BOOK THREE OF THE BLACK SERIES *this book CANNOT be read as a stand-alone* -- "Get the hell off of me, Lucian," I snapped angrily, smacking the palm of my hands on his muscular back as he carried me out of the club. "Who the fuck do you think you are?" It wasn't until he carried me upstairs and into a VIP room that he set me on my feet. I wobbled from the combination of my heels and the alcohol finally reaching my brain. It didn't stop me from glaring at him, but he just stared back, his eyes blank. As always. He's never been a talker, unlike me. What the hell was he even doing here? "You can't just walk on the dance floor and throw me over your shoulder like a sack of potatoes," I snapped, trying to get passed him. "I'm not a kid anymore, Lucian, okay? I'm not yours to protect - I never have been!" Hearing those words must have triggered him because he snapped. Lucian roughly grabbed me by the waist and pushed me against the cold wall, his body pressed right against mine. My eyes widened in shock and I met his blazing glare, feeling his hand creep up to my hair and twist it in his knuckles. I tried to force the lump down my throat but felt the confidence leave my body. "I can do damn well as I please when I see my woman dancing with a man who would want nothing more than to take her back to his place," he growled out, tilting my head up by my hair. Our lips were almost touching. I suddenly can't breathe. "You're mine, Mia," he spoke, this time his words low and raspy. "You always have been - never fucking forget that."