When we arrive home, Charlotte immediately goes up to her room and locks her door. I stay at the bottom of the stairs and stare up toward her room. I wonder if I should go to her or if I should give her some time. After all, she gave up her freedom to save another once again. That’s got to hurt. And I doubt she wants the guy who took her away to console her.
I sigh out loud.
Right then, Jill emerges from the kitchen. “Sir, you’re back.” She gazes at me and then up the stairs, a questioning look in her eyes. “Is Charlotte …?”
“Yes.”
The shimmer in her eyes disappears. “Oh … well, that’s good. Very good,” she says, adding a fake smile. “Should I bring her a cup of tea?”
I nod. “Whatever she wants, give it to her.”
She frowns. “Really?”
I give her a stern look, and she nods. “Of course, sir.” She immediately spins on her heels and bolts right back into the kitchen. Every time Charlotte’s mentioned, Jill completely freezes. It’s as though she almost wished it wasn’t true, and that Charlotte had escaped my grasp. But that wouldn’t make any sense. Jill wants me to be happy, and the only way I’ll ever be happy is with Charlotte near me. Even though we fight a lot, there’s something about that girl, and I can’t stop thinking about her. Like right now, I’m pacing in my study, wondering what she’s doing and if she’s okay. I worry about that girl … and I’ve never worried about any girl.
But fuck me, am I glad she’s back where she belongs.
What if she’d been gone forever? I’d have drained my entire savings trying to find her.
I grab some rum and pour myself a drink, then sit down in my comfy chair to stare at the fireplace. As my favorite spot in the house, this place always manages to calm me down … except right now.
Charlotte’s back where she belongs, but at what cost? She lived out on the streets for God knows how long, and then she was taken in by some random man for fuck knows what reason. Who even does that? He must’ve had ulterior motives; no way would a guy take in a woman without wanting something in return … right?
But Charlotte had nothing with her to exchange except for her ring. Maybe that’s why I didn’t see it on her finger.
Or maybe he really did want something else from her … something I wanted to give to her …
I clench the glass in my hand so hard it almost shatters.
I shift in my seat and tap my fingers on the armrests.
Fuck. Why am I so fucking antsy?
I can’t stop thinking about her and all the things she went through … all the things I missed out on. All the things that guy could’ve done to her while I wasn’t there.
Making a face, I take a sip of my drink and mull it over. I wish I could go talk to her right now, but the timing isn’t right. We both need to cool off before I attempt to seduce her again. She may be my wife, but that doesn’t mean she’ll willingly allow me into her heart. I’ll have to fight for it … and fight for her I will, goddammit.
Now that she’s finally in my grasp again, I don’t intend to ever let her go. But how can I prevent her from escaping again? How do you stop a woman who doesn’t love you back from wanting to leave?
There’s only one way. I have to make her fall in love with me.
The question is … how?
I don’t have her notebook anymore, so I can’t look inside for clues. Of course, she had to go and throw it away. I should’ve copied it when I still had it in my possession.
Then again, cheaters never make a good impression … and I need this impression to last.
I take another sip of my drink, and I immediately see her smile in front of me again. The smile she gave that man and his little girl. She was stricken with grief when she had to leave them behind, and I don’t understand why. Did she fall in love with that little family so quickly?
Maybe he offered her something even I couldn’t … a real home. One where she wasn’t forced to live.
She sounded so distressed on the phone. As if she would’ve done anything to save that little girl. And she did. Just like that, she sacrificed herself to save that girl. As if her life meant nothing to her even when I know her freedom means the world to her. And she gave it all away for a child.
Nothing about this makes sense.
Still, I’m glad I could use the situation to my advantage. If that fucker Davis hadn’t kidnapped the girl, I would’ve never found out where Charlotte was. The girl was eager to tell me her address, and the rest is history.
But Davis went out of his way to get Charlotte back without informing me of his plans. My blood begins to boil. He was supposed to contact me if he found something, but of course, he didn’t listen. Well, I’ll make him fucking listen.
I fish my phone from my pocket and dial his number.
“Davis,” he says.
“You went behind my back and kidnapped that little girl,” I growl.
“Easton,” he says, clearing his throat. “I didn’t expect—”
“I don’t give a damn what you expected,” I bark. “You went behind my back and kidnapped a fucking girl without my consent?!”
