Page 28 of Liberating Lily

The side of his mouth twitched as though he was holding back a smile. “Right.”

“You know that’s wrong, right?” She crossed her arms over her chest.

When he said that she couldn’t say no . . . was he talking in all things? Including . . . sex?

She swallowed. What would she do if he tried to have sex with her? To touch her?

Could she cope with that without her pills to get her through?

“Fuck. That isn’t what I meant.”

She kept her gaze on his chin, trying to stop her lower lip from trembling.

Take slow breaths.

“Lily? Unless you give me permission to be in charge, you can always say no to any sort of touching. Understand?”

“Even when you pick me up and carry me around?” she asked.

“Ahh, that’s different.”

Lily breathed out a long sigh. This guy was so frustrating.

“That’s usually so I can get you somewhere quick or because you’re trying to run from me. Or you can’t walk.”

Well. He wasn’t wrong.

“But I won’t touch you intimately without your consent. Or your arousal. Not that I’m worried about that.”

There he went again.

“Your arrogance is out of control.”

“Thank you.”

“That wasn’t a compliment.”

“Of course it was. And, also, what I said was simply the truth. Eventually, you’ll want me to touch you. Then you’ll give your consent for me to take command of you. Of your body. Of your pleasure. You’ll obey me in all things. And you’ll enjoy it.” He forked up some more spaghetti and held it out to her. “Now, eat.”

Lily had to work so hard not to glare at him. “I’ll obey you and enjoy it?”

You cannot smack him in the face.

Violence is not the answer.

Oh, it was tempting, though.

“That’s right. Also, I did not touch you in any way except to move you and take off some of your clothes to make you more comfortable. I don’t need to use force. Not when you’ll willingly give me whatever I want very soon.”

It was so hard not to roll her eyes.

Honestly, she should win an award for her restraint.

“Do you realize what you sound like right now?” she asked him.

“Of course. I can hear what I’m saying. Now eat. No more questions until you take another bite.”

Shoot. She took another mouthful of the spaghetti bolognese, and it soothed her empty stomach as she swallowed it. The nausea was starting to dissipate, and she realized it might have been because she’d gone too long without eating.