J.R. Ward the Black Dagger Brotherhood Novels 1-4 - J. R. Ward [298]
She watched him chew, his jaw working in circles. God, just looking at his lips made her breathless. “I don’t mean to offend you.”
“Well, you are. And I think you’re upsetting my dear twin while you’re at it.”
“What?”
Zsadist’s eyes lingered on her face, then drifted over her hair. He took another hunk out of the apple. “Phury likes you. I think he might even be attracted to you, which is a first, at least since I’ve known him. He doesn’t get distracted by females.”
Funny, she hadn’t gotten that vibe at all. Then again, she’d been focused on Zsadist.
“I don’t think Phury’s—”
“He keeps watching you. While you’re looking at me, he’s staring at you. And it’s not because he’s worried about you. His eyes are on your body, female.” Zsadist tilted his head to the side. “You know, maybe I was wrong. Maybe you are the one who’ll shake him out of his celibacy. Shit, you’re beautiful enough, and he ain’t dead.”
She flushed. “Zsadist, you should know that I, ah, I find you—”
“Revolting, right? Kind of like a good car accident.” He bit off some more apple. “I can understand the fascination, but you need to be taking those eyes elsewhere. Look at Phury from now on, we clear?”
“I want to look at you. I like to look at you.”
His eyes narrowed. “No, you don’t.”
“Yes. I do.”
“No one likes to look at me. Not even I do.”
“You’re not ugly, Zsadist.”
He laughed, deliberately running a fingertip down his scar. “Now, there’s a ringing endorsement. As well as a blatant fucking lie.”
“I find you mesmerizing. I can’t get you out of my mind. I want to be with you.”
Zsadist frowned, falling still. “Be with me exactly how?”
“You know. Be with you.” She blushed a brilliant red, but figured she had nothing to lose. “I want to…lay with you.”
Zsadist backed up so fast he hit the bar. And as the liquor bottles rattled, she knew for certain the stories about him were false. This was no female-killer. If anything, he seemed petrified by the thought that she was sexually attracted to him.
She opened her mouth, but he cut her off.
“You stay away from me, female,” he said, pitching the half-eaten apple into the trash. “If you don’t, there’s no telling what I might do to defend myself.”
“From what? I’m no threat to you.”
“No, but I can goddamn guarantee I’m hazardous to your health. There’s a very good reason why people stay away from me.”
He walked out of the room.
Bella looked at the all the people around the pool table. Everyone was focused on the game. Which was perfect. She didn’t want any of them to talk her out of what she was about to do.
She put her glass of wine down and slipped from the billiard room. As she came into the lobby, Zsadist was going upstairs. After giving him some time to get ahead of her, she took the steps quickly, moving silently up to the second floor. When she got to the top, she caught sight of the heel of his shitkicker disappearing around a corner. She jogged swiftly over the carpet, keeping a distance as he headed down a corridor that led away from the balcony and the foyer below.
Zsadist paused. She ducked behind a marble sculpture.
When she leaned out, he was gone. She walked to where she’d seen him and found a door slightly ajar. She stuck her head in. The room was pitch-dark, the light from the hall making little headway into the blackness. And it was freezing cold, as if the heat wasn’t just off for the night, but hadn’t been turned on since summer’s warmth had faded.
Her eyes adjusted. There was a broad, sumptuous bed, dripping with heavy crimson velvet. The other furniture was equally lavish, although there was something odd in the corner on the floor. A pallet of blankets. And a skull.
Bella was yanked inside by the arm.
The door slammed shut and the room plunged into total darkness. Quick as a gasp, she was spun around and pushed face-first into the wall. Candles flared.
“What the fuck are you doing here?”
She tried to