Hello, please vote! This chapter was fairly difficult for me to get just right. The plot is thickening :)

On a side note, I'm in Arizona for two weeks so that's why the update wasn't on time.

Enjoy!

17. A Bullet For a Bullet

"This sucks." I pouted, slumping in my seat as I crossed my arms, wishing the shaking in my hands would stop. "He's going to murder me."

"Don't be dramatic." Ashley stuck her tongue in my direction as she slowly drove her car down the drive. The house was in the distance, the overwhelming largeness of it only adding to the anxiousness I was beginning to feel. Jace was on our tail, revving his engine impatiently every so often. "Remember, don't give in."

"I'm not going to. The ass totally deserved it." I muttered, feeling my temper rise with every foot we got closer to the house. "I'm going to really lay it on him."

Ashley snickered, an amused expression settling on her face. "I'm sure you will. The only thing is that you just don't have the most threatening appearance." She giggled, clasping a hand to her mouth.

I turned to scowl at the blond. "What's that supposed to mean?"

She shook her head. "You're really short and you have these non-threatening puppy-dog eyes."

"That's not true!" I cried out, reaching over to smack her arm. "I'm five foot three!"

"Only proving my point." She shot me a pointed look. "I'm five inches taller than you."

The corners of my mouth turned down and I shut my eyes, slumping in the seat. "I don't need to intimidate him anyways. I just need to stand my ground and not let him push me around."

She chuckled, shooting me a pointed look. "And remember our bet? Keep that in mind."

Pulling in front of the house, Ashley quickly hopped out. "I'll let him retrieve you." She winked, strutting towards the front door after slamming her car door shut.

Mumbling curses towards Ashley, I waited, holding my breath and knowing that Jace would be opening my door in no time.

And sure enough, he was. He appeared, a furious look masking his face as he nearly tore the door off to get to me. "Get out," He snarled, jerking his head towards the house.

"Sir, yes, Sir!" I shouted, saluting him before I shoved myself out of the car. I immediately began to march towards where he had ordered me to, feeling his eyes burning two holes into my back. I could see the looks of amusement Jace's men had cast each other from the corners of my eyes.

"Not funny, Savannah." He muttered, moving to catch up with my quick strides before gripping my arm.

"Stop man-handling me." I swatted at his tight grip. "I'm perfectly capable of walking on my own. If you're so insistent on holding someone, go grab Layton. I'm sure he would be more than willing." I added, hiding my smirk behind the palm of my hand.

"Savannah," Jace hissed out, giving my shoulder a light shove so I stumbled through the doorway clumsily. "I don't enjoy your sense of humor."

"But, I do." I gave him a cheeky smile. Enjoying his expression of agitation far too-much, I let my mouth spread into a smug smile.

He only grunted, the stormy-look in his eyes deepening as his hand wrapped around my arm once again. He tugged me into the dining, his grip steel.

The people seated at the table didn't seem shocked to see us. I shot Ashley an annoyed glare at the sound of her tinkling laughs.

"Sorry, Mother, but you'll have to excuse us from dinner." Jace politely spoke to his mother, who was calmly sipping from a wine glass. Jace's gaze flickered to mine, his lips pulling down. "It seems that some people need to be punished for their actions."

"Ignore your son, I'll be down for dinner, Mrs. Kingston." I ignored Jace's words, sending him a dark glare, before sending a forced look towards the woman who seemed to loathe me. "Jace may not want to attend, but I surely do."

His grip increased on my arm, becoming too tight. His muscles were strained, his posture tensed. "Savannah - shut your mouth."

"No." I disagreed, digging my heels into the ground when he began to pull me towards where the staircase was located. "I refuse."

"So disobedient..." Marc slowly shook his head from his place at the table. I shot him a menacing look, done with his attitude.

"Shut up,"

Needless to say, the man looked appalled before his anger sunk in.

