Page 15 of Sins and Virtue

My heart raced a thousand miles per hour.

Damn, never did I think I would hate to be wrong. Nor to be pinned down by a man, but I guess there’s a first time for everything.

“What do you want from me?” Threads of desperation bled into my voice.

Wanting to distract him so I could get help.

And get him off me.

“Mmhm,” a deep tracking sound escaped his throat. “Many things. Whatever you’re willing to give,kotyonok.”

His words, his intoxicating words, made my inner thighs slick, and all my body craved was for release. His presence was dangerous yet addictive; that should have told me to run, but for some insane reason I stayed. My mind stood firm in its ability to survive.

“You can’t have me. Anything else is possible.” I drew my limits.

He would have to take it. There wasn’t any other choice.

This would be my game. My rules.

“Then give me sanctuary and let me stay here, just for a little while until I have a chance to escape.”

My eyes rounded with horror. Somehow finding the strength to break from his steel hold, I turned around and faced him. “What?” I was stunned not only by his absurd request but also by his appearance. It was the first time we had come face-to-face. Perhaps some part of me thought he was hideously scarred; that's why he decided to linger in the darkness. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

His handsomeness was memorable. Admired by anyone he came across. Not even the murderous expression could take that away. His dark curled hair dripped from the storm. His body was fortified, largely built, and toned from all those years in prison as his wet shirt clung to him. And those man-made scars— one that slit across his brow, two small ones branded against his cheek, one that curled around his jaw, and the last one cut through his lips— he was the perfect dichotomy.

No, I shouldn’t be having these thoughts.

He lifted my chin and lowered his gaze. “You wanted to save me. Well, I’m here to be saved by you. By your hands is the ability to change my fate, I confess.” He began to walk me backwards until my spine curved into the wall. His gun shifted up to the soft skin of my nape.

“You’re insane.”

“Only a sane man would be desperate enough to hide where no one would question. You are obligated to keep my presence a secret.”

“That’s only a priest's job.”

His stormy eyes glinted with darkness as lightning struck outside. “Under the Seal of the Confessional, a priest or anyone who hears a confession is obligated not to disclose anything, or else it would be a violation of the sacred law. If you were a better Catholic, you would have known that,kotyonok.”

Since when was that a law? Who the hell comes up with these laws, anyway?

Unable to tell by his detached expression if he was bluffing or not, but why would I care?

“Good luck in hell, asshole.”

“Ah,kotoyonk, you’re not being a good girl.”

“Fuck you.”

“Careful, I still have the gun,” he taunted in a low octave, trailing the cold metallic gun against my jaw.

Goosebumps erupted against my skin, the cold wetness making me shiver as I stood my ground.

“You would have killed me already if you wanted to.” I sharply bit back.

The reason was obvious why he wanted me alive. He had no allies but me. So if he wanted to stay a free man, he wouldn’t dare touch a hair on my head.

He narrowed his gaze, scanning me up and down with steeped intrigue. “You will do as I tell you, wherever I tell you. Make this easier for both of us.”

“And if I scream, they’ll come after you.”