His eyes narrowed, his face unreadable.
“I told you before, and I will repeat it for the last time, so pay attention. I need your attention only on me,” he said, each word deliberate, almost biting. “The rest is irrelevant. Do I make myself clear?”
The possessiveness in his tone sent a shiver down her spine. He wasn’t asking. He was claiming. She nodded slowly, heart pounding. He gave a sharp hum of approval.
But then, something changed.
His eyes flicked to her dress. To the torn fabric. To the pale skin beneath—marked faintly, discolored in patches by bite marks and scratches.
She noticed the exact moment his expression twisted.
It darkened.
Deepened.
What happened? she asked herself in sudden worry. She sat up slowly, careful of her still-uneven breathing.
“What is it?” she aske
