her comfort zone until our lips are only centimeters apart.

Her light breaths are like whispers over my mouth while her eyes are full of apprehension.

“I’m going to kiss you,” I warn her, giving her a chance to turn away, reject me, knee me in the balls, even jerk her hands free to punch the shit out of me, something.

But she doesn’t move.

Her breasts rise and fall against my chest as I hold her hands tight behind her. The knot of her tie has moved, leaving me a perfect view of the valley between her breasts. I lick my bottom lip. Her lips part.

Is that an invitation?Maybe, maybe not.

Either way, I take it as one and close the small distance until my lips are on hers.

Her sapphire eyes close in response, but her mouth doesn’t move.

I press my tongue along her lips and lick the seam of her supple mouth, tasting the sweetness of her lip gloss.

But fuck if I don’t want more. I tilt my head and press her harder against the bookshelf.

My knuckles press against her tight ass as I grip her hands behind her.

Afraid she’ll run if I let go, I hold her, forgoing the need to grab a handful and squeeze.

Her fists tighten into balls in my hand, but still, she’s not fighting.

Her mouth opens another fraction but not enough for me to enter without forcing my way in.

Her mouth moves slightly, a small movement, but enough for me to know how hard she’s fighting this. I back away to look down into her conflicted eyes. Want and lust battle for dominance over the will to deny me. I’ll make the decision easy for her; hence, I won't give her one.

I brush my lips over hers. “Fucking kiss me,” I demand against her mouth.

Her voice is as quiet as a breeze. “You’re going to regret it.”

I pull harder on her hands. Her head falls back as she lets out a small cry. “I don’t give a fuck. Open your mouth for me.”

Her lips part, and I eagerly plunge into her sweet, promised sea of regret. With every sweep of her tongue, I know I’ve never in my life experienced something so fucking incredible and never will again. And it’s just a kiss.

My head races along paths to get her naked beneath me.

Her mouth moves with mine in a rhythmic dance created by the force of attraction neither one of us can deny.

With my free hand, I smooth my fingers up her jaw until I cup her face.

She moans into my mouth. My dick hardens.

Her tongue effortlessly entangles with mine in an easy banter for dominance and pleasure.

I deepen the kiss, wanting to devour this unruly girl.

I grip her wrists tighter and force her arms lower.

Her body is taut against mine. It would be impossible not to feel her body craving my touch.

She pulls slightly back, severing the irresistible contact between us. Her gaze slowly rolls up to meet mine. Lust swirled with regret and lack of trust is written all over her flushed face. It takes several seconds for her to catch her breath.

“Let me go,” she whispers.

I can tell that’s the last thing she wants.

But my hand slowly slides off her cheek.

Reluctantly, I take a step back, releasing her wrists as I do.

She licks her bottom lip, and fuck, if it doesn’t take everything for me not to grab hold of her body and take her right here.

She doesn’t move for a long moment. Like a skilled dancer, without taking her eyes off me, she bends straight down, my dick nearly touching her mouth as she picks up the dropped book from the floor, then rises back to her feet.

“I have to go.” She glides the edge of her thumb just under her bottom lip, wiping away the thin line of wetness. Lowering her gaze, she starts to walk away from me.

“Little Ninja,” I say. She pauses and looks over her shoulder, gracing me with only half her beautiful face. “You’re not going anywhere with Josh.”

She shifts around to look directly at me.

Her voice isn’t argumentative, loud, or defensive.

It’s flat and to the point. “I will go anywhere with anyone I choose. And while we’re making things crystal clear, you do not own me, Edge.

I will talk to, kiss, and fuck who I want and when I want. ” Then she turns and walks away.

I let her go like I did in the storm when she ran away from me. I may not be able to tell her who she can talk to, but I’m going to make damn sure I’m the only one she chooses to fuck. The moment I laid eyes on her, I knew she would be mine. She just doesn’t know it yet.