He cursed under his breath. “Not tonight.” Pulling a bundle of keys from his pocket, he tried two before the lock on my left wrist unlatched.

“You don’t want me?”

“Of course I fucking want you.” He freed my other hand, and my arms dropped to my sides. He bent to gather my clothing before thrusting it all into my arms. “But not like this. Get dressed,” he said, turning his back to me.

My hands shook as I pulled the shirt over my head. Hurt welled in my throat, making my voice wobble when I spoke. “Then why are you pushing me away?”

“Are you dressed yet?”

Tugging on my pants, I shot daggers at his back. “You’ve seen it all, so why the illusion of decency now?”

He whirled around. “Because I’m not the same person from a month ago.” He grabbed the back of my head and pulled me close. “I don’t even remember that person.”

I licked my lips. A couple more inches and they’d connect with his. “He’s still inside you.”

“You want the guy who paddled your ass, is that it?”

My heartbeat skipped. “You know about that?”

“Jax told me.”

A shudder of hot desire tore through me. “Did he tell you how it turns me on?”

“Holy fuck, Alex.” He let go of me abruptly. “He failed to mention that part.”

“I’m guessing he failed to mention a lot of things.” I maneuvered around him and headed for the staircase.

“What are you doing?”

I lifted a foot onto the bottom step and glanced over my shoulder. “I’m going to bed. Don’t worry about me, I know how to use my fingers.” A thrilling sense of power stormed through me. I wasn’t used to being so bold. Part of me wanted him to reclaim his dominance, to pull me over his knee and spank the attitude from me. But I kind of liked this side of him too—a mixture of the man he used to be with the dark guy hiding just beneath the surface. “If you need help with your hard-on, you know where to find me.”

21. Tempted - Rafe

21. TEMPTED - RAFE

I knew I was dreaming again, but like every other time it seemed vividly real. The gritty floor under my cheek. The rage firing through my veins at not being able to defend myself. Their hands banding around my wrists and ankles, keeping me immobile while their leader shoved his cock up my ass.

Nothing had ever hurt so much.

Nothing had ever made me feel so helpless, dirty, or ashamed.