Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 60904 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 305(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60904 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 305(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
“No games, Karolina. I want something real.”
She tenses. “I thought we were on the same page.”
“Tell me one thing about your life, and I’ll give you an orgasm. How are your studies going for your MA? Are you enjoying your classes?”
She frowns. “That’s two things about my life, not one.”
It’s good that she can’t see my scowl through my mask.
“Alright,” I allow, but my voice is too close to a growl. “Tell me about your classes, then.”
Her hand drops from her breast, and she eases away from the phone screen, as though she can put physical distance between us.
“This isn’t how I want things to be between us, Bones. I don’t want to hurt you, but I can’t offer more.”
“Why not? It’s hardly intimate information. You can share a little about your life with me.”
She lifts her chin. “You’ve never shared anything with me, either. I don’t even know what you look like.”
I want to challenge her, to demand what she wants to know about me.
But I can’t tell her anything about myself. Not now that I want her to choose me as Rand.
“Is that really all I am to you?” I can’t hold back the anguished question. “A mask on a screen? An anonymous toy to get you off when you’re horny?”
Her eyes tighten with her own pain. “That’s not fair. I’ve never used you. We want the same thing out of this relationship.”
“You don’t know the first thing about what I want,” I snap back.
“And whose fault is that?” she demands hotly. “You’ve never told me anything about yourself. I don’t know why you’re making me feel like shit for acting the same way.”
I’m losing control, getting swept up in my emotions. I’d intended to tease a little information out of her before rewarding her with an orgasm, but somehow, we’re arguing.
“Goodbye, Karolina.”
I end the call before I can say anything else I’ll regret.
My phone immediately buzzes. She’s trying to call me back.
I decline the request.
She texts me.
Karolina
You did not seriously just hang up on me.
I don’t reply. I can’t.
Karolina
You’re being an ass.
Is this it, then? Are we over?
My fingers hover over the screen.
No, we’re far from over. We’ll never be over.
A decision settles over me.
She will accept me.
Not as Bones, but as Rand.
It’s time for her to find out that she has a stalker. I’m not above terrorizing her to drive her into my arms.
As her professor, I’ll be a trusted authority figure. When she realizes she’s being stalked, she’ll need comfort. Reassurance.
A promise of protection.
I silence my notifications and harden my resolve. If I have to make Karolina suffer in order to finally have her, then that’s what I’ll do.
Soon, I’ll open my arms, and she’ll come running to me. She’ll need me more than her next breath. She’ll look to me for safety, and I’ll prove to her that I’ll never allow anyone to harm her.
All these years, she’s never known how I’ve eliminated all threats to her safety and happiness.
She should find out exactly how devoted I am.
12
KAROLINA
Even though I had the weekend to rest after Bones hung up on me, I’m too tired when I arrive at Professor Hirst’s lecture the following Monday.
Last night, I had an unpleasantly vivid dream about being chased through the woods by Bones. It’d blended with memories of the night I ran from Brandon and Carter.
When I finally broke free from the nightmare around three AM, I’d been too scared to go back to sleep. Instead, I pulled out my books and tried to prepare for class.
My fear of the connection Bones wants is so much more acute than worry over his barely leashed aggression when I rejected him. Even with his huge body flexing above me after the hunt, I knew he wouldn’t truly hurt me.
I allowed our mutual fantasy to become real, and he mistook roleplay for romantic interest.
I rub my eyes, and my sandpaper lids sting. I’m jittery from three cups of coffee on an empty stomach—I felt too sick to eat breakfast.
That’ll have to be enough to keep me awake through class when all I want to do is huddle in my bed and sleep until my brain is less scrambled by thoughts of my masked man.
As much as I don’t want to make my heart vulnerable to Bones, I do care about him. I know I hurt him deeply.
Just because I never intended to do that doesn’t mean he’s okay.
He accused me of treating him like a sex toy.
I wince at the thought. I’m afraid it’s too close to the truth.
“Miss Williams?” Professor Hirst prompts.
My stomach drops. I have no idea why he’s calling on me. What was he saying while I was lost in my tangled thoughts?
We’re supposed to be studying Viking poetry today. I’ve read three books on the subject, but I don’t know the answer to his question.