The need for violence rode him hard. The leopard inside of him demanded she obey. The man that he’d been since his own family had shaped him was even more insistent. She stared back at him and there was that little chin lift. The flash of defiance in her eyes.

He threw the bottle. It smashed against the side of the house and shattered. He caught her face, framing it with hard hands. He slammed his mouth down on hers, taking hers. Not asking. Not coaxing. Telling her. He kissed her. Hard. Angry. Letting her know she belonged to him and she fucking well was going to do what he told her.

Her mouth was soft beneath his. Soft and warm. His tongue was aggressive. He dragged her into his arms. Right there on the patio, his hands moving over her body. Claiming her. Letting her know he would have her whenever and wherever he wanted her.

Siena melted into him. Kissing him back. Giving him everything without hesitation. Her hands slid up his back, and she’d removed the gloves. It was her touch, skin to skin, that shifted something inside of him, because the moment he kissed her, even angry, she turned wild.

He lifted his head, looking down at her. Her green eyes moved over his face. Slow. Studying him. Possessive. Hungry.

“What I see, Elijah, when I look at you, is my man. He can be gentle and sweet and he can be angry and more leopard than human. But he’s mine. The thing you need to get, honey, is that I love you. I’d do anything for you. I’d give up my life for you. But you have to see me. You have to know who I am. I can’t be a yes-woman. If that’s what you need, I’m not that woman as much as I’d like, for you, to be that. I love you with every single breath I take. Every single one.”

She took his anger from him, wiped it away until he felt stripped bare. He pressed his forehead tight against hers. “I can’t lose you. We talk to Doc about this, mi vida. If he says it’s too dangerous, we go from there. Give me your word on that.”

She hesitated. His grip on her tightened in warning. “Baby, I’m hanging on by a fucking thread here. I’m asking you to give me that.”

“You’re asking me to threaten the lives of our children.”

He shook his head. “No. I’m asking you to follow Doc’s advice. To listen to what he has to say. We’ll do what we have to do, even if that decision is a difficult one.”

She pulled back from him, her hand sliding to the nape of his neck, fingers curling even as tears welled up in her eyes. “Elijah.”