Part 21 (1/2)
”He can't hurt me here, Kas!” she yells back, exasperated by his over-protectiveness.
He pulls his chair out and guides her down into it as he grabs a file, placing it unopened in front of her. ”You have no idea what he's capable of,” his words ominous as his eyes darken. He opens the file and commands her to look.
Raina's hand flies to her mouth trying to stop the bile that shoots up her throat from the sight of the gruesome photos in front of her.
Kas gently takes her chin, forcing her gaze back to the file. ”This is the type of man he is, Raina. I doubt his hands caused these girl's deaths, but it was his orders that executed them.”
He sits on the edge of the desk and pulls her gaze up to his as he commands her sternly, ”You will not go near him again. Do not disobey me with this, Raina! If you even think of leaving this room, I swear I'll handcuff your stubborn little a.s.s to the chair.”
He slides off the desk, closing the file and locking it away before turning back to her, giving her one final warning with the seriousness behind his threat burning in his eyes.
Raina takes a shaky breath as she leans back in her chair. The images of the b.l.o.o.d.y dead bodies burn in her mind, and she wants to cry, but refuses to give the unseen satisfaction to the man she was mere inches away from less than five minutes ago. She wraps her arms around her middle, suddenly very cold.
Kas' threat rings in her ears, and she's a little afraid to move from her chair, never before seeing him so angry at her. She knows he wouldn't hurt her, he's only trying to protect her from the man that ordered the monstrosities of what happened to the girls in the photos, but she's pretty sure he wouldn't have any issues following through with what he said, if he thought it would keep her safe.
She hears a knock on the door, and she hesitates before leaving her appointed chair to open it.
Erik pulls her into a hug as he steps into the room, ”Been sent to your room, huh?”
Raina bites her lip and shrugs, thoroughly embarra.s.sed, ”More like his room.”
”Yeah, I heard. The walls are like paper here.”
Raina scoffs, ”So, I've heard.”
”You know he's just scared for you, right?” Erik asks her, playfully chucking her under the chin, ”he'll cool off.”
”I know,” she tells him as he wraps his arm around her shoulders.
”Wanna order some Thai food and spill the sauce on his carpet?”
Raina laughs, appreciating Erik's attempt to lighten the mood. ”Sure, but you're taking the blame if he finds the stains.”
Erik stays with Raina until Kas returns. He gives her one last chuck under her chin as he leaves, asking Kas not to be too hard on her.
”I guess I was pretty hard on you,” he admits, letting out a long breath when he looks at her. ”It's just that, with everything that's happened lately, and with what Parker's done to those girls, I can't stand the thought of something happening to you.”
”I know,” she whispers, giving one last glimpse at the chair he had threatened to handcuff her to. ”Did he talk?”
Kas grinds his teeth as he shakes his head, ”No.”
Raina wants to ask him to reconsider letting her try again, but decides to wait until he's calmed down and when his cuffs are nowhere near him.
”You hungry?” Kas asks, pulling her into his arms, feeling bad at how he yelled at her earlier.
She shakes her head, a small smile curving her lips, making Kas want to suckle her lip right then and there. ”I ate with Erik,” she begins, then her worried eyes shoot to his, quickly clarifying that she didn't leave the room, telling him they ordered in.
Kas sighs, wrapping his arms around her, happy she obeyed him, knowing how dangerous and powerful Prizrak is, but hating ordering her around.
Holding her hand as they walk to the jeep, he glances at her, a little worried about her reaction to his outburst. She leans into him, giving him some relief. He delivers a kiss full of everything he's feeling at the moment, trying to let her know how much he loves her.
It's past midnight when they get home, and they quickly get ready for bed. Raina snuggles up to Kas when he slides in bed beside her, laying her head on his chest, quiet for several minutes before finally asking, ”Would you really have hand-cuffed me to the chair?”
He sighs, gently slipping out from under her head and sitting up, ”Absolutely, darling.” He laughs at her puffed out lip and the indignation glaring in her eyes. ”I would never hurt you, Rain, but I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe, even if that means temporarily restraining you for your own good.”
She studies his face, confusing thoughts run through her head as she processes his soft threat. ”I don't want you to handcuff me,” she whispers, the thought causing her obvious emotional turmoil.
”You might like it, they can be a lot of fun” he teases, trying to ease her.
She rolls her eyes, ”I'm being serious, Kas.”
”I am too, darlin',” he laughs.
Despite his trying to lighten the mood, he sees her worry, ”Don't look at me like that, sweetheart, I'm not trying to scare you.” He stops, choosing his next words carefully, ”You do things sometimes without thinking of the consequences, and that can get you seriously hurt, or even dead, darlin'. I will do everything in my power to keep that from happening to you.”
”You put yourself in danger all the time, Kas, and you choose to do it, fully knowing the possible consequences. You have chosen to risk your life to save others, and that's your choice to make.” She pauses, not wanting to start an all-out war with her next words, ”We can't just let people continue to die because I won't talk to him, or because you won't let me talk to him. My helping to find these girls, to play Prizrak's game, that's my choice to make. Besides, I have you to protect me.”
She feels him stiffen next to her, sees the fire rekindle in his eyes, and she braces herself for his tongue las.h.i.+ng, but he remains quiet. She watches and waits for him to go into his all hyper-protective mode but he doesn't move. His silence unnerves her, and she sits up next to him, his unusual reaction making her nervous and fidgety, wondering what he is thinking right now.
”Say something” she whispers.
He lays his head back against the headboard as he stares at the ceiling, lost in deep thought. He sighs and runs his hands through his thick, dark curls, ”You're right.”
She stares at him vacantly, ”What?”
He turns towards her and grabs her hands, ”You're right, the lives of these girls may very well depend on your playing his game as far as talking with him.”
She sees his eyes turn dark again as he plays with her fingers in his lap.
”But, you are never to be in there with him alone, do you understand me? I will not budge on that, Raina,” he warns.
She lays her head on his shoulder, ”I promise.”
”Rain? You do know that I would never hurt you, right?” he asks, praying his rash reaction today didn't cause any regression.
”I have no doubts about you ever hurting me,” she a.s.sures him, her jade eyes s.h.i.+ning the truth of her words when she looks at him, causing him to visibly relax.
”Good, now go to sleep, it's late.”
She lays back down but can't stay still.
”What is it now, Rain?”
She peers at him from underneath her lashes, all shy and insecure, ”Now I'm-I'm a little curious about the handcuffs.”
A wolfish smile spreads across his lips, and a wicked gleam brightens his eyes, ”Well, then allow me to satisfy your curiosity, Mrs. Pierce.”