"Jace-" Marc stood up, looking furious. "You need to-"

"This is not your business, Marc. Sorry for the interruption, please carry on with your meal." And with Jace's last words, he laced one of his arms around my torso, his free hand latching itself over my mouth to silence me. In this position, he clearly had the control, so I gave up struggling thirty seconds in.

I made a sound of annoyance when we reached the stairs and he slung me over his shoulder instead. "Is this really necessary?" I wondered out loud, wiggling uncomfortably.

He didn't reply and I rolled my eyes, knowing he was in a black rage. I could feel how tense his form was.

"So, what did you do today?" I asked nervously, wishing he would slow down so we wouldn't reach his dreaded bedroom as fast. The adrenaline that had been pumping through my veins had clearly worn off, leaving me with anxiousness bubbling in my stomach.

When he didn't answer, I scratched at my forehead. "Oh, that's nice..."

"Shut up," He commanded, one of his big hands reaching up to wrap around my calf.

"Can you put me down?" I ignored his command, poking his backside. "I won't try anything." I lied, forcing my voice to sound relaxed.

Obviously he didn't believe what I had preached because there was no response, he only tightened the hand draped on my leg.

"Let go," I demanded, nervousness building in me at the sight of his bedroom door. "I am fully capable of w- oof!"

"You dropped me!" I accused, rubbing at my backside as I let out a groan of pain. I glared at the man leaning over my form. "You can't just do that!"

"Just did, Babe." He harshly laughed, shoving the door open. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, jerking his head towards the room. "Go in,"

I stared up at him with a narrowed gaze. I could tell he would chase me if I attempted to run and that would get me nowhere. Leisurely, I picked myself up from my place on the floor, watching him carefully. He stood stone-still, his eyes never leaving me as I slowly inched past the man before darting into the room.

The door slammed, the lock clicking and I threw myself at the bed, burrowing myself into the blankets.

"Get up," He growled, tugging on the blankets threateningly. I didn't release my hold on them, instead rolling myself up like a burrito to avoid having to face him.

"You can't get me." I hissed, which was clearly muffled by the comforter. Obviously it didn't have the affect I was hoping it to because he rolled his eyes.

"This is childish. You are going to be punished for your actions." He shook the blanket and I could feel his overpowering strength threatening to rip it from my hold.

"Isn't this childish, as well?" I shot back, arching my eyebrow at him. "Punishing me?"

He ignored my words as he pondered something. "If you don't get out, I'll get my handcuffs and latch you onto the headboard." He nodded to the iron bars that would make that task easy for him to do so. I gulped nervously, tightening my grip on the handful of blanket in my fists. Jace nodded to himself, as if satisfied by that plan. "I think that's what I'll-"

"No, you won't!" I cried, shooting out of the bed and smashing a pillow into his face. It seemed to daze him enough for me to start running towards the door, deciding that there was no way I was going to allow myself to be chained to a bed.

"Did you just hit me with a pillow?" He growled out, sounding quite annoyed as his footsteps echoed in my direction. I frantically wiggled the doorknob, which didn't open unsurprisingly. "Open!" I groaned, wiggling it frantically, though it was too late.

I whirled around to the approaching body, taking a step forward.

"Let me out!" I shoved a finger to his chest, before crossing my arms. "You can't keep holding me in places I don't want to be."

"Yes I can." Jace raged, stumbling closer to me as I frantically pressed myself against the door. "I can do whatever I want. Do you know how much money I have? The amount of power I have? More than you could ever wrap your head around. So yes, I can hold you wherever I'd like."

"I'm not some kind of object." I spat at him, my hands moving to rest on my hips. To say I was pissed would have been an understatement. "Just because you have money doesn't make you better than anyone."

Jace didn't reply, the fury in his eyes wanting made me want to shrink back, but my pride wouldn't let me.

"So, you think what you did today was okay? Sneaking out like that?" He questioned, leaning forward so his face was level with mine. "I thought you were trying to escape."

"Well, obviously I wasn't." I spat back, sarcasm beginning to leak into my tone. "Would I have gone with Ashley if I was? You also never specified that I was supposed to stay in the room, so you're in the wrong here." I pointed out, cocking my eyebrow at him.

