Hate or Love

Dare To Say

Only when she approached the tower Victor had been standing and looking at her as if she had betrayed him, Estelle felt a lump of nervousness on her throat.

What was she going to tell him? Of course she couldn't tell him she was talking with David about how he was her mate and how difficult it was to hate him, but then again she didn't own Victor any explanation. They weren't lovers and they would never be.

So why was she here? Thinking how she would convince him there was no one else but him?

Estelle swallowed down hard when she took sight of him. His back was facing her, and his hand were locked behind his back, as always when he was serious and cold. Which meant most of the time.

Suddenly this felt harder than Estelle had first thought. What she was going to tell him when he didn't even turn to look at her, despite feeling her presence?

"Victor?" Estelle called, in the meantime hating how vulnerable her voice had sounded. He did not answer, nonetheless. "Are you really not even going to look at me?" She continued, suddenly hurt, and upset too. He had absolutely no right to treat her like that.

Estelle had thought she hated when Victor became his arrogant, god-complex self with her. She hadn't known him ignoring her would be what she really hated.

Victor finally decided to turn and look at her, but his face didn't give anything away. Maybe he was being pity, but he didn't give a damn about it. "I'm looking at you now. Was this what you wanted?" He questioned in a cold voice.

A shiver ran down her spine at his emotionless gaze. "I know what you saw," she whispered, looking anywhere but not at him.

"Really? What did I see?" The sarcasm that dripped from his voice made Estelle feel guiltier somehow, when in fact she had nothing to feel guilty about.

"Victor!" She demanded. "Can you stop with this, please? David is my friend."

For her surprise, he let out a bitter chuckle that made the breath get caught on her throat. "Do all your friends want to marry you, Estelle?" Just the way he said her name between gritted teeth caused another shiver run down her spine.

This was it about Victor. He didn't get mad. Or rather he did, so much, but he kept it inside instead and showed what he really wanted to. The way he knew how to control his emotions, how he always had the upper hand in an argument made him even more turning on if that was even possible at this point.

"You're being irrational," she told him, trying to soften his heart somehow. "What you saw was me telling David he had to wait for his mate."

Despite not showing any emotions, Victor's hands had turned into fists, and he could feel his inner anger almost snapping. "Why did you feel the sudden urge to tell him that? Because he told you he wanted you?" He accused, but in the end wasn't what he was saying partly true? "He wants you, huh Estelle? He really thinks he can get you from me by acting all sweet and charming." His eyes had turned a bit lighter, his voice almost deadly. "Do you want him too? This is what this is about? I take you as a guest in my court and you betray me with one of my damn Lords?"

"Can you please hear me out?" Estelle insisted, this time more demanding, not leaving it up for discussion. When she realized he wasn't going to interrupt her with more accusations, she kept going, "To answer your question, no, I don't want him. I told you that day I never considered marrying him and you should have trusted me," she said, defiantly. "David just asked for my forgiveness. It was his father that basically forced him to go along with it, he just wanted to please him."

"What is it about some people wanting to please their fathers, dead or alive?" The almost cruelty that came out of his mouth felt like it pierced her skin and went right through her flesh.

She gasped and then narrowed her eyes at him. "I literally hate you, I don't understand why I'm wasting my time explaining things to you," Estelle snapped. "I own absolutely nothing to you."

Victor's sight became a bit darker after hearing the words. "You own nothing to me?!" He asked, making a few steps towards her, and just as he expected, she made a few back. "You're my goddamn mate."

"The mate you know damn well you'll never have."

Victor held her angry gaze for a second, and then he started laughing mechanically. "Little wolf, I already have you." His voice dropped, becoming lower and huskier. "You are mine."

He stood right in front of her now, and it took Estelle all her inner-strength not to cower back, or look away from his eyes. "I am not." She was thankful for not appearing weak, although her wolf was already whining for her mate on her head. "I am no one's property, and especially not yours. I'll never be yours!"

His thumb traced her face tenderly, dropping down as his fingers curled around her neck. Not squeezing, but it was as if they were squeezing anyway.

Estelle's knees almost dropped her on the floor. She felt suddenly weak, exposed, vulnerable.

And extremely, extremely aroused.

She tried keeping eye contact, but that was suddenly too hard. Not only because he was much taller, but because the domination on his face was obvious.

"You aren't mine, you said." Victor slightly c****d his head to his right. "Is that right?"

"Yes."

The hand squeezed just a little bit and her lips parted, her body suddenly in flames as they kept staring at each other. "Victor..." she whispered needily, and that was enough for him to crash his lips into hers.

Her arms wrapped around his neck instinctively as his other arms flushed her to his body possessively, while they kissed in a kind of hunger they had never had for each other, not even at Walton's residence.

Estelle let him possess her mouth, suck on her lips almost painfully but that was all she wanted and needed. Running her hands in his hair to bring him impossibly closer to her, to feel him on her fully, she let out a breathy moan on his mouth that urged Victor to kiss her deeper, to take her mouth even when they were both out of breath, in a need for air.

Air could be damned, what he needed was her.

Estelle held on his shoulders but he didn't let her separate herself from him. Instead he took her bottom lip in between his teeth and sucked it hard, and once again Estelle moaned, the noise almost driving him crazy.

When Victor let her lips free, she didn't open her eyes. Instead she inhaled his breath, their lips only a few inches again.

Once again Victor traced her cheek with his thumb, his other fingers raising her chin so she could open her eyes and finally look at him, as his thumb stopped on her swollen bottom lip, playing with it just the way he could play with her feelings.

"Dare to say you aren't mine again," Victor challenged in a deep voice.

Estelle didn't answer, she didn't dare this time. She could only clench her thighs together and feel something tighten inside her stomach as she looked at him through hooded eyes.

"Dare to say you don't belong to me," he continued, tracing her lip still. "That you haven't given up to me entirely. That your body doesn't burn for me." His fingers were replaced by his lips that brushed her skin tenderly, and immediately she closed her eyes shut. "Lie to yourself all you want, your body knows it. It knows who it belongs to. It knows that you are mine."

She had to bit on her lip so she wouldn't let out the whimpers of her wolf inside her head. Yet, for her complete and utter surprise, he let go of her almost abruptly, and instantly her skin felt cold at the absence of his touch, of his lips.

His eyes had turned cold again. "For his own sake, stay away from him," he ordered all of the sudden. "Otherwise I'll rip his heart out like I did to your father, and I'll enjoy every bit of it."

Tears prickled her eyes as soon as the words left her mate's mouth, and she had to bit them back not to let him know how much her heart ached. Yet, one rebellious tear managed to escape her eye, and she wiped it away angrily. "David was right... you are heartless and murderous."

"He told you that?" Victor raised his blond brows. "Then he's probably right. He should be scared."

Estelle's mouth opened wide at his opened threats. "You are mad."

"And you are mine," he claimed. "The sooner you accept that, the better."