Vicious Obsession

Chapter Fourteen

For a second, he froze, completely taken aback by the sudden impact. But the moment his brain registered the taste of my lips, his hand shot out, wrapping tightly around the back of my waist and yanking me flush against his chest.

He didn't just accept the kiss, he took it over.

His grip tightened, his fingers digging into the silk at my waist as he deepened the kiss with a fierce, possessive hunger that made my knees go weak.

All the built-up frustration, the anger from the restaurant, and the infuriating tension of the entire day melted into the heat pouring between us. I tangled my fingers in his dark hair, pulling him closer, letting out a soft sigh right into his mouth.

When he finally pulled back, it wasn't far. His forehead rested against mine, his chest heaving, his dark eyes ablaze as his breath brushed hot across my lips.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked, his voice low and raspy while I arched into him, desperate for more.

His lips were the only thing I needed right now, I needed it so badly that I wanted more but he pulled his lips slightly backward. "Why? Didn't you come to see how I was faring on my date?"

"No, I didn't," he murmured coolly. "I actually came here on a date with Cynthia. She's right over there."

He raised a lazy hand, pointing past the hood of the car, there at the far end, stood Cynthia instead a shopping mall, being attended to by a*****e manager.

Mortification bloomed across my face in a searing wave. I stumbled back three full steps, breaking away from his hold as if his touch had suddenly turned to ash.

I swallowed hard, my throat tight, blinking rapidly. *f**k. f**k! Shit.*

Elias stared at me, his sharp smile widening as he watched the utter shock settle into my features. "Did you really have to kiss me while *your* date is standing right over there?"

He gestured toward the entrance of Le Glastonbury. Valerius had just stepped out onto the marble pavement, his expensive suit stained dark with red wine.

Even from this distance, I could hear him screaming violently into his phone. The next second, a panicked assistant rushed to his side, only for Valerius to turn and land a brutal slap right across the man's face, his tirade echoing down the quiet street.

I stood frozen in the cool evening air, looking between Valerius throwing a tantrum in the background and Elias watching me with that infuriating, victorious gleam in his eyes.

My mind went completely blank. What the hell had I just done?

*Sandra, yeah, you did it. You finally let yourself kiss Elias. At the absolute worst possible time.*

"Isn't that Sandra?" I heard Cynthia's smooth voice call out from behind me. "Are you already done with your date?" she asked, stepping closer as I turned around to face her.

Did she see us? She must've seen us, because it was so obvious that...Was I even worried if she saw us or not?

My mind reeled. Why was she even out with Elias when she was supposed to be marrying Gideon? What on earth were the two of them doing together, and of all places, *here*?

I hated every single second of this blind date, and I hated Cynthia for putting it all in motion. It was entirely her fault.

"Oh, isn't that Valerius?" Cynthia continued, completely ignoring the tension radiating off me as she waved past my shoulder. I turned slightly to see him storming toward us, red wine still dripping down his lapels.

I rolled my eyes. "Don't bring me into this. Let me just go home," I said.

"Go home?" Cynthia echoed, her dark eyebrows curving upward. "Something happened, didn't it? I can tell by his clothes as he's coming. What on earth did you do?"

I snorted, bypassing her entirely. I yanked the back door of the car open, slid into the cool leather interior, and shut it tight. Mortification burned through my veins, I just couldn't wait to be home already.

Outside, they remained standing on the pavement. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but I knew without a doubt that they were talking about me.

*Sandra, calm down. Stop giving a damn.* But in moments like these, I desperately wished I smoked. *Holy s**t. s**t. s**t!* I needed a pillow right now just so I could scream my lungs out into it.

I tried pulling out my phone, but I couldn't focus enough to even look at the screen. Groaning, I tossed it onto the empty seat beside me and leaned back, closing my eyes.

It took another agonizing thirty minutes before I heard the car doors finally unlock. I opened my eyes, but refused to look up.

The front and side doors clicked open, and the next minute, Cynthia and Elias settled inside.

"Really? Seriously, Sandra? Did you really have to spoil the date?" Cynthia demanded as the engine hummed to life and the car pulled away from the curb.

"I'm not going to marry Valerius, just in case you actually want to hear what I have to say," I replied, keeping my eyes locked firmly out the window to avoid catching Elias's body in the rearview mirror.

What infuriated me most was that he knew everything. After all my arrogant bravado at breakfast about how ready I was for this date, the whole thing had crashed and burned in spectacular fashion and he had watched it happen.

Worse, I had practically handed him the ultimate ego boost by grabbing him and kissing him senseless the minute I walked out of that restaurant.

He was probably proud of himself silently right now. And why on earth did that kiss have to taste so good? Why was I sitting here replaying it, feeling that stupid heat curling low in my stomach?

*Sandra, can you even be saved at this point?*

"I am talking to you, Sandra!" Cynthia's sharp voice jolted me back to reality. I blinked, struggling to catch up with whatever rant she had been mid-sentence on while my mind was elsewhere.

"Do you even comprehend the gravity of the offense you committed against Valerius tonight?"

"Well, I'm still wondering why you're out with Elias when you're supposed to be getting married to Gideon," I retorted coolly. "Or did you finally change your mind?"

"Whether I change my mind or not is none of your business," she snapped back instantly. "Your opinion has never been needed in my life."

"Then why should your opinion be needed in mine?"

"I am your elder sister, and that is no way to speak to me!"

"Go f**k yourself, Cynthia."

"Did you hear that?!" Cynthia gasped, whirling toward the front seat in full indignation. "Did you hear what she just said to me? That ungrateful little brat!"

"Sandra..." Elias's deep, low voice cut through the cabin, pulling my eyes straight up to the rearview mirror. Our gazes locked in the glass. "That is no way to speak to your elder sister."

I snorted, biting my lower lip as I clenched my fists tight in my lap, feeling the slight vibration of the car as it scaled through the highways, the glittering streetlights of Sable City gliding past the window.

"f**k you too, Elias."

"Sandra!!!" Cynthia yelled, her voice pitching up in outrage. "That is no way to speak to my husband!"

"I don't want to hear another word! Can't you both just leave me the hell alone?!" I snapped back, my chest heaving as the walls of the car felt like they were closing in on me.

Without warning, the car swerved sharply across the lane, tires squealing against the asphalt as Elias hauled the wheel over and slammed on the brakes. The vehicle screeched to a halt at the edge of the heavily lighted roadside.

A heavy, suffocating silence fell over the entire car, broken only by the quiet hum of the idling engine.

"Sandra," came Elias's voice, terrifyingly calm and razor-sharp. "Get down."

I blinked, staring at the back of his head in disbelief. "What?"

"You heard me," he said smoothly, shifting the car into park, "Get down from the car. Now."