“Where the hell else do you go, Catarina? Nowhere without me. So if I say it isn’t safe, not to go anywhere at all without me, that means anywhere.”

She wanted to roll her eyes, but she thought better of it. He wasn’t calming down. If she shifted positions she could maybe touch him, get a hand on him, but the way he’d forced her to lie back, she needed both hands to hold herself up.

“I’m sorry, Eli.”

“You aren’t. You think I can’t read you like a fucking book, Cat? You’re trying to think of the right thing to say or do, but you still don’t get it. You still don’t think you have to listen when I lay down a rule for your safety.”

Okay, that was true. Her home felt safe. They had a security system. She knew every shadow, the layout of the furniture, where every weapon was placed, scattered around the house, in each room, taped under furniture and in small cracks and down the cushions of the softer armchairs and couch, everywhere throughout their home. She felt safe, because even if she went on the porch, all she had to do was call and she knew Eli would come.

His finger slid inside her, scooped out hot liquid, and he began a slow, torturous circle around her clit. “We had an agreement, Cat. You knew from the beginning what kind of man I am and what I expect from my woman. I tell you don’t fucking leave my side then you don’t. I tell you to strip naked and dance on the damn table because I like seeing you up there you do it. Most of all, when I tell you trouble is close, trouble that can get you injured, raped or killed, you listen.”

Fury edged his voice and he exploded, yanking her legs up over his shoulders, dipping his head low. His mouth clamped down on her and he began to devour her, eat her as if she was his last meal. His mouth was a weapon of total destruction and he knew exactly how to wield it. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t stop him. His tongue plunged, his teeth bit, tiny nips that stung, but sent blasts of radiant stars bursting through her body like white lightning.

The breath left her lungs in a rush. He pushed her up fast and high and she felt her body gathering—gathering. She reached for it. Needed it. A sob escaped. Then he was gone. Lifting his head. Leaving her desperate. Leaving her in need.