Page 61 of Thorns of Deceit

Nobody was built like this tall, strong man with rock-solid abs, shoulders that could make you feel so small and in need of his protection, and then there were his hands.

Good God, that man could do some wicked things with his hands and his mouth. Aiden Callahan—my husband—was the hottest man I’d ever encountered. And the scariest.

I forced a smile, hiding the fear behind venom. “Let me go or I’ll scream.”

“Don’t fucking play with me, Raven,” he gritted.

I fluttered my eyelashes, determined not to crack. I had to keep it together like I promised my mother.

“I’m not playing with you,sir.” My voice cracked on the last word as memories of our fleeting time together rushed forward. He’d only just opened up to me and shown me his darker, kinkier side before everything imploded.

Don’t think about that, don’t think about that, I chanted in my mind.

I waved a hand noncommittally and said firmly, “I’m not your wife.”

We might have done many things, but we hadn’t consummated our marriage. Also, there was the small fact that I faked my death and had been on the run for half a decade…

A ghost of a smile passed his lips, his dimples threatening to turn my stomach into warm goo, but the darkness that slithered through his expression promptly extinguished it.

“You’re coming with me,” he warned coldly. “And you’ll come willingly.”

“Again, I’m not your wife,” I quipped, looking around in search of my friends. “And I certainly have no intention of going anywhere with you. You know what they say: stranger danger. I have no wish to die.”

He jerked his arm, the sleeve of his blazer sliding up as he checked his expensive-looking vintage watch.

“How could you die if you’re dead already?” he mused with a dangerous glint to his eyes. “Now, you’re coming home with me, or there’ll be hell to pay. Maybe I’ll start with your friends.”

Oh. My. Freaking. God.

I could try to shove my way through the overcrowded club, but my chances of getting away from Aiden were slim to none. And my foolish attempt might get my friends, and other innocents, killed. I couldn’t let that happen.

“Let’s go,wife.” He extended his hand, expecting me to put mine into his.

“Not. Your. Wife.” His gaze bored into me and I squirmed uncomfortably. “Did it ever occur to you that if I’m dead, and that if you’re seeing me, then you’re also dead? It seems quite simple.”

Verbal diarrhea.

I never really understood what it meant until this very moment. Jesus Christ, did those words actually leave my mouth? If there was a wall nearby, I’d be banging my head against it right now.

“Don’t fuck with me, Raven,” he said, his smile colder than a Siberian winter. I attempted to slap his hand out of the way, but he caught it and gripped it in his palm, his warmth instantly seeping into me and spreading all the way down to my toes.

His smile turned predatory as he leaned forward, his lips close to my ear, and whispered, “You owe me five years. I’ll make it good for you, and I remember how eager you were to reciprocate.” He smirked and I gasped, my panties dampening between my thighs. “But first, we have a few things to clear up.”

He brushed his thumb along the column of my throat. A simple touch, but it sent my body into overdrive. Shudders rolled through me and my entire body broke out in goose bumps.

Like no time had passed at all.

TWENTY-FIVE

RAVEN

The drive to our destination was ten minutes, but it felt like a lifetime while my memories took me back to the past. The day secrets spilled out from my mom’s lips and the last time I saw her alive.

My ears rang with screams and it took me a while to realize they were my own. When I finally opened my eyes, I found my mom’s ash-covered cheeks and terror-filled eyes on me.

Mom’s hand covered my mouth. “Shhh, R-Raven.”

I stilled, staring at her. I had never seen her like this. Granted, we’d never been in an explosion before.