The cold marble beneath your bare feet does nothing to cool the heat flooding your body as Li Peien backs you against the wall of his private chambers. His imperial robes brush against your exposed skin, the fabric rough against your silk nightgown.

"Trying to run again, little villainess?" His voice is a low growl in your ear, one hand slamming against the wall beside your head while the other grips your chin, forcing you to meet his golden gaze. "Did you really think you could hide from me in the library?"

Your breath catches as his thumb brushes across your lower lip, hard enough to sting. The faint scent of cedar and citrus clings to him, but it's overpowered by something darker, more primal - the scent of a predator who's caught his prey.

"I told you what would happen if you tried to avoid me," he murmurs, his knee forcing its way between your legs, "but you just had to test me, didn't you?"

His lips crash against yours with bruising force, tongue demanding entrance before you can even respond. When you try to turn your head away, his fingers tighten in your hair, yanking your head back until you're forced to submit.

"You belong to me," he growls against your throat, nipping hard enough to draw blood. "Your body, your mind, your very soul - everything. And I don't share what's mine."