Page 66 of Theirs to Possess: The Marriage Claim

My father may have sold me to the billionaire and his criminal sidekick, but that doesn’t mean I’ll be a compliant, obedient woman who hides in the shadows.

I sink deeper into the water, letting it cradle me, holding me together even though I feel like I might fall apart.

Later, after I’ve reheated the water a couple of times, I begin to yawn. Then I hear the men’s voices in the bedroom.

“Damn it.”

I should have gotten out a few minutes earlier and dived under the blankets and pretended to be asleep so I didn’t have to deal with them. Now it’s too late.

After draining the water and drying off, I wrap my still-damp body in my robe again. I cinch it tight. Then I double knot it so it’s not easy to get off.

And once again I scoff at my own actions.

If I have learned one thing tonight, it’s that Dorian will take what he wants.

Before leaving the bathroom, I catch my reflection in the faintly steamed mirror. My cheeks are flushed, my hair is a tangled mess, and my eyes are a confusing mix of defiance, exhaustion, and…

The truth is there in my gaze.

Desire.

Despite the way he’d discarded me at the end, Dorian had brought me off before he came. And his passion… I’d inflamed it. Intentionally. And a terrible part of me still craves him.

Steeling myself, I join the men.

Brennan is standing on the far side of the bed, and Dorian is closest to me. “You’re in the middle.”

Of course he’d insist on that again.

“Get in.”

Shaking slightly, I move toward him.

“You’ll sleep naked.”

“I…” I blink and look up at him.

“Do you want to argue?”

For a wild, foolish moment, I consider my answer.Yes.“No.” God knows what he’d do. Spank me like he’d threatened to do earlier?

As I struggle to untie the belt, I wish I hadn’t done such a good job of knotting it.

In an instant, he’s in front of me, brushing my fingers aside. “Let me.”

In seconds, the ends fall apart. Then he shucks the material from my shoulders, allowing it to pool on the floor.

“After you.”

My nipples harden, and I tell myself it’s from the cool night air. But I know differently.

Brennan slides onto the mattress, and I follow, instinctively pressing against him so I can keep as much space between me and Dorian as possible.

“He’s not going to save you.”

“Fuck if I won’t,” Brennan challenges, clamping an arm around my waist and holding me tight.

Dorian chuckles, the sound low and dark.