“Please, don't.” It was all I could manage. His power was magnetic, drawing me to him in unnatural ways. I was caught in the middle of the turmoil, fighting to deny the many urges that taunted me. Why did giving in have to be so wrong?
I gasped when he touched me. His hands were warm from his recent feed. It was like being zapped with electricity. The crackle of our power meeting was startling. Like the last time Harley had physically touched me, I ached for more of him. I knew it was the illusion of his power; his touch was meant to stir the wanton desire coiled deep inside me.
Yet, I wasn't supposed to react like every other victim he claimed.
Harley ever so slowly slid his hands down my upper arms to my elbows and then to my wrists. His fingers wrapped around each of my wrists in a grip that was sensual and commanding but not controlling or binding. My resistance continued to fade. This was all kinds of awful. He was taking me down faster than he had the time I'd been here against my will. If I'd learned anything from Harley, it was that I was a weak fool with a lot more to learn than I'd thought.
“Consider this your first lesson, lovely lady,” he murmured low, his lips close to my ear. “Your power is your weapon, no different than fangs or claws. Weakness is your first enemy. Don't ever walk into battle unprepared unless you're ready to die your mortal death.”
I shuddered, and though I longed for it to be disgust, it was pleasure. I found some solace in the fact that I was bonded to Arys. Harley couldn't bind me or kill me.
However, that only ruled out two of the things he longed to do to me. There were many others.
His grip tightened around my wrists until my heart pounded. I knew I had to pull away. I could throw him off me with no more than a thought. I didn't do it simply because I didn't want to. He held me under his thrall, and I didn't want to fight it. Fuck that. I had to.
“Tell me, Alexa, do you want me to stop?” He released my wrists suddenly. With one hand he entwined his fingers through mine, sending a shock of power through me. I was ready to melt into a puddle at his feet, just that fast.
With his other hand, he swept my hair to the side so that it no longer hid my neck.
Alarm bells went off inside my brain. My voice was steady, but my knees were weak.
“Yes. I want you to stop.”
It was partly true. I really did want him to stop. He'd once told me that I was more powerful than he was. The difference was that he knew how to use his and very well at that. His abilities were rooted in desire and pleasure in its many forms. It came second nature to him. I longed to control myself with such ease.
“Then stop me.” He nuzzled my hair, deeply inhaling my scent. He groaned, and I knew that it wasn't only my control being tested now. This could get messy.
I concentrated hard on pushing him away. I felt his resistance like a brick wall behind me. He chuckled at my failed attempt. The touch of his fangs against my bared neck was as heavenly as it was horrifying. I was definitely afraid, and still, a part of me wanted him to bite me. Harley's bite was powerful, almost as intoxicating as Arys'. This man knew the taste of my blood, my essence. It couldn't come to that again. I was stronger than that.
Our joined hands provided the link I needed. I'd hurt Harley before. I could have killed him if Arys hadn't stopped me. He trusted me, too. The knowledge was sobering.
Focusing on our physical connection, I pushed power into him with the intent to hurt, just enough juice to warn him that I wasn't a willing victim. I wasn't there to play.
He reacted by jerking me hard against him so that I stumbled. My legs were like jelly. I was surprised that they held me at all. The sharp points of his teeth pressed into my flesh, and I waited for that second when they would plunge through the surface. With a groan, Harley gave me a push, releasing me entirely.
“Go on, Alexa. Get out of here now before I do something you'll regret later.” His eyes were wild and solid black. “Next time you come, don't make the same mistake. You weaken yourself and affect the will of every metaphysical being around you by doing so.
And God, how I ache to hurt you right now.”
Harley was as unpredictable as a rabid dog. I knew that, so I ignored the wicked voice in my head that wanted to dare him to try to hurt me. His power was so much like Arys' and my own, yet it wasn't. His wasn't a part of me. We weren't bound. It was like the slightest taste of forbidden candy; how could I not want more?
Taunting him into losing control was the last thing my rational mind wanted. The rest of me could just shut up and suffer. I had learned something in my brief visit. My own physical state was directly tied to the metaphysical. And, it could affect others. That could be useful if I could manipulate it at will. It was something I certainly planned to keep in mind.