Page 81 of Monster

“Brush your teeth,” he answered calmly, and, if I wasn’t mistaken, with a bit of mirth, pissing me off further.

Any shyness I might have over my own nakedness was pushed back and replaced with my anger.

“I can’t just brush my teeth like this.”

I tried to shove past him, but he stood immobile in the doorway. He wrapped my hair in his fist and tugged slightly, so I looked up at him. My anger, though still very much present, moved to make room for the wariness I was suddenly feeling from the dark look in his eyes.

“Perhaps you’ve forgotten you’re not in charge here, wildcat. I am. And if you leave this bathroom without getting ready first, I have no problem reminding you.”

His hungry gaze moved up and down my body, telling me exactly what he meant when he said he would remind me.

I took a step back, and he let me.

I didn’t need a reminder.

He shot me a vicious smile, baring sharp teeth, and walked out.

I stood there for a beat before I turned and looked at myself in the mirror, taking in my flushed skin.

I quickly glanced away.

If he was trying to keep me compliant by confusing and scaring the ever-living hell out of me, he was succeeding. I was fucking confused. And fucking terrified.

It wasn’t that I had forgotten who Dominic was. It was just easier to forget when he was touching me so intimately. When he was kissing me.

I kept my gaze downcast as I quickly brushed my teeth and washed my face. A jar of the moisturizer I used was brought yesterday and stored in the bathroom, and I slathered it on my skin. I tried to be quick about it, not wanting to stand in the bathroom naked.

I wasn’t exactly shy, but that didn’t mean I felt comfortable standing around like this.

Still, it was the longest ten minutes of my life, and when I walked out, Dominic was dressed and ready for his day in his signature fitted T-shirt and dark jeans. The shirt today was a navy blue that brought out the color of his eyes and stood out nicely against his naturally tan skin.

I bit my lip and looked away, not wanting him to see the expression on my face.

The fact that he was fully dressed for the day only highlighted my nakedness.

He grabbed my hand and led me to his walk-in closet, showing me all the clothes I had bought the day before.

I was quiet, still reeling.

Dominic was the same man he was before. Still as confident as ever—arrogantly so. But there was something different about him this morning that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

Something much more potent… morepossessive.

I did not want to be in the possession of a monster.

Yet I didn’t knowwhyhe was different this morning or why he decided to say all that shit about keeping me.

He wasn’t keeping me.

He couldn’t.

Could he?

Dominic might rule the city, but even he couldn’t get away with abduction, right?

My thoughts sounded naïve, even to me.

I watched him shift through all the colorful clothing, a stark contrast against the side of the closet where he kept his clothes, all of which were dark and neutral. He settled on a soft pink summer dress and took it off the hanger.

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