He laughed out loud, though the sound wasn't one of entertainment, instead it was filled with bitterness. "Then maybe I should make it more clear for you. You don't go places without my permission, okay, Cupcake?"

"Don't call me that." I bit back in response, "I don't need your permission on what I can do or not. I'm twenty next week. I think I can make my own decisions."

"You're twenty next week?" That fact seemed to distract him as he leaned back suddenly, shock coloring his face. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I just did." I rolled my eyes. "And it doesn't even matter. Wouldn't you have known that about me from the background checks you took?"

"Of course it matters." His voice was strangely soft as the tension in the room wavered.

I forced myself to let out a snort, not wanting to be distracted by the look that had grown in his eyes. "Well it shouldn't matter to you."

His eyes narrowed. "I don't like your tone."

"You have to earn respect to get respect." I pointed out, running a hand over my hair. "And so far, you haven't been respectful to me."

"I wouldn't keep believing that." He snorted, rolling his eyes. "You'll never make it in a world like this if you do."

"I think you need a reality check." I snapped at him, resisting the urge to flip him off.

"I think you need to be quiet, before I chain you to the bed." He retorted, smirking when I frowned.

"That won't be happening."

"Think again, Babe."

"I'm leaving this house anyways." I levelled a challenging gaze on him. "I'm not staying here anymore."

"Stop it, Savannah." Jace darkly replied, pressing his hands on either side of the wall I was now pressed against. "You're acting stupid." His eyes rested on mine, as if he was searching for something.

Anger brewed in my stomach and I forced myself to exhale. The need to cause bodily harm to the man in front of me was growing with every second - it didn't matter that he was the leading illegal arms dealer globally, I wanted to slap him more than anything. "Get off." I crossed my arms defiantly.

"No," He cocked his eyebrow, almost as if he was testing me.

"I'm leaving," I spoke confidently, arching my own brow at him as I crossed my arms. "If you want to stay, by all means do so. Though, you will be calling me a cab to get me back to your penthouse. I refuse to stay here anymore."

His gaze turned calculating as he studied me. His warm breath washed over my face at how close we were. His eyes narrowed slightly. "I don't have to do that, Savannah. I don't have to do anything you want. As soon as you realize that, your world will be a hell of a lot easier to understand."

I bit my lip, an idea suddenly occurring to me. I shut my eyes, praying that I wouldn't regret this anytime soon.

"Jace," I purred, taking a step closer to the man in front of me. "Are you sure you really want to go there?" I traced one finger down the side of his neck, licking my lips nervously.

His eyes immediately narrowed, suspicion written on every edge of his face. "Yes, Kitten. I really do."

I pursed my mouth, before I gave him a tiny little smile. I moved closer, tilting my head up innocently at him. "I just want to leave. You understand why, right?"

His suspicion had turned into confusion as he stared down at my wide eyes. I sunk my teeth into my lip, hoping I portrayed the picture of innocence. "It's not easy being here. You should understand that." I murmured, looking down at my bare feet.

Jace let out a noise in the back of his throat, his hand reaching out to press against the small of my back and I resisted the urge to smile. "You know that I won't let anything happen to you. I need to stay here to discover what my Father's plans are. You should understand that." He pressed, his free hand reaching to tilt my chin towards his.

I peeked up at him under my lashes, remembering what Ashley had advised me. I wasn't going to give up.

"Then, why don't you let me go stay at your penthouse with my babysitters and you can stay here for the remaining time? I think that would work perfectly." I smiled brightly up at him, hesitantly placing one of my palms flat against his chest. He tensed slightly, his eyes darkening as I trailed my hand down to settle just above his abs. "Don't you think?"

"Of course not," He finally forced out, clearing his throat. "You really think I would allow Linc, Duke, and Trevor to watch over you after the champagne incident? I don't think so." He pressed his hand flat against my back and I stumbled closer to him.

