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She raised an eyebrow at me. “How was it my responsibility?”

“Because you have rules to follow, things you can and cannot do as a Sinclair. I’ve told you about it numerous times. You need to get your short-term memory checked. I think you’ve got something going on there. It’s not normal.”

Selena shoved me. “No, you’re the one who isn’t normal. You’re an absolute psycho.”

I just shrugged. “I’ve been called worse.”

“I bet you have! Why can’t I date Nick? Is it just him, or anyone?” she demanded.

I opened my mouth to tell her it was just him, that fucker who had called her names behind her back, but that wasn’t what came out.

“It’s anyone. Get used to that fact.”

She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. I’d made her speechless, which was really an accomplishment.

It didn’t last nearly long enough, though.

“What’s the endgame here, Brody? How long are you going to tell me how to live? Just this year, or next as well? What about when we graduate? When we’re older? Will you still be shoving your bullshit rules down my throat when we meet up for our parents’ ten-year wedding anniversary? I’ll still be a Sinclair then, won’t I?”

Not if I have my way.

“We’re not talking about the future, this is about tonight, and that guy…” I broke off. I could just tell her what he’d said about her and absolve myself of guilt. That would be the easiest thing to do. But, for some reason, the words just wouldn’t come out.

“You’re out of control.” She stepped back and looked at me up and down with shock on her face.

“No, I’m not.”

She shook her head. “You are. For all your discipline and manners and good behavior talk, you’re just like all the rest of us. You can lose it, too.”

I laughed. “I’ve not lost it, Selena. I’m giving you the consequences of your actions, that’s all. I warned you.”

She nodded and stepped close to me again.

“I won’t let you tell me what to do for the rest of my life. If I want to date, I will. If I want to sleep with someone, I will. You—you have no power over me,” she all but whispered.

The words swirled in my chest, tightening around my heart. She was so defiant, staring me in the eye, meeting my every attempt to control her with endless rebellion.

But then I saw the pulse pounding in her throat, the way her gaze darted around my face. There was nothing I wanted more in that moment than to erase the thought of any other man from this woman’s head. I wanted her full attention. Her time. Her smiles. They were supposed to be mine.

“If I want to get screwed by Nick, or anyone else, I’ll damn well do what I want?—”

I slid my hand into the thick hair at the nape of her neck, and her words died on her lips.

She stared at me, her plump lips slightly parted.

“No,” I growled. “If you need anything, anything at all…” I leaned in to bring our mouths within inches of each other.

Her breath brushed my skin.

“You come to me. That’s the rule.” Then I lowered my lips to hers.

Selena

I stilled,my brain short-circuiting. I could barely process what was happening. Brody was kissing me. Brody, my archnemesis. Brody, my stepbrother.

His tongue slid along my lips and surged inside, his mouth hot and hungry. His hand was in my hair, pulling just right, tilting my head in the direction he wanted it to go.

And it felt so good. It felt better than good.