Chapter 387 No Dice Jonathan was worried about Rose getting cold. She would have been touched by his concern if he hadn't called her "wifey", which reminded her that what they had was a deal on paper-a consequence of mistakes and happenstance.
She could ignore that stinging fact if she were in Aquastead. But now that they were in Regalia, she had to admit Anastasia had given her a reality check.
"Don't call'wifey' so casually, Mr. Finch," Rose warned, her gaze distant and flickering with contempt.
The smile on Jonathan's handsface faltered slightly, but only for a moment. The corners of his lips were still tugged upward when he reached for Rose's hand.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtHowever, she drew back from him when his fingers grazed her hand. He heard her sneer the next second.
"You're making things hard for me, Mr. Finch. Don't you know where you are? It's not a good look for the head of the Finch family to be caught loitering outside Young Estate.
"Who knows what the media is capable of writing up if someone snapped a picture of you hovering here? The rumors could be damaging for both of us.
"Also, while I appreciate you helpinglast night in front of the press, you are still a member of high society. I'd rather you didn't say any of those things or behave that way in the future, lest someone gets the wrong idea." Rose wanted to keep the conversation brief and straight to the point. As such, she kept a cold and indifferent tone while delivering the harshest words she could think of.
She doubted Jonathan, who had been revered his whole life, could stand being condescended to like this.
Sure enough, the smile on Jonathan's face disappeared. His face turned stormy as he assessed Rose with narrowed eyes. She felt her heart sink to her stomach. Had she gone too far and stirred the angry beast in him? However, there was no taking back what she said. Perhaps angering the beast in him was what she needed to do to get her point across.
Further resolved, Rose added fuel to the fire she was building. "Besides, I'd like to marry for love one day! Ah-" Her startled cry pierced the silence of the night as Jonathan's hand clamped around her wrist. Before she could register what was happening, he reached his free hand out the car window and cupped the back of her head.
He drew her close, his handsface magnifying before her eyes. This close up, she could see the muscle in his jaw feathering with rage. When she realized what he was about to do, she made to pull away.
"Don't-" A wall was all that separated her from the funeral hall of Young Estate, where Oliver's ashes were. Jonathan could not do this to her.
Rose pressed her lips into a thin line, her body tightly coiled in resistance. Just as she thought he was going to kiss her or do worse, she felt his lips brush against hers in the lightest of strokes.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmThe next moment, she felt his warm breath tickled the delicate curve of her ear. She shuddered at the sensation just as Jonathan opened his mouth. A sharp pain shot up her neck, and she hissed. "Ow..." He actually bit her! Jonathan could have flayed her alive for what she said to him. He felt like his heart was cracking beneath his ribcage. But for all his rage, he dared not bite down hard on her neck for fear that he would hurt her in the process.
The air around them went still as he nipped her neck as if to punish her. He did not release her for a good while.
Rose did not struggle as she acclimated to the feel of his teeth against her bare skin. She let him do what he wanted. For a moment, the atmosphere was both odd and amorous.
Finley was still in the driver's seat, processing the shocking turn of events until he decided to close his The decide eyes to afford Jonathan and Rose smodicum of privacy. He even tried not to breathe too loudly, lest he interrupted them.
There was no telling how much thad passed before Jonathan was content to release Rose from his grip. He brushed the flat of his finger against the purplish-red mark he had left on her neck. He leaned his brow against hers, his
voice raspy as he said quietly, "I don't have to stay here all night, but if you plan to marry anyone else, no dice. You're mine, and you will only be mine. Is that clear?" All the thoughts eddied out of Rose's mind when she heard this. She made no reply.
Jonathan frowned at her silence, seemingly displeased by it as he growled again, "Was I not being clear? I guess I'll just have to show you what I mean, then..." X