Page 52 of Hidden By the Gargoyle

His hand at my throat spasmed, gripping me for a moment. But it was the hand between my folds that got my attention. His fingers tensed and one slipped inside my pussy, just a little.

“Is this list written down somewhere?” he asked.

“No, it’s a mental list,” I answered, wondering why that was his first question.

“Maybe it should be.”

It was my turn to ask, “Why?”

“I told you that if we do this, we do it my way. And that means all of it, so I’ll be the one to choose what we mark off on your list.”

I tensed against him. “I thought?—”

“That I only meant tonight? No.” He lowered his head, his lips moving from my ear to my throat. He spoke against my damp skin, bringing goosebumps up on my arms and making my nipples harden.

“I meant every time, Ally. Every time I touch you.” His tongue came out to draw a line down the side of my neck. “Every time I fuck you. It will be my way.”

I shivered and felt him smile against my skin.

“And I promise you will enjoy every second of it.”

“But I want?—”

“You’ll get what you want….” He nipped the muscle where my shoulder and neck met. “Eventually.”

While my body was heating up, my brain was churning rapidly. Did that mean I couldn’t touch him when I wanted to? That everything had to be on his terms?

That was when my stomach sank. He was going to give me everything I wanted, but no control.

Which meant I wouldn’t have what I truly needed—his heart.

ChapterTwelve

The next day was Sunday, Dax’s only day off for the week. When I woke, I was shocked to see that the sun was already fully up and he was lying next to me, still sleeping.

I stared at his face in the bright morning light, taking in the angles of his cheekbones and the heavier ridge of his brow. His face was relaxed in sleep. He didn’t look younger, but there was a peacefulness that I rarely saw from him.

“You’re staring,” he said, his voice rougher than usual. I loved the sound of it. He sounded sleepy. And sexy.

“I am,” I agreed.

“Why?” he asked, not opening his eyes.

I didn’t want to admit I’d been gazing at him with longing and love, so I quipped, “Just wondering if you were okay since the sun’s up and you’re still in bed.”

Dax opened one eye to look at me, the dark blue iris looking brighter in the morning light. “As I recall, I was up half the night, checking some things off your list.”

I bit back a laugh. After our joint bath, the darn gargoyle had actually tracked down a piece of paper and pen and made me write down my list. Then, he’d checked off a couple of items, such as trying cowgirl position and oral sex because we’d already accomplished that. When I’d protested and tried to explain that I meant giving oral sex, not receiving it, he’d ignored me.

So, I’d snatched the pen away from him and written GIVE A BLOW JOB in all caps at the end of the list. Which had made him laugh. Something I always loved to see.

Dax didn’t laugh a lot, but he did laugh the most with me. Sometimes with Minerva. But I rarely saw it with anyone else.

Now that I was paying attention, I saw another way that Minerva was right. He treated me differently. He was more open with me. More human. He expressed emotion. It simultaneously warmed my heart and hurt it at the same time. I hated that I was the only person he lowered his guard around. But I also loved that he felt safe enough around me to do it.

“Where’d you go?” Dax asked, interrupting my thoughts.

I blinked and focused on him again. “I was just thinking of things to add to my list,” I lied.

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