Chapter 36 Piecing Clues Roman She froze instantly. Like ice. The kind that crackles before it shatters. “Sav?” I breathed against her ear, low and deliberate. “Time’s ticking.” Her lashes fluttered, snapping her out of whatever memory had gripped her. “Where did you hear that name? Who told you that?” I leaned back, a slow shrug rolling through my shoulders. “The walls have ears… and lips. Sometimes they talk.” Her glare sharpened. “Don’t give me that bullshit, Roman. If you know that name, then someone in this house must have told you.” I let a lazy smile curve my mouth. “Don’t forget the rules, Sav. I drop clues, you play detective.” “I'm not exactly getting this game anymore, Roman.” “I'll explain again.” I locked eyes with her, “I’ll drop a clue in the form of a question, if you get it wrong or evade it, I'll kiss you wherever I want. If you get it right, you can ask me any question of your choice. Understand that part?” She nodded defiantly. “Now if I evade the question, you'll collect payment in the form of a touch. No body part's off the table. If I answer truthfully, I'll drop another clue in the form of a question. You're basically hunting for clues in this game, Sav. Do you understand?” “Still a little confused but I'll catch up.” She replied. “Smart girl. Now answer the question.” Her shoulders rose and fell in an effort to appear calm. “He was my professor in college,” she said tightly. Bad liar. The words were too clipped, too measured. “Are you sure?” My tone was light, but the question was loaded. I wanted the real truth, not the cleaned-up version. Not what I'd found out when I went digging into her past with Professor Kingston. She didn’t flinch. “That’s what he was. It’s literally in his title. Just my professor in college.” I knew better. But I let her think she’d gotten away with it. The game was much sweeter that way. I played along. “Okay. Your turn.” She pounced. “What did Dean say to you that made you dodge telling everybody what really happened last night?” I’d been expecting it. She didn’t like playing by my rules. “He has something on someone I love.” The admission slid out quieter than I meant it to. Her eyes widened, the sharp edges of her suspicion softening. “Surprised?” I teased, though the air between us had grown heavier. “What does he have on them? Maybe I can help you get it from him?” “Tsk, that’s two questions. You're breaking the rules now, love.” I flashed my teeth in a wicked grin. “My turn.” She swallowed hard. “Who is Dean Archer to you?” I asked, watching her face like a hawk.Think deep, Sav. Tell the real truth. Find one clue. Her jaw tightened. “He’s… my brother-in-law.” Victory surged through me. I leaned in, voice dropping. “I was hoping you’d say that.” Her voice was unsteady. “Why?” “That one’s true,” I murmured. “But not the answer I wanted. Not today” My lips moved higher, deliberately. “So I'll collect payment.” “Hold on… what do you mean?” I didn’t answer right away. Instead, I flipped her onto her stomach with ease, her gasp muffled in the sheets, pressing my chest into her back to stop her from squirming. “So I could do this.” I tugged her panties down just enough to expose the soft curve of one cheek and pressed my mouth to it, slow, deliberate. Then the other. Oh fuck. Her skin is so smooth and warm. “Keep your head in the game, Sav.” I spoke against her skin in a way that blurs whether it’s a threat or a promise. “Piece the clues together.” Her breath hitched, the sound skating dangerously close to a moan. “Roman…” It was half warning, half want.I rolled her onto her back again, leaving her panties where they were, knowing they'd be on the floor any moment from now. “Your turn.” “Are you ever going to give me a heads-up before tossing me around like a rag doll?” she muttered. I laughed low. “Cute question… but the answer's no.” Her eyes went wide. “No, no, no. That wasn’t my question, Roman.” I arched a brow. “Sounded like one to me. And I answered truthfully.” “You tricked me!” “I told the truth,” I countered, smirking at her pout. “My turn.” Her eyes narrowed, but she said nothing. “What did Chloe do at the hospital?” Her brows furrowed. “Chloe? She… was filming herself in Emily’s room.” I grinned. “Bingo, baby.” Her smile bloomed and she did that ridiculously adorable little victory wiggle that always punched straight through my armor. “Yes!”“Ask away.” She didn’t hesitate. “Why don’t you want children? Or to settle down? I'm still curious.” It caught me off guard. I’d expected something about my family, maybe about Chloe. Not… that. Now I've realized I probably shouldn't have mentioned that to her. I kept my face still. “Babies cry. They get sick all the time. They’re… too much work. They drift husbands and wives apart… sometimes.” I lied. Her gaze cut through the lie like a blade. “Why don’t I believe you?” “That’s another question. You’re breaking the rules.” “You lied. I want my payment.” “And how do you know that?” I asked. “Because you just described me with that… And last time I checked, you're still keeping up with my annoying ass even though I cry and I'm too much work.” I was stunned. She didn’t know it, but that sentence had teeth. Sharp ones. I clapped. “Great thinking, Sav. You're one smart cookie.” I smiled. “Now it's time for my payment.” She reminded me again. My smirk was automatic. “What currency?” “A touch.” “Where?” Her eyes dropped to my pants. Her tongue flicked over her bottom lip in slow motion. My pulse jumped. Excitement flooded my veins. I knew exactly what she wanted. “Undo your jeans.” I hesitated for a heartbeat—just one—before sliding the zipper down, the metallic rasp loud in the quiet room. She leaned in, wrists still bound, her breath brushing my jaw. “You like playing games, Roman?” My voice was gravel. “Only with you.” Her fingers ghosted over the thick line of my cock through the denim, barely there, just enough to make me hiss. And she smiled like she’d just won something.Her fingers lingered over me like a dare. Slow. Testing. Like she was tasting the idea of control without quite swallowing it. “You’re distracting me,” I murmured. “That’s the point.” “You think you’ve got leverage?” She tilted her head, lips curling in a sly smile. “I’ve got you unzipped. That’s leverage.” “Cute.” I caught her chin between my fingers, forcing her eyes back to mine. “But you’re forgetting something, Sav. The game is still mine.” Her panties hit the ground before she realized what I was doing. Her legs instinctively opened. Her breath caught. “Roman—” “Shhh.” I pressed my mouth between her thighs, deliberately slow, dragging it out until her hips trembled against me. Not a kiss for the sake of it — a kiss meant to steal her train of thought completely. Her fingers fisted in the sheets. “That’s… that’s cheating.”“No, it's not. I asked a question, you answered wrong.” I smirked, “Having me unzipped doesn't mean leverage. You should know that.” Her eyes widened when she realized she'd been played. “Roman, you cunning little—” I laughed, “Don't forget you're supposed to be playing detective. So far you've done a horrible job at piecing clues together.” “It's deceptive.” She grumbled, pushing against the bound on her wrists. “It’s strategy.” I glanced up through my lashes, letting my mouth linger in a way that had her thighs twitching. “You lose focus, you lose answers.” She was breathing hard. Skin flushed and vibrating with need. “Ask.” “What did we do last night, Sav?” My tone was too casual. Like I already knew the answer— and it wasn’t the one she thought.