THE BEDROOM CONFRONTATION
My heart hammered against my ribs, but that spark of defiance refused to be extinguished. "Haven't you ever heard the word 'no' before?" I asked, my voice trembling slightly but gaining strength with each word.
A cruel smile played at the corners of Lysander's mouth. "Oh, I hear it often," he said, his tone casual but laced with menace. "The guy whose throat I crushed, he said it over and over and over again until he couldn't say it anymore."
His words sent ice through my veins, but I couldn't back down now. "So you're going to crush my throat too?" I asked, hating how small my voice sounded.
Lysander's smile widened, cold and predatory. "No, that would defy the purpose of our marriage, don't you think?"
I scrambled for something, anything to say that might
