Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 107402 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107402 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
“Damian, you need to leave. Nico will not be okay with you being in here. He will kill you.” My words rush out, terrified to be alone with him in this room, in a house filled with dangerous men.
“No, he won’t. He doesn’t love you. He would thank me for taking you off his hands.”
“No, that’s not the case. He doesn’t love me. He hates me, but he is a very possessive, jealous man. If he knows someone else is after what belongs to him, it will lead to bloodshed. I’m not a human to him. I’m just a piece of property. Please, go, and do not contact me. Not now. Let me reach out when it’s safe.”
“Brave man, aren’t you?” Nico steps into the room, one hand in his pocket as the other one shuts the door. He’s cool, calm, and collected. More dangerous than any other emotions in this world, if you ask me.
“Nico, he was just leaving.”
“Tsk, tsk. See, wife? You told me there was nothing to worry about, yet I found you alone with an ex-lover on our wedding night.” He pauses, coming to stand in front of me, stopping within inches of my shaking, unsteady frame.
“Nico…,” I whisper, when he moves his unbuttoned tux jacket to the side and shows me his gun in its back harness.
“When will it be safe to call him, Emelia?” It’s a rhetorical yet terrifying question. “Because we made a deal. He stays away, we have no problem. But this man has the nerve to disrespect a boss on his fucking wedding day and be alone in a room with his bride. The room said boss plans to fuck you senseless in.” He turns and faces Damian, and I think on my toes.
Think quick; it’s all I have.
Men like Nico, they like submission and being praised like gods.
“Nico, I don’t want him. I married you. You are my husband, and I will obey anything you ask me to,” I tell him as I reach out and ever so slightly touch his shoulder. It’s taut, tense. “Please, just let him go, and I will never speak about him again. And if he dares to reach out to me, I will tell you. I will not hide secrets from you. Please, my boss. My husband. As your wife, please respect this one thing I ask of you,” I plead.
No matter how angry I am at Damian, I loved… love him. And I don’t want to see him dead because of me.
“Leave the room. Now. You come near what’s mine again, and I will watch the life drain from you. I never grant fucking mercy,” he growls. “Run.”
The threat is so imminent even I feel it, and without one look at me, Damian leaves, and I release a deep breath as tears threaten to fall.
The intensity within that moment was far too much for me to take.
“You think I’m stupid. I know that was all an act. But clearly you value his life more than I will allow. You won’t play me. You understand?” he asks, gripping my chin in his hand.
“It was nothing. I told him to leave. He wouldn’t listen.” I glare up at him. “Besides, I don’t have to explain my life to you. I put on the ‘bride smitten by the mafia king’ act. Now get your hands off me.” I push away his arm, and I move, but he is on me faster than I can make it out of the room. Slamming the door shut next to my head, he closes me in. My breath catches, and beads of sweat form as he cages me with his entire body.
“On the bed, now,” he demands, and I snap my head to the side and see I’m within inches of his. So close I can smell the whiskey.
“No, I’m not having sex with you. You can’t—”
“We aren’t having sex. I’m going to teach you obedience and what happens when you don’t take my threats seriously. As if they’re empty.” He gesture slightly in the air around him.
“You can’t treat me like a fucking dog. I will make your life hell, Nico.”
Grabbing my upper arm with enough force to get my attention, he moves us to the bed. I sit, and he stands back, removing his jacket, his holster, then slowly unbuttoning his shirt. Each button reveals tight, smooth skin that I hate to admit is attractive. Not just attractive, but truly erotic. He looks like a god among men.
There are some marks on his chest, and the more he exposes, I can see each ab, oblique, and muscle in all their glorious definition. Removing his crisp-white shirt completely, he towers over me, looking down on me. Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out a knife, and suddenly I’m not looking at his body. I focus on the blade shining in his hand.