Prey Drive by Jen Stevens
Chapter 38
the lamb
the training center at the end of the day, just as I’m packing up my laptop to leave. When I catch him leaning his shoulder against the door jamb, hands in his pockets, a hot blush creeps along my cheeks, the way it always does around him. The memory of those hands on me earlier is still so fresh in my mind, I could practically feel their phantom brushes against my skin all afternoon. It doesn't help that I've spent the past four hours learning all the amazing things Bash has done in his career.
He somehow manages to turn me into a person I don’t recognize when we’re together, and then he leaves me alone to try to reconcile my feelings. I know I should be embarrassed about what I allowed to happen between us, how he treated me so crassly. But the truth is, I’m not. Not even a little bit.
“Did you have a good first day?” he asks as I approach, slinging my new backpack over my shoulder.
“I did,” I admit with a smile.
Regardless of my conflicting feelings for Bash, his company is doing something really great here. Everyone was friendly and welcoming, despite my odd recruitment. This is probably one of the only jobs I’ve ever had where I’m excited to come back in the morning.
We walk into the elevator together and Bash hits the button for the ground floor. There’s a group of people rushing to join us, but Bash slams his finger on the ‘close’ button and the doors slide shut just as they reach us. He feigns an apologetic shrug as they disappear behind the metal, shutting us off from the rest of the world.
His hand immediately slithers against my ass as he moves behind me, his hot breath blowing over the crook of my neck. And while I know I’m going to hate myself for it later, I lean back, pressing myself against the hardness of his erection. Bash releases a low moan into my hair, and I take it as encouragement to begin slowly swaying my hips against him.
“You’re a devious little minx,” he growls, splaying his fingers across my abdomen to hold me closer.
The elevator stops, and I manage to step away from him just in time for the doors to open, exposing us to the busy lobby of our office building that serves as the perfect bucket of ice water to cool me off. I’m mortified at how carried away I got after only a few moments alone with him. After one single touch.
Bash snickers behind me as we walk off together, completely unaware of my internal battle as he discreetly adjusts himself in his pants.
That was way too close.
When we break through the glass doors, I veer off to the side of the building and turn to face him, hot rage burning in my chest. “We can’t do that here,” I reprimand.
Bash rolls his eyes, stepping toward me to brush his knuckles against my chin. It takes everything in me not to lean into his touch, which has me overcorrecting and propelling myself away from him with more force than necessary. I stumble backward, and his eyes widen as I barely catch myself from falling on my ass.
“I promise, Stardust, no one here gives a shit about us.”
“I-I just can’t do this with you right now. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Where do you think you’re going?” Bash throws his arm across my chest to stop me from turning left, toward my hotel.
“To my hotel,” I state simply, confused by the sharpness of his tone.
Shaking his head once, he scowls down at me. “Yeah, that’s not happening.”
“What does that mean?”
His hand slides down my arm until his fingers lace with mine, completely enveloping them. With a firm, threatening squeeze that nearly cuts off my blood supply, he says, “You’re coming with me.”
I rip my hand away from his grasp, ignoring the familiar predatory look that’s crossed his face. This is the version of him that I’m used to seeing—not the casual, laid-back performance he’s been putting on all day for his employees.
Is it wrong to admit I like this one better, even if I’m still a little afraid of it?
“Like hell I am,” I growl, hugging my hands to my chest. “I practically broke the bank to pay for this hotel. I’m sleeping there.”
Bash isn’t deterred by my tantrum, and he doesn’t give a fuck about the money he’s asking me to throw away just to stay with him.
He leans forward, hunching his back so we’re face-to-face, and then lowers his voice so no one else can overhear. “I don’t think you understand me, Stardust. There’s no way I’m going to have you sleeping anywhere but my bed while you’re in my city,” he grinds out between his teeth.
It’s such a terrifying sight, I want to cower down before him and beg for forgiveness.
My pride won’t allow that, though. Instead, I muster up every scrap of courage I have left and stand my ground, because the old Jovie would have allowed this man to walk all over me the same way Gabe did, and she quite literally died trying to appease him. Unfortunately for Bash, I’m no longer a living doormat.
“And I don’t think you understand me. I’m not shacking up with my new boss in my first week working for him. There’re already enough rumors floating around about us.”
He rears back, dark brows coming together in a deep scowl. “And you give a fuck what any of them say? Come on, you’re better than that…”
I’m already backing away from him, nearly tripping over a group of people who just walked out of the same building we were just in. They mumble a string of curse words at me, immediately cutting off their threats when they notice Bash standing a few feet away.
“My answer is no. I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ve got to get to bed early. My new boss is a bit of a prick,” I weakly joke, but it falls on deaf ears. For a moment, I think he’s going to drop this act and let me go so I can begin walking or hail a cab.
In the blink of an eye, he’s erased the distance I put between us. With one hand wrapped around the back of my neck and the other securely holding my waist, he tugs me against him. From a distance, it would look like we were just hugging goodbye. No one is aware of his fingers digging into my hip, or the iron-grip he’s keeping on my neck to hold me in place as he brushes his teeth against my ear, lightly nipping at the sensitive skin.
It was a stupid, delusional moment.
“You don’t get to tell me no,” he growls, sending spiders skittering down my spine.
“I can’t afford to say yes,” I find myself admitting.
I don’t just mean financially. There is no scenario where this ends well for me.
“I need my things,” I try again, scouring my brain for any logical reason I can come up with for him to just let me go. “I can’t wear the same outfit tomorrow.”
“We can buy you something new,” he offers, his voice ice-cold.
“Please, Bash.”
A war wages within him, though he’s only giving me a small glimpse of it through his facial features. I haven’t uncovered much about him, but one thing I’m positive about is that Bash doesn’t like to have his word questioned. Too bad for him, I’m not allowing another man to dictate my every move.
“I’ll come with you to get them, then take you to my place.”
I want to scream. I’d love to punch him right in the face for being such a prick over this. No matter how much I give him, he always wants to take more.
Dropping his voice, he tilts his head and rolls his shoulders back. “This is my final offer, Stardust. I’m not leaving you alone in this city.”
And there’s something about the way he says those words that tells me this is about more than him being a possessive asshole with no concern for my privacy. That there may be more to his story that he isn’t telling me.
“Fine,” I relent. “But you can wait in the lobby for me.”
Bash doesn’t bother answering, not that it would matter either way. He’s made up his mind, and I’m expected to just go along with it. Perhaps I’m just like everyone else and I’ve fallen for his charms, forgetting how insane he truly is. Or maybe I’m just as crazy as he is, because when he releases me from his firm hold, I don’t run. I don’t call for help. I don’t even take a step away from him.
Instead, I follow my predator like a good little lamb.