“I don’t need your fucking consent to—”
“Yes, you fucking do!” I’m shouting into my phone so loud that my face turns red. “I decide what you do, where you fucking go, how you piss, and when you shit … And if you get to keep your fucking pitiful fat-ass life.”
It’s completely silent on the other end of the line.
“Or did you forget the deal you made with me?”
“I haven’t,” he says starkly.
“She’s mine. Mine to keep. Mine to find. You should’ve contacted me the minute you found her address.”
“I knew she wouldn’t come back to you without a bargaining chip,” he replies.
I grip my phone so hard it almost cracks. “Your plan was stupid, and you nearly got a little girl killed!”
He scoffs. “Since when do you care about kids?”
“That’s not the fucking point!” I bark back. “You’re playing with fire, Davis, and trust me … you don’t want to be the one to burn.”
I end the conversation before I lose my temper and chuck the phone into the fire. He’s not worth destroying my phone over. That fucker will get his comeuppance; I’ll make sure of it. Now that Charlotte’s back in my arms, I’ll send him a nice little gift … of his precious daughter toying with my stick.
I throw my phone onto the table and rub my forehead, trying to calm down. Only one thing will make me feel good right now … Charlotte.
I want her so badly. I’ve wanted to touch her since I laid my eyes on her in that guy’s home. I wanted to kiss her and mark her as my own right there with him watching. I wanted them both to know she’s mine forever. I wanted to grope her in the car, fuck her on the back seat, and lick her pussy until she came. I wanted to do it all …
But I had to get us home safely first.
And now I’m here in my study, and she’s up there, all by herself, probably drinking the tea Jill took her. We’re pretending everything’s back to normal, and we’re one happily married couple … but it’s not. Not until I’ve finally made her mine. Until she finally submits, and her heart belongs to me.
I thought having her under my control and owning her body would be enough, but I was wrong. I want her heart and soul too.
I take one last sip of my drink and put my glass down, then get up and go up the stairs, ignoring Jill’s stare from the kitchen. I know she doesn’t approve, but Jill doesn’t get to decide. Charlotte’s had enough time to gather her bearings, and now it’s time to talk.
I knock on her door as a courtesy.
“Come in,” she says. A lopsided grin spreads on my lips. I expected her to tell me to go away. I’m surprised.
I open the door and step into her room. She’s sitting at her boudoir, sipping her tea, while staring into the mirror. She’s still in the clothes she got at that man’s place … Deion, I think she called him.
I place my hands on her shoulders, and mutter, “Did Deion buy you these?”
She cocks her head and looks at me through the mirror. “His daughter did.”
“What else did they buy you?” I ask, trawling her neck for a necklace with a small charm in the shape of a moon.
She eyes me for a second, and the silence is deafening. “Nothing. I got it for free …”
“What?”
“Love.”
I stare back at her, my nostrils flaring in the mirror. “Love?” I snort. Of course she’d say that.
She clutches the necklace. “It’s the only thing you can’t buy.”
She’s provoking me, trying to make me out as the bad guy, but I won’t play this game with her no more.
I lean in and whisper in her ear, “But you didn’t love him back.”
The wickedness on her face disappears like snow before the sun.
I curl a strand of her hair around my finger. “Admit it.”
She sucks on her bottom lip. “He was kind. And gentle. A loving father. And everything else you could want in a man.”
“But you didn’t want him.” My fingers dig into her skin. “You didn’t want him to touch you.” My lips press a soft kiss to her skin, right below her ear. “To kiss you.”
Goose bumps cover her body in no time. She enjoys what I do, and she always has. She just refuses to come to terms with it. But I will make her see the truth.
“He never tried,” she hisses.
I raise a brow. “Really? Never?”
“Never,” she repeats, shaking her head.
“Not even a little bit? Even if he didn’t, he must’ve thought about it.”
“No, he wouldn’t,” she answers, frowning at me in the mirror.
“I know how men are,” I reply.
Her lip curls. “Not all men are like you.”
“Lie,” I say, glaring at her through the mirror. “How do I know you’re telling the truth?”
She cocks her head, tilting it up to hold her head high. “Why do you care so much?” A vicious smirk spreads on her lips. “So you are jealous …”
I tighten my grip on her shoulders, and she immediately jolts up out of her seat.
“Nothing will change the fact that you’re my wife, and you and I belong together. It doesn’t matter who came between us