His eyebrow rose as I skidded to a halt.

Jealousy took three long seconds to hit.

But when it did—fuck it crippled me.

Green. Hot. Liquid jealousy.

Fuck, he was touching her. Double f**k he was touching her naked!

I stalked forward, clenching my fists. “Franco…” My voice wobbled with pent-up, spewing aggression. “Get your motherfucking hands off her.” I’ll rip out your jugular.

“If I let her go, she’ll run. Before you kill me, give me your shirt.” His eyes dropped to my chest. All I wanted was blood. Rivers of it. His. Hers. I didn’t really f**king care.

With barely functioning limbs, I ripped it off, sending buttons flying.

My teeth chattered with the urge to destroy the f**king bastard. How dare he have his hands on my na**d woman! Tess’s eyes were wide, drinking in my rage. She moaned, trying to speak behind Franco’s hand, but he kept her silent.

“Donne-la moi! Maintenant.” Give her. Now, I snarled.

He nodded, opening his arms. With a shove, he forced Tess to stumble forward. I took one step, grabbed her elbow and spun her into my furious embrace. With one hand, I wrapped my shirt around her, breathing a little easier when it covered parts no other f**king male should see.

I still wanted to f**k her, but I was obsessed with protecting my territory. Another man had threatened what was mine and the urge to slam her to the ground and claim took second place.

My eyes locked on Franco. He glared right back.

“Don’t touch me. Get off me!” Tess wiggled; I smacked a hand over her mouth.

“Shut up,” I growled. “Seriously, now is not the time to f**king push me. You will not like what happens if you do.”

I didn’t give a rat’s ass if that made no sense to her. Would a trafficker say that? I didn’t know. But it was the goddamn truth and my blood infernoed with the need to take her. Every part of my body felt foreign and sharp and so on edge.

My gaze returned to Franco. Fuck me he’d held her. Naked!

His body tensed, falling into a supple position, ready for a fight. “Mercer—think about this.” His eyes narrowed.

Think about it?

His hands on her na**d skin. Her body pressed against him. Naked.

The beast howled with utmost possession. He’d touched my property. He’d seen what no one else was allowed to see. No one! It didn’t matter that he’d been in the room when we’d found her. Naked and spread-eagled on the bed in Rio. It didn’t matter he knew she was mine. It didn’t f**king matter, because I needed a fight. I needed something. Anything to stop myself from spiralling into this dark pit of hell.

“It’s okay, Mercer. She’s yours.” Franco held up his hands. “Seriously, I get it.”

My nostrils flared as I struggled for control. My fists wanted nothing more than to connect with his jaw.

His head tilted; apprehension filled his eyes. “Is it going okay? You’re not…um...not losing it are you?” He inched closer, eyeing me up.

I wished fire would sprout out of my gaze and burn him. I wished I had spare arms to punch him in the chest and kick him when he fell. I was violent. Bloodthirsty. Oversexed. “Do you think I’m not strong enough? That I’ll give in?” My voice held a deadly undertone.

He shrugged. No judgement or fear existed in his face. “Just asking. Don’t want you to f**k yourself up while trying to help her.” He smirked. “Excuse me for saying, but you look completely manic.”

I’d bottled so much up, I was ready to explode. I probably looked like a f**king psycho.

His eyes fell to Tess squirming in my arms. Her lithe body rubbed my c**k in such delicious ways making me throb with an orgasm living permanently in my balls. “Having difficulties?”

A loud laugh exploded from my mouth. Difficulties? Try mountains of them. The laugh helped demolish the tension in my limbs. It turned dark, petering out.

The black clouds broke; I sucked in a ragged breath. Insanity gave way to sanity, soothing my feral heartbeat. I’d almost lost myself.

I’d been too caught up in the charade—I almost became him. I’d stepped over that line and would’ve broken Tess if Franco hadn’t caught her.

Time played its cruel joke again, draining me as if it’d been days, not minutes.

I’m not strong enough. I’ll snap before it’s over.

Franco followed my breakdown. “You probably have another hour before that thing wears off. Don’t take too long.”

Urgency laced my heart. I only had to survive another hour, then Tess would be free and I could get as far away from her as possible. I could find an outlet for all this blackness inside and spare her from my rage.

Gathering my tattered energy, I collected Tess in a stronger grip. My eyes met Franco’s as I dragged her backward to the door. I should thank him for helping, but I couldn’t. Seeing her na**d was all the f**king thanks he’d get.

Tess fought, wrenching her mouth free from my grip. She winced as something struck her foot. “Let me go. No! I don’t want to go back in there.” Her heels left indents in the grass as I stole her back to her nightmares.

“You don’t have a choice. And if you ever recall what really happened today, try and remember never to run from me again. You were lucky this time. Next time—” My voice drifted off as another wave of need crippled me.

Her heat and wriggling body scrambled my self-control.

Reaching the door, I yelled at Franco, “Don’t worry about what’s going on in here. Just do your f**king job and keep watch.”

Franco smiled, saluting me flippantly. “Keep watch for her running again or intruders?”

I bared my teeth, slamming the door in his face. I left him standing in the sunlight while I welcomed Tess back to the dark. The soundproofed dark where her screams didn’t matter, her tears wouldn’t be seen, and no one would find out how f**king dangerous all of this was.

Breathing hard, I stomped through the house with a fighting na**d woman in my arms.

“I won’t do it. I won’t hurt them. You’ll have to kill me this time,” she rambled, her fingernails clawing at my arms. I clamped my fingers over her mouth again. I couldn’t listen to how much damage I caused.

I hissed as she drew blood, but managed to keep the monster locked in its cage—I had no f**king clue how.

This house was too big—too far to drag a woman who I wanted so f**king bad. My jaw ached from clenching by the time I marched her into the bathroom. The minute I’d slammed and locked the door, I unglued my fingers from around her lips.