Total pages in book: 168
Estimated words: 159420 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 797(@200wpm)___ 638(@250wpm)___ 531(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 159420 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 797(@200wpm)___ 638(@250wpm)___ 531(@300wpm)
Of course, he doesn’t listen. Fucking Grayson. If anything, he commands us to get out of here, and I scream. I hurl obscenities at Arsen, at Radisson, too, for holding me captive. Who then picks me up, and with me screeching in his arms, strides out of the godforsaken cabin.
He carries me into the night one-handed, my spine still plastered against his front and his arm around my belly, holding me prisoner no matter how hard I struggle. He bounds down those rickety stairs and keeps walking into the woods, his breaths harsh and his hold on me harsher. I scratch at his arms. I punch at his torso. I flail my legs about, but nothing I do makes him loosen his hold. Until my kicking and flying feet somehow catch him in the knee and he stumbles, cursing. That’s all I need. That’s my opening, and I put my entire body into pushing against him and his hold, at last breaking free.
I drop to the ground and I run.
I run and run through the deep woods, trying to make it back to the cabin so I can save my friend. The ground feels shaky beneath my feet and sharp brambles cut through my skin as I dash under the meager moonlight, but I don’t care. I have to get to her before that animal does something even more horrible. I can hear my own animal behind me, though, my hunter, my Phantom, chasing after me. His thundering footsteps make me pump my legs even faster. Somehow, I manage to burst through the clearing where the nightmare cabin sits. Panting and puffing, I make it to one of the windows at the back and what I see makes me go still.
Arsen sits in a chair, his back to the window, but I can see how wide his thighs are sprawled and how my friend is settled between them. Her clothes are all gone now and Arsen’s hand is tangled up in her hair as he looks down at her. I’d think she’d be in pain with how brutally he’s gripping her—I don’t need to be any closer than I am to be able to see that—but it’s not pain that’s painting my friend’s cheeks red, it’s the pleasure from it, from his possessive grip. Her eyes are glazed and her mouth is parted. She’s looking at him like she never wants to look away. Like Arsen is her entire world. I’ve never seen her like that before, and even though I knew something was happening between her and Arsen, it still comes as a stunning realization that my best friend is in love with him.
Before I can draw my next heaving breath, a hand covers my mouth. I gasp into it, or try to, but it’s too big for me, like I always knew, and its grip is so tight that my breath breaks. I feel his scent of leather and spices all around me and his heat as he rasps, “Told you to not let me catch you, didn’t I?” He squeezes his grip on my mouth, making me whimper. “But you didn’t run fast enough, Princess. Let’s see if you’re ready to play now.”
CHAPTER NINE
I’M UP ON a cliff.
After dragging me away from the cabin, he threw me over his shoulder and carried me into the night for the second time. I was too frozen by what I’d seen through the window to really grasp what was happening. It wasn’t until he stopped, righted my body, and brought me down before depositing me onto a saddle that I realized he intended for me to ride on a horse. The same white one he rode on that morning.
A horse.
My terror was so great that my limbs froze and everything became a blur. I don’t remember him climbing up behind me, but he did and then snapped the reins, so we took off. I also don’t remember what direction we took; what terrain, the passing trees or anything else we might have encountered, while he made his horse gallop and fly. And then, to make matters even worse, I realized we were climbing and I clenched my eyes shut. All through this, he kept a strong hold on me, his arm banded around my belly, and I dug my nails into his skin every time I felt like I was going to throw up. Every jolt made me want to scream, but I couldn’t find my voice to do that and my body shook with fear.
Until now.
We’ve finally come to a stop at the top and I manage to open my eyes. Wide-eyed, I stare at the endless night sky with countless stars surrounding us and the thick woods spread out beneath us. If the night felt dark and oppressive down there, it’s open and lit up here. The air’s fresh and cool, much cooler than it should be for summer, and the churning in my belly starts to calm down as I drag it into my lungs.