SABA
Saba hated Deimos’ predatory eyes on her.
Throughout the night, an uncomfortable heat crept up the back of her neck.
There was something hair-raising in how he glowered at her, his slick grin and licked lips turning her off.
Hell, Vale’s unsettling presence made Saba’s skin crawl.
From his tiny eyes to the sotto voce of a snake oil salesman, he gave her the creeps.
It seemed he slithered through life, oozing charisma that was sickeningly false.
She tried to focus on the reason they were there, but the plan was working too well as his stare followed her like an unwelcome shadow.
After a few strained moments of polite dialogue between Mak and Deimos, Saba excused herself to the restroom.
She needed a break from the oppressive unpleasantness of his lustful gaze.
In the ladies’ room, she wiped under her arms with the provided, refreshing cold packs from a tray on the counter.
She reapplied her makeup and, revived, slung her evening bag over her shoulder and exited.
Only to find a silhouette waiting for her in the dim hallway. She froze for half a second but pulled her shit together.
‘Leaving so soon?’
As Deimos stepped closer, his voice dripped with oily slickness, cutting off her path back to the ballroom. She forced a smile, trying to keep her tone civil. ‘I was just heading back to Mak.’
‘Why rush?’ he purred, his gaze dropping from her face, lingering too long on the neckline of her gown. ‘A woman like you deserves more than standing in the shadow of a man like him.’
Her stomach twisted.
She attempted to walk around him, but before she could take another step, he reached out, and his fingers gripped her arm.
His touch was clammy and wet, and bile rose in her throat.
‘I can grant you whatever you desire.’
‘You assume much, but I’m more than content with my life. I’m not interested whatsoever in what you have to offer.’
He sneered. ‘You’ve no idea who I am.’
‘I don’t give afokk, now let me go,’ she muttered.
She pulled free, his hand leaving an imprint in its wake.
His smile widened as if her discomfort only encouraged him.
‘You’re wasting yourself, you know. A beauty like you could have real power. With me.’
His words slithered into her ear, and for a moment, she thought about the ease with which she could slap the smug smirk off his face. Instead, she straightened.
‘You’re mistaken if you think for one second I’d ever entertain that thought. My loyalty is to one man and him alone.’
Deimos sidled closer and, in a flash, sought to throw her against the wall, his slimy lips trying to connect to hers.
She lifted a knee and sank it into his balls.
