Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 118245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 591(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 591(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
And there was only one way to make certain no one—not her father, not Dante, no one—took her from me.
Stalking forward, I pushed her back until her legs brushed against the bed. “Get on the bed.”
“Why? What are you going to do?”
“I told you. What I should have done that night in the gazebo. I’m going to fuck you.”
There would be no disputing my claim to become her husband once her father learned she was no longer a virgin. While it would not have mattered in my eyes, I knew her father would consider her ruined.
With a cry, she turned to run.
I caught up with her in two strides. With my arm around her waist, I lifted her off the floor.
She kicked out with those ridiculous boots she was wearing. “No! No!”
With a twist of my torso, I flung her onto the bed. “I guess we’re doing this the hard way.”
With her natural submissive nature and dangerous impulse to please the people in her life, it was not surprising she would feel an overwhelming sense of guilt over what we were about to do.
And I had just the way to break her out of that mentality.
Like an adorable Catholic penitent, I’d already learned my sweet little dove needed pain before her mind would let her enjoy the pleasure. Punishment burned away the guilt.
Before reaching for my belt, I pulled my knife out of my back pocket and flicked it open.
Her eyes widened as she tried to shimmy back on her hips. “Oh, my God!”
The corner of my mouth lifted. “Save the praise for when I’m licking your pussy.”
Her cheeks blossomed with bright pink color.
Fuck, I loved her innocent blushes.
My fingers twisted into the woven fabric of her sweater dress. I lifted the hem as I prepared to shove the tip of the knife into it.
Her hand grasped the edge as she tried to wrench it from my fingers. “No! My sister will be furious if I ruin this dress.”
Blinking in disbelief, I shook my head. After all her sister had forced on her this past week, she was still worried about making her angry? It was my girl who should be in a rage, not the other way around, and definitely not over a stupid fucking dress.
“Good,” I growled as the sharp metal point slid into the wool fibers, tearing them. “I look forward to telling your dear sister where she can shove the torn remains of it.”
Tossing the knife aside, I twisted the torn edges of her hem in my hands and yanked upward, severing the dress in two.
Although I didn’t think it was possible, my anger only rose as I stared down at her sweet body on display. Instead of a cute pair of modest silk panties, like before, today she was wearing a trashy scrap of lace that ended in a thin string over her hips, no doubt a thong.
Under her breasts and across her ribcage were harsh red marks where the too tight bra had dug into her sensitive skin. Leave it to her sister to be the type to torture herself with a lower size bra just to push her breasts up high.
“Dammit, woman.”
Retrieving the knife, I placed a restraining hand on her abdomen as I slid the sharp edge through the string over her hip. Then, ignoring her cry of protest, I gripped the strip of fabric between her breasts. “Hold still.”
She held her breath as the cold, dull edge of the knife slid along her skin to slip under the bra. I had to saw it back and forth a few times to cut through the wire and thick elastic, but finally the fabric snapped. The black lace extra-padded cups fell away, exposing her sweet flesh… and more marks.
I dropped the knife and placed a knee on the bed as I leaned over her. With utmost care, I ran the tips of my fingers over the thin scratches. I swallowed past the tightness in my throat. “Never do this to yourself again. Do you hear me?”
“It doesn’t hurt, and Toni says…”
With my hand cupping her jaw, I placed my thumb over her lips. “And definitely never quote your sister’s advice to me.”
She sniffed. “She’s not a bad person. Not really. You have to understand that she just chose to… cope… with our father’s difficult ways differently than me.”
My lips pressed to her forehead. “I know, baby. And I love that your sweet soul still gives her the benefit of the doubt. You have my word. I will do everything in my power to still try to save her. But right now, saving you is my only concern.”
It was the wrong thing to say.
Her dark eyes hardened as she rolled away from me and leaned up on her knees, grasping the edges of the torn dress over her naked breasts. “Saving my sister is my job, not yours. And I’ve told you before, I’m not your concern, and I don’t need saving! I’m perfectly capable of figuring out this mess for myself once I’m back in Sicily.”