Content Warning: Graphic violence and mature themes. Reader discretion advised.
“Why are you here?!” Harper snapped, her voice sharp enough to slice through the cave’s heavy
silence. Her irritation burned brighter than the torchlight, every word edged with defiance.
Ashcroft’s smirk only widened as he stepped closer, his tall frame cloaked in shadow. The flicker of firelight caught the sharp angles of his face, his eyes gleaming with that maddening mixture of arrogance and intrigue.
“Why?” His tone was a taunt, smooth and deliberate. “Because I said we need to talk, and
apparently… His gaze dipped briefly to Ethan, still bound and writhing in pain. “…you’d rather avoid me and go play with your little ‘boy toy’ instead.”
Harper’s jaw locked, her fingers curling tight around her shuriken as a sharp, mocking laugh slipped past her lips. “Oh, I didn’t know you had issues with comprehension,” she sneered. “I thought I made myself perfectly clear-we don’t need to talk. And I sure as hell didn’t ask you to follow me.” Her voice dropped, low and razor-edged. “In fact, I’d be a lot happier if you stayed the
hell out of my way.”
Her bodigãdo, still kneeling, flinched at the sparks flying between them. He risked a glance up, his brows knitting in confusion as Harper and Ashcroft traded barbed words that sounded a little too much like… flirting?
His lips parted, then closed again, clearly at a loss. After a beat, he coughed awkwardly into his hand, eyes darting anywhere but at the two of them.
Whatever this was, it didn’t feel like a fight anymore-and he suddenly felt like the unwanted third wheel in a scene he definitely hadn’t signed up for.
Ashcroft ignored the bodyguard completely, his focus locked solely on Harper. He advanced with slow, deliberate steps, dauntless, until the air between them grew tighter, more suffocating than the cave walls themselves. His voice dipped low, a growl sharpened with mockery. “Funny,” he murmured, eyes glinting. “For someone who doesn’t want me here, you look… unsettled.”
Harper’s eyes flared, but her smirk curved with venom as she lifted her chin. “Unsettled? Please. You’re mistaking fury for perilous.”
A dark chuckle rumbled from his chest. He leaned in, close enough that his breath teased the edge of her ear, his words silk laced with danger. “No, babe. I know the difference.”
Her heart betrayed her – thundering against her ribs, too loud, too wild – but she forced her face into one of mocking calm. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. “Don’t flatter yourself, Underworl
Chapter 141 Crimson Play-1
d Prince. You’re nothing but a thorn I haven’t had the time to pull out yet.”
Claim
Then, matching his taunt, she leaned in until her lips brushed the shell of his ear and hissed, low
and dangerous, “Call me ‘babe’ again and my shuriken will find a new target.”
She shoved at his chest, hands flat and hard – meant to put distance between them. Instead of sliding away, his hands closed over hers, steel locking them in place.
The cave pulsed with silence, thick with unspoken tension. Ethan groaned faintly in the background, but neither Harper nor Ashcroft moved, locked in a dangerous dance of wills, every
breath a clash, every heartbeat a challenge.
Ashcroft tilted closer, his smirk carved in confidence. “Keep telling yourself that,” he murmured, voice a velvet threat. “But sooner or later, you’ll stop running from me.”
Harper scoffed, rolling her eyes as she shoved him back with deliberate force. “Don’t hold your
breath.”
But the heat racing through her veins betrayed her, the staccato rhythm of her pulse thundering like a secret she refused to let him hear.
Ashcroft’s smirk never left his face. He snapped once, sharp as a gunshot, and two of his men materialized from the cave’s throat like shadows answering a summons. Harper blinked, thrown for a fraction of a second. “What-what’s the meaning of this?” she demanded.
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Cedella
Cedella is a passionate storyteller known for her bold romantic and spicy novels that keep readers hooked from the very first chapter. With a flair for crafting emotionally intense plots and unforgettable characters, she blends love, desire, and drama into every story she writes. Cedella’s storytelling style is immersive and addictive—perfect for fans of heated romances and heart-pounding twists.