Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 134133 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 671(@200wpm)___ 537(@250wpm)___ 447(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 134133 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 671(@200wpm)___ 537(@250wpm)___ 447(@300wpm)
"I've never done an escape room before," I say, sure that the best thing I can do is turn around and go back downstairs. To flee this party like the Tin Man fled this guy's presence, if for slightly different reasons.
I can't shake the feeling that I might be in danger, too.
"You're in luck," he tells me. "I have."
His tone is light and playful, but I can't shake the instinct that I'm walking into a trap.
"And it'll just be the two of us? Isn’t there supposed to be someone outside who... I don't know, operates the thing and lets us out?"
Silvan smirks. "We have to let ourselves out."
"What if we can't?"
He glances back at me. "Well, then you'll be stuck in there with me for an hour," he says, his lips tugging up. "But don't worry," he adds, probably seeing my alarm. "I'm sure we'll find our way out."
Silvan turns at the end of the hall and leads me toward a pair of double doors.
I swallow hard, trying to calm my racing heart.
"Wait," I say, pulling my hand free from his and backing up.
There's an unmistakably predatory gleam in his dark eyes as he turns back. I can see his impatience, feel him closing in on me as I hear the shifting leather and heavy fur of his costume move with him.
It really is like being cornered by a Viking.
Maybe that's why I let him back me up against the wall instead of turning and running.
An ordinary man I would run from, but this striking Viking stirs feelings of interest low in my gut right alongside the fear.
He reminds me of the old books I used to read from the library, brutish Vikings rutting their slave girls, and dashing rogue pirates ravishing their pretty stowaways.
I look away from him as he traps me against the wall. His big hand comes up to caress the curve of my jaw and he grabs a pigtail, rubbing his thumb over a chunk to feel the texture of my hair.
"Soft," he murmurs, something like approval in his voice.
I want to tell him once more that I really need to go, but I know the time for that has passed.
We're not downstairs in a room full of people anymore. We're upstairs all alone in a quiet corner of the house.
He presses closer, trapping me against the wall, his hands coming to rest on either side of my head.
"I'm going to kiss you now," he tells me matter-of-factly.
"Please don't," I whisper.
His dark eyes glint with something that feels almost affectionate. I know he heard me, but he doesn't bother listening.
Fear surges through my body as his face nears mine.
I try to be as still as possible. He's going to kiss me, I know it. I just have to get through it.
My heart hammers as I close my eyes, expecting his greedy lips to smash against mine, expecting him to kiss me however he likes, the same way he would kiss any other random girl at this party he doesn't honestly give a fuck about.
Instead, he stops a hairsbreadth away and just breathes me in. "You smell incredible," he rumbles.
My breath catches at the unexpected compliment.
With convincing tenderness, he slides a hand behind my head and cradles my skull in his palm.
I gasp softly against his mouth as his lips find mine. The sudden and unexpected intimacy of it knocks the strength out of my legs and my knees buckle.
I might fall, but Silvan's wedged his knee between my legs. I feel the steady strength of his hard thigh beneath my pussy as he presses it against me, holding me against the wall while he tastes me.
Heat spreads through my lower belly as he moves his leg slightly, using it to rub me between the thighs. I don't want him to, but I'm trapped between him and the wall and can't move. The unexpected friction sends more heat to my core, and I moan helplessly against his mouth, grabbing his broad shoulders for support.
The fur feels soft between my fingers while his muscular shoulders are firm and dependable beneath my unsteady hands.
His mouth moves against mine with a fierce possessiveness and unwavering passion, like he's fighting to conquer me right there on the spot. Mine opens for him like the damn fool thing wants him to, even though I most assuredly do not.
As if he can hear me wanting to reject his kiss, his tongue brutally invades my mouth, tangling with mine, overpowering it and leaving me breathless as he claims me for his own.
I've never been kissed like this before. So thoroughly, so tenderly, as if he has all the time in the world to explore me and he intends to use it.
I'm trembling, caught between arousal, fear, and shock. Silvan's body is so hard and insistent, pressing me against this wall, trapping me with his strong body. I should be totally alarmed being so confined, but I feel almost… safe.