Page 75 of Bonded Chaos

With a groan, I rolled onto my back and flung my arm wide… where it collided with a hard, muscular chest.

“Oof.”

It appeared Ryker had returned to his chambers after all.

“Was that necessary, Cadence?” he rumbled, his voice still thick with sleep.

“That depends. Have you done anything to warrant my ire this early in the day?”

Ryker chuckled. “Who am I kidding? Of course you have.”

Then I recalled I already had reason enough to be irate where he was concerned.

“I had a pleasant chat with Lady Barrington yesterday. Care to guess the topic of our conversation?”

“The impressive length of my cock,” Ryker murmured as he buried his face in his pillow.

My anger simmered beneath a thin veneer of calm, and I sat up before reaching over and ripping the pillow away from him.

“This is serious,” I yelled as I slammed it into his head again and again.

“Cadence, fuck!” Ryker growled. “Give me the damn pillow.”

He gripped the silken edge of the cover and tore it out of my grasp. Ryker ran a palm through his messy hair, and for the briefest moment, I forgot why I was so angry with him.

But Ryker being Ryker reminded me of exactly why I detested the man.

“Well, don’t keep me in suspense. What were you and my fiancée chatting about?”

The faint smirk he wore, and the amused glint in his eyes, made me damn near homicidal.

“This isn’t a game, Ryker! The woman knows I am Seelie, and she threatened to divulge that tidbit to the whole godsdamn Unseelie Court!”

Ryker’s smirk faltered, and a shadow crossed his handsome features. But he remained composed, not allowing any further sign of his displeasure to slip past his calm mask of indifference.

“Celeste knows better than to cross me, Cadence,” Ryker said.

He sat up and made himself comfortable against the headboard, one arm slung behind his head, the picture of relaxed ease.

My hands curled into fists at my side, and I leaned in, invading Ryker’s space.

That was a mistake.

His intoxicating scent hit me with full force. The heady blend of wild earth and something… darker overwhelmed me, and I had to shake myself out of my reverie.

“Celeste warned that if I didn’t leave, she would expose me to the entire court and let them tear me to shreds. Does that sound like a woman who’s afraid to defy you?”

I glared at Ryker, allowing him to feel the full weight of my fury. “And you and I both know that her words are no idle threat. The hatred between the two kingdoms is renowned.”

Before I even registered what he was doing, Ryker gripped my waist in his large, calloused hand and pulled me beneath him. His face was close to my own, and his expression was so dark, I couldn’t tell if he intended to kiss me or devour me whole.

“There is no escaping me, Cadence,” he said in a low, dangerous tone.

My body stiffened before I pushed against his chest.

“Of course that’s all you heard?”

“You keep entertaining the idea that you can escape me, so I will continue to remind you of your place.”

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