I breathed hard when we finally crashed through one of the many exterior doors and were welcomed from brooding red corridor to bright early-autumn sun.

Jethro kept walking, not letting me catch my breath.

Dragging me down the four huge steps, I winced as the gravel bit into the soles of my feet. But he didn’t care. He didn’t even notice.

Our feet kicked up pebbles as he headed toward the treeline several metres from the house. I’d never seen this side of the property before. But the grounds were just as expansive and impressive as the other perimeters and just as dangerous.

This was my cage. Leaves and thorns and brambles.

And I’m naked.

The moment gravel was replaced by soft grass below my toes, Jethro tossed me away. I would’ve fallen if I wasn’t malleable and given up fighting his momentum. I stumbled forward, arms soaring outward as if I could suddenly leave the world behind and fly. Fly away. Fly free.

The moment I came to a halt, I spun to face him.

Jethro was right behind me. He fisted my hair, twisting my neck.

I whimpered as he raised my head, higher and higher. My eyes coasted over his crocodile belt, crisp grey shirt, and locked onto a pair of ferocious eyes.

“Tell me. What did you hope to achieve in there?”

He didn’t give me a chance to reply, tugging my hair in a painful jerk. “Did you honestly think before you opened your mouth? If you had stood there and been silent, it would’ve all been over. You earned an afternoon on your own in a hot steam bath. A maid to bring you whatever you wanted to eat.” He shook me. “What part of a gift for good behaviour did you not understand?”

“I don’t want your charity,” I spat.

He groaned. “It’s not fucking charity if you’ve earned it.” Lowering his head, his nose pressed against mine.

I froze, breathing hard.

“You earned it today. You pleased me by letting those men sample you. You surprised me in a good way.” The softness of his voice disappeared under a torrent of rage. “But then you fucked it all up by being you. And now…” He trailed off, ideas glowing in his eyes.

Letting me go, I backed away from him, grabbing my hair and quickly twisting it into a loose braid down my back. I hated the thickness, the length. It seemed to invite Jethro to use it anyway he pleased. My scalp had never been so bruised.

The diamond collar sent little rainbows of light bouncing from the sunlight. I would’ve laughed if I wasn’t so tense. I was naked but wearing rainbows—I never would’ve thought to combine magic with fashion.

Ideas for a new design line came thick and fast. I craved a pencil to sketch before they disappeared.

Jethro placed both hands on his hips, watching me silently.

I didn’t move. I didn’t say a word. The fragile ceasefire between us stretched uncomfortably thin. It would either snap and ricochet onto me with terrible pain or fade away like a feather on a breeze.

“I see threats don’t work on you. But perhaps a negotiation might.”

Despite myself, curiosity and hope swelled in my heart. “A negotiation?”

“A one shot offer. You win, you’re free. I win, you forget about your old life and give in. You say I’ll never own you. If I win—you willingly give me that right.” His lips pulled into a cold smile. “You sign not only the debt agreement but another—one that makes me your master until your last breath is taken. You do that, and I’ll give you this.”

“Give me what?” I asked breathlessly.

“A chance at freedom.”

My eyes popped wide.

What?

Cocking his head at the forest behind me, he murmured, “You wanted to be free—so go. Run. Go seek your freedom.”

I twisted on the spot, looking over my shoulder. The sun dappled patches of leaf-strewn ground, looking like a fairy glen, but then it grew darker and thicker and scarier.

The diamond collar rested heavy and ruinously ominous on my throat. My spine ached from the short time I’d been made to wear it; the coldness still hadn’t adapted to my skin. How could I run with such a deterrent?

How can you not?

It was the one chance I’d hoped for. The one chance I didn’t think I’d get.

Squeezing my eyes, I let Jethro's ultimatum—his negotiation—seep into my brain. If I ran, I might make it. If I ran, I might get what I wanted. But if I lost…

Turning to face him again, the golden-light from the sun cast him with ghostly silhouette, blurring his outline, creating more than just a man. He looked as if he had one foot in this world and one in hell. A fallen angel who still burned with fire—yet it wasn’t purity he burned with but hate.

Jethro raised an eyebrow. “What’s it going to be?”

“I don’t know what you’re offering.”

“Yes you do.”

I did. I do.

Taking a small step toward me, he said, “You want to break the contract? You want to keep your brother and father safe? Fine. I’m giving you a one-time deal. Run. If you make it to the boundary, you’re free. Your family will never be hunted by the Hawks again. You make it, and this is all over. Every last debt and ounce of history—disappears.” His voice licked through the sunshine.

A small sparkle from my earlier orgasm rippled between my legs. “And if I don’t?”

Jethro frowned. “Pardon?”

“If I don’t run…what happens then?”

“You wouldn’t run? After I just offered you what you’ve wanted all along?”

I crossed my wrists over the junction of my thighs, hiding my pussy. “I didn’t say I wanted the chance to run naked through a thousand hectares. I said I wanted this to be over.”

Jethro smirked. “It’s not over until it’s over.” His eyes fell to my collar, glinting with darkness. “And we both know how it will be over.”

Moving closer, he said quietly, “There is no other option here, Ms. Weaver. I’m not giving you the choice to run. I’m telling you to run. You wanted it. You got it. One chance to save your family as well as your own life. One chance. You do not want to fuck it up by testing my patience.”

My mind stumbled with everything that’d happened. There was no denying chemistry flew between us—but Jethro didn’t respond. He was only interested in the chase. The hunt. The sport.

He stood so close, every time he breathed, his chest almost touched my naked nipples. He didn’t seem to care I was naked or offer clothing for this one and only chance I had at freedom. He would make me run unprotected through a forest full of brambles, predators, and trip-worthy roots.

His arm raised and I clamped every muscle from cringing as he cupped my cheek. His heady scent of woods and leather settled over me. Tracing the pad of his thumb over my cheekbone, he bowed his head. “Run, Ms. Weaver. Run. But one thing you should know before you go.”

Do not play his games. Do not rise to the bait.

My lips stayed pinched together. I stiffened in his hold.

His mouth tickled the soft skin below my ear. “While you’re running, I’ll be hunting. You not only have to get to the boundary but you have to do it before I catch you.”

The tingle and horrible promise of hope evaporated. Cruel. Vicious. Evil.

I’m to be hunted.

There wouldn’t be freedom. There would only be blood. Just like he said in the dining room.

Energy left my limbs. Who was I kidding? I hadn’t eaten since I was stolen. I’d barely had a decent sleep. I existed like a junkie on adrenaline and fear. It was no combination for a long distance run through thickets and bush.

Jethro pulled away, dropping his hands. He smiled. “Your head start begins now, Ms. Weaver. I’d leave if I were you.”

Now?

I backpeddled, heart bursting with terror. “How—how long do I have?”

Jethro carefully raised his cuff, looking sedately at the diamond and black watch on his wrist. “I’m a seasoned hunter. I have no doubt I’ll find you. And when I do…what those men did to you will be nothing.” Cocking his head, he said, “I think forty-five minutes is rather sporting, don’t you?”