24

Word Count: 1796

~Kiva

Something feels different about tonight.

I feel like causing trouble.

As usual, Ark is on guard tonight outside my door. It's as if I can feel his physical presence, and no matter how much I toss and turn I can't get him out of my head.

I shove a pillow over my face, groaning. This has to be because of Ark's torturous rule that I can't touch myself.

It's not like I think we will have sex...I just want to talk, to have him entertain me for an hour or so.

Biting my lower lip, I look around my room for a way to innocently get his attention. It needs to be enough that he will come into my room without asking my permission.

Gently, I press my bare feet to the floor and stand, making my way to my dresser.

"You're going to regret this, Kiva," I murmur to myself as I sift through my drawer for my prettiest night dress.

Quietly, I change into a blush pink one. I doubt the colour will impress him much, but it's faintly sheer nature might.

And then, after drawing in a breath of confidence. I knock my lamp onto the ground.

It makes a horrific enough bang that I wince, quickly leaning down to grab it.

"What's going on in there?" Ark calls through the door.

"Nothing, Ark." It's ambiguous enough that I know he won't let it pass by unchecked.

The door opens and Ark strolls confidently in. When I'm changing or don't want him to look at me, I usually screech a warning at him through the door not to come in.

So I can imagine his shock as he pauses just as the door clicks shut, seeing me stooped on the ground to collect the broken lamp wearing almost nothing.

"Woah...Kiva." His voice is unfamiliar. It's darker, heavier.

"Sorry. I broke this..." I look over my shoulder at him.

He swallows tightly, turning to stalk back out the room. "I'll leave."

"Wait. No."

My tone sounds strangled enough, desperate enough that he pauses, hand hovering over the door handle. I force back my grimace, not ready to release him from this uncomfortable moment just yet.

"Is there something else you need?" He asks.

"Can you help me? I've made a mess." I gesture down to my lamp, the fabric shade having broken off, left mangled and unsalvageable. Even the bulb itself has shattered, leaving shards of broken glass all over my floor.

Ark swallows, as if he forgot that he would usually be straight to assisting me without me needing to request it.

"Yes. I can."

He's by my side in an instant, brushing my hands away from the mess, tending to it himself.

I stare at the side of his face, the beautiful lines highlighted by the moonlight streaming through my window. His jaw is clenched so tightly it looks like it hurts.

"Everything okay?" I ask softly, watching him adeptly collect the glass, sweeping it into the trash.

He doesn't look at me. "You're not dressed..."

His gaze doesn't so much as drift in my direction as he works. It's like my body offends him, but in reality, it's because he doesn't believe he has the restraint.

"I was almost asleep," I tell him, smoothing my hands down over the fine, sheer material.

Ark gets to his feet, having managed to clean up the mess from my lamp in expert time.

"I'll leave you too it," he mumbles, turning to the door.

"Wait...I still want to talk."

I don't want him to leave. Not yet. I'm so bored, so tired of thinking about my mate, about Caspian. Ark is this dark, forbidden presence in my life that intrigues me. I want him near me, even when I know I shouldn't.

"About?" He doesn't turn to leave. He could, but he remains rooted in his place, watching me.

"I don't know...anything," I say casually, sitting on the edge of the bed.

Ark's gaze darkens, pushing the door shut slowly. "I'm assuming you want to start by talking about how wound up you are because you haven't gotten off in a while."

I narrow my eyes. "How do you know?"

Of course it's obvious. He knows I want him, and I know he wants me, he just has to admit it. My father won't find out, so his job won't be at risk...there is a deeper reason for him holding back.

He tilts his head to the side. "I'm just observant."

"Would you prefer I find someone else to sate me?" I ask him lowly, taunting him.

Something shifts in him. No longer is he uncomfortable by my lack of dress, stalking toward me in such a way that makes me painfully aware of his staggering height and sudden confidence.

"Have you forgotten your training already, Kiva?" Even though his words suggest otherwise, it feels as though he is seducing me.

I smile. "I'm choosing to disregard it."

"I thought you hated me." His voice drops lower, softer.

It's more of a question than a statement.

I sit up a little straighter, deciding honesty is all I can offer right now. "I hate that you hate me. That you don't want me."

