Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 56021 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 280(@200wpm)___ 224(@250wpm)___ 187(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56021 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 280(@200wpm)___ 224(@250wpm)___ 187(@300wpm)
Wrath smiles at me in a broad, pleased way. I’d call it smug, but it is beyond smug. It is the smile of a male who quite literally cannot lose because the game is not over until he says it is. Lettie is having her ass whipped right now, and Shan, who was a traitor, is now serving his will again too. I feel as though I am finally understanding Wrath in a way I didn’t before. I assumed he was a smart, sexy bad guy. But he’s way more than that. He’s a tactical genius.
“Thorn’s never been the alpha, has he? You let him have that big house, and you let him ride his machines around, but he is stuck having to be one thing. He has to follow rules and laws. But you can be anything. You can do anything.”
I wait to see if he is going to deny it — but Wrath has never been one to play small.
“You’re quite perceptive, Allie,” he says. “I knew I liked you the moment I met you. I saw through the frightened little servant, just as you saw through the outlaw. I know what you are. I know you are stronger than you want anybody to know you are. I know that you are a deserving mate. More than that, you are my match.”
I smile at him, feeling a very particular kind of warmth sinking through me. I hid my past from everybody it could be hid from. I even managed to make myself forget about it. But he saw it in me anyway. He saw my strength, my resilience, and the darkness. He knew that I had done wrong, and he never judged me for that, not even for a moment.
“Bwitch,” the baby giggles again.
“We are going to have to find some other word to entertain her. And a name. This is starting to become ridiculous. At this rate, she’s going to be a hundred years old and still being referred to as baby,” I say.
“I’m sure she’ll pick up all sorts of monikers over the years,” Wrath rumbles, amused.
I feel satisfied and content in a way I have not felt in a very long time. There is something about being in this shelter with Wrath and a baby. I like the quiet domesticity of it. I like the sense of belonging that it makes me feel. And I like the way there is no part of me that is not welcome in this room. I don’t have to pretend to be a simple cleaner, or a wild pirate. I can be those things, and an ex-soldier, and a woman of the night. I have been the best and the worst, and now I am simply his.
“Is this our happily ever after?”
“It’s our happy for now. They’ll be coming for us eventually.”
“Who?”
“All of them,” he says. “My people, Thorn’s people, probably Adaine’s people. Our disappearance will create chaos in Grave City. Sullivan will want her ship back. Thorn will want to know what happened. Those loyal to me will want me to return. Lettie’s rampage will continue to ripple through saurian society for months if not years to come. She’s an influential figure no matter what way one looks at it.”
A tap at the door of the shelter heralds Shan. Wrath calls out to him, and he pokes his head inside. “We’re ready to have the baby back now,” he says. “Thank you for taking her.”
“Of course. Anytime. She’s a joy.”
Shan smiles broadly. He seems to be in a good mood. I’m sure he got laid, and I’m sure he got a lot of his frustrations out. I’d say I hope Lettie is okay, but I know she is. That woman seems to be able to do anything and survive it.
I hand him the baby, and he leaves Wrath and me to ourselves.
“So,” Wrath says. “Now is my chance to deal with you.”
“Me?” I squeak the word.
“I told you, if those other two left camp, you’d be the one getting it.”
“You can’t be serious,” I gasp as excitement courses through me. “That’s not fair.”
“Life isn’t fair,” he says, lowering his voice to a commanding tone. “Come here.”
I do as I am told, because I want to. No order that involves getting close to Wrath is going to be ignored.
He puts a powerful finger under my chin and tips my head up to make me look at him.
“You are going to be their whipping girl.”
I feel another tingle of anticipation. He is playing with me, but there is something in his eyes that tells me he is going to play rough. I can’t wait. I missed him while he was gone, and I have needed his attention in this way. I did not get to come when he fucked me on our first day here. I have been waiting to be allowed orgasm all this time.