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A long, white robe draped hith, and oh, oh, oh, but he had brought the chill of the Arctic with him She drew her arms around herpassed over his expression, so she couldn’t read, before he carefully blanked his features "You are well"

I will not be intimidated, and I absolutely will not be awed by his appearance Annabelle forced herself to unleash the ire she’d been nursing "And you are a douche You made me a prisoner, after I told you I’d rather die!"

Far from intimidated, he said, "That is no way to speak to erous hty Zacharel actually feels so," she said snippily "It’s a Christest you sweeten your tone Otherwise, I ht take you at your word and kill you How about that?"

She gasped, stepped back until she hit the edge of the bed and almost fell "You wouldn’t dare Not after you went to sodarkened his eyes "I killed my own brother, Annabelle There is no one I will not take down"

Wait, wait, wait He’d done what? "You’re lying" He had to be lying

He snapped his teeth at her, re her of an injured animal in too much pain to accept aid from anyone "I do not lie There is no need People lie because they worry over the consequences of ad People lie because they wish to impress those around them I seek to impress no one You would be wise to remember that"

Hoas this the same man who had cared for her so sweetly? "Why did you kill your brother?"

"That is none of your concern"

She persisted "How did you kill your brother?"

Silence

"An accident?"

"Annabelle!"

A chastisement if ever she’d heard one Fine She’d drop the subject for now The wounded-anih Whatever he’d done, he suffered for it

"Why are you letting hten you? And I do frighten you, no matter what you say Why else would you lockto drain from him "You mean to bait me with that question, I think You hope to e never to lock you up again"

"No" Well, maybe a little

"Did you wish to leave my cloud?"

"I wished to leave the room"

"And failed in your attempt"

"Your cloud was the failure, not me"

He rolled his eyes "Why did you wish to leave?"

Rather than lie--or slap hiain as he so richly deserved--she tossed his earlier words back at him "That is none of your concern"

Were the corners of his lips twitching? "Did you want to see me? Speak to me?"

Every word caused heat to deepen in her cheeks "I will not answer those questions, either"

"Sirl You have realized it is better to refuse me than to lie to me But with your nonanswers, you have told me what I wanted to know Yes, you wished to see el "Look Either you proain, or I bail sooner rather than later And I realize that’s not really a deterrent for you, but those are the only options I’ain lock you in this room"

He offered the vow so easily, she was momentarily taken aback "Well, okay, then"

"You will stay?"

"Yes" For a little while longer, because she wasn’t sure where else to go…or how to return to earth without spilling her guts "But enough about e his mind "Did you have to be sothe fact that she’d been spying

His gaze flicked to the empty space beside her, narrowed and returned to her "You watched me" The words were velvet, soft in a way he probably hadn’t intended All the while, vapor puffed in front of his face, adding to the erotic-dream factor

This isn’t your business, Miller And yet she nodded to encourage him to continue "I did," she said, and the scent of hi to every inch of her…nearly sent her to her knees How had she missed its allure before thisunder that fall of hair "Hoas I mean to her? I simply told her the truth"

"You told her the truth, sure, but you did it with no concern for her feelings" Do not reach out and brush that hair away

"Yes, and she kissed ht Okay That changed everything Annabelle had been forcibly kissed before, and she had hated every moment of it She had lashed out at the culprit, too His reaction was understandable