A girl's gotta do...

My teeth clenching together, I looped my arms around his neck and pressed my breasts flat against his chest. "Please, Jace?" I whispered, watching the arousal swirl in his eyes.

Jace's gaze fell to my lips and I resisted the urge to smile. I could see how much he was fighting it, how much he was resisting the urge to fall into his temptation. "I know what you're doing." He muttered, though he didn't release me from his tight hold.

"What am I doing?" I breathed back, our faces too close. I could see now that my plan could possibly backfire. His mouth was too close to mine, his warm breath washing over my face with every shallow breath he took. I could see the way his dark eyes were studying my lips and I could feel every inch of his muscled body against mine. But, most of all, I could feel the tingling in belly, the possibility that I would potentially lose myself in Jace once again.

Yes, my plan was dangerously close to failing.

"It's not going to happen." He gritted out forcefully, his icy-eyes moving back to stare into mine. "I'm not falling for your tricks or your temptation."

"I'm not pulling anything." I mutter, my heartbeat increasing.

"Really?" Jace gritted out, his breathing heavy as he stared down at me. "Because I don't think you would be doing this if you didn't have an ulterior motive. I didn't think you would whore yourself out."

My eyes narrowed and I forced myself not to react to his words. I didn't want to acknowledge the pain that hit my stomach at his words. "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm leaving whether you want me to or not."

"Really?" He repeated, his mouth swooping down to press a single kiss against my jaw. "Are you sure about that?"

Abort mission! My mind screamed at me and I struggled to keep my eyes open and my thoughts clear. "Y-yes." I stuttered, forcing myself to plant my hands against his chest to gain some space from his distracting body, though to no avail. His arms stayed locked around mine.

"Really?" He repeated, his tongue drawing shapes on the side of my neck, the hand on my back slid lower. "You really want to leave?"

It was getting difficult to keep my head clear. My breathing had increased dramatically and I pressed my palms a little harder against his chest. "Of course. Now, if you'll excuse me..." I gasped when his teeth gently nipped at the base of my neck.

"You got yourself into this, Doll." He chuckled, one of his fingers tracing lightly up my arm. He pulled back slightly, one of his hands moving to play with the hem of my shirt. "No turning back now."

My teeth sunk into my lip as I watched him carefully.

Jace arched an eyebrow in my direction, his scent clouding my thoughts. "What do I get for taking you back to my penthouse?"

"How about what you won't get? You won't get a kick to the balls, as well as you won't get the stress of realizing that I've gone missing when I do leave."

His eyes remained flatly staring into mine. "That's not enough, Kitten, sorry."

I arched a brow at him. "So, then what?" With another idea hitting me, I trailed my finger over his tie, my hand slowly sliding lower. "What do you want?"

His eyes grew hooded, though they still remained wary. He leaned closer, his lips barely grazing my neck when he opened his mouth. "I want-"

Before I could over think it, I quickly put my plan into action.

I had his gun out from beneath his jacket in seconds. Shock had consumed his figure as I yanked myself away from his body and pointed the gun towards his face. "Are you going to listen to me now or not?"

To my disappointment, he didn't seem fearful. If anything, he just looked bored as he leaned against the wall, his eyes stoic as he crossed his arms. "Well played, Kitten, well played." His lips pressed together tightly. "You won't shoot me." His words were spoken confidently, his head tilting slightly as he met my gaze.

"What makes you think I won't?" My confidence wavered, the weapon suddenly feeling too heavy and too cold in my hand.

"I don't think you've ever held a gun before, much less shot someone with one. You won't be able to do it." He cocked his eyebrows at me. "You didn't plan this out well, did you?"

"Shut up," I gritted out and he took a calculated step in my direction. "Don't come any closer," I threatened, urging myself to at least take the safety off, but my body remained frozen.

"I've been surrounded by guns the entirety of my life, Savannah." Jace chuckled, his eyes growing black as he studied me. "I've faced them more times than I can count. I've even been shot."