Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 53693 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 268(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53693 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 268(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
I’m sure I must be very boring for my bodyguard. All I do is bring a book and a little picnic lunch out here and enjoy the sunshine while I read my books. School starts in a few weeks, and I want to take advantage of my free reading time before I have to bury myself back in computer manuals.
I lay there for hours, soaking up the summer sunshine. It’s the end of July, and so much in my life has changed since my wedding day. I’m looking forward to school more than I ever have before. I know this semester doesn’t come with strings. I don’t have to go knowing that my freedom is at stake.
There are so many reasons I’m grateful to Johnny, even if our communication is lacking these days. He’s given me a sense of freedom that I never thought was possible. If it weren’t for him, I’d be in Brooklyn, married to Niko, and likely having terrible sex every night.
I can’t imagine any man pleasuring me the way Johnny does. But more than that, I’m grateful he gives me the space to be myself and doesn’t try to conform me into who he wants me to be.
I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life, and somehow it all began with the worst day of my life. I shudder to think what would have happened if Johnny hadn’t found me in that church bathroom. I probably would have toughed it out and walked down the aisle to Niko.
And maybe I’d be getting ready to start school, but maybe Niko would have decided that he wanted to immediately focus on starting a family. Maybe he’d make me put my life on hold for his whims. It wouldn’t be the first time a man decided what my fate would be.
It’s incredibly touching that Johnny has never pushed me into something I don’t want. He’s teased me and argued with me, but he cares about my desires and opinions. He saw how important school was to me without me having to tell him. He bought me my computer and paid my tuition without asking me for anything in return.
I get to explore the city, even though I do have to keep Lurch around all the time. That isn’t his real name, of course, but that’s how I’ve come to think of him. He’s a hulking figure that follows me everywhere I go. I’m supposed to feel safer with him around, but it feels more like I’m walking around with a piece of luggage that’s too heavy for me. He just doesn’t quite fit in.
I look up for him now, knowing he’s sitting in the grass somewhere playing on his phone. If I were him, I’d leave me here and go do something fun for a few hours. Johnny would kill him, though. I at least hope he gets paid very well.
It’s time to throw him a bone. I’ll go back to the apartment and let him go do something interesting. When I stand up and brush myself off, though, I don’t see Lurch anywhere.
“Mario?” I call out, using his real name.
I did accidentally call him Lurch once, and he didn’t talk to me for three days. I’m not making that mistake again. He doesn’t answer me, and I suddenly feel like something is very wrong. He wouldn’t walk away when he’s supposed to be watching me. As many times as I’ve wished I could shake him off, he’s proven that he’s impossible to get rid of.
So where the hell is he?
An uneasy feeling spreads through my stomach, but I tell myself it’s nothing. He probably just wandered off to get something to eat. The penthouse isn’t far. I’ll just walk myself back. I pick my way carefully through the copse of trees, when someone grabs my arm.
I scream, losing my balance and crashing against the figure. I look up, hoping it’s Mario, but my stomach sinks when I see it’s not him. It’s Niko.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I ask him coldly.
When he looks down at me, there’s a wild look in his eyes. There’s something very wrong about the way he’s staring at me and the way he’s grabbing my arm. It’s too tight. He’s hurting me.
“Niko, let go of me,” I scream, but his hand moves to my mouth, covering it so I can’t be heard.
“You are mine,” he growls. “You belong to me, and you always have. I’m not going to let you be the whore of that criminal for one more day.”
I try to pull away from him, but he’s too strong. I’ve never known Niko to be like this before. Until we found out we were getting married, he mostly treated me with indifference. I was just his best friend’s little sister.