I'm very aware that I sound like the spoiled brat Ark hates. He told me once, flippantly while training, that as a Princess, my ability to get anything I wanted shouldn't include men. I was in a good mood that day, so I didn't argue back much...

Now I think he refuses to even kiss me not because of professionalism, but because he doesn't want me to get my way.

Ark inclines his head. "Who's to say I don't want you?"

"Well, do you?" I ask breathlessly.

He considers me, like he's contemplating a long night of sex on the very bed I sit on. If that is what he is thinking about, I want in on that fantasy.

"You think you want me, but I don't think you could handle what I would do to you." His stare is relentless.

I shift my hair off my shoulders, feeling his words glide across my skin. "I could..."

"I'm not sure I would be the kind, gentle lover your sweet Caspian would be," he warns quietly.

A powerful thrill overcomes me. Suddenly, my want for him is so overwhelming, it's painful.

He stands there, dressed in his usual black ensemble, but under the low light, he looks more sinister than I remember. I shouldn't want him like this, or at all, but it's as if my body is calling to him.

"What would you do to me right now, if you could?" My voice doesn't sound like my own.

"Why don't I show you?" He gestures for me to stand in front of him.

Scrambling up to my feet, I oblige him. I'm ready for whatever he wants to give me, no questions asked.

"Please," I whisper.

The corners of his lips tilt up wickedly. "On your knees. Now."

I sink to my knees, obeying him like I would do was this just another training session. He stands over me, like he owns me, like he is free to do whatever he pleases with me.

"Spread your legs apart," he murmurs, nudging at my leg with his foot, nodding as I do so. "Just like that."

"Now what?" I look up at him through my lashes.

His eyes convey dark, sensuous promises. "Bow your head for me."

I dip my head down, closing my eyes as anticipation buzzes through me. What does he have planned for me? I can't wait to find out...

Ark couches down. "Now, sit there and think about how you can stick up for yourself against your father if your training is successful."

I look up, stunned. "Ark!"

He holds his hand out before I can get up. "Uh ah, move and you can't even begin to imagine the pain you'll be in after tomorrow's training session."

Gritting my teeth, I get up regardless, ready and willing to kick him straight in the face, but he straightens too quickly.

"I know you desire me. I know you want me," I growl. He can play as many games as he likes, I know he wants me...

His eyes flash. "You know nothing."

"You're trying to do your job, to help me be a better person, but you're just torturing me!" I exclaim wildly, throwing my hands up.

I can't tell if I hate him or I want him. He looks as though he's teetering on the edge of insanity.

"Perhaps a little resistance in your otherwise easy life would be invaluable," he says, stepping back and away from me, as if getting any closer would crumple his resolve.

"My life is not easy," I growl.

He angles his head, gaze drifting over my face.

"For now, it is. These few weeks have be tough, I'll grant you that." He frowns a little, thinking back to the break-in's, to my life being put in danger multiple times.

My stomach twists. These few weeks have been difficult because of him, and my mate, and Caspian. These break-in's...I hardly worry about it anymore.

It's out of my hands.

"I can't believe you're tormenting me with all your long stares and sexual insinuations just for my own character development. That's sick," I snap.

He steps forward, forcing me back a few steps until the backs of my knees hit the bed.

"What do you want from me, Kiva? You want to disobey my commands for my pleasure?" he growls lowly, leaning so close I can feel his breath brush against my face.

"My pleasure too," I remind him breathily.

"Your desires are founded on a deep hatred for me. You want me in my most vulnerable state to prove something to yourself." His gaze flickers down to my lips.

"Or maybe it's because everything you do turns me on, and angers me at the same time."

It feels good being this honest. Liberating. Even if it's going to have untold consequences soon enough....

"Mark my words, if you continue to push me, you will draw yourself into a world you know nothing about," Ark says darkly.

I want it...I want whatever he is insinuating.

"I can handle it," I assure him.

He looks over me, shaking his head. "And that proves how unready for me you truly are."

With one last look, he turns, leaving me breathless and confused as he slips from my room.

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I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! and as always it is available 10 chapters ahead on Radish!

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~Midika 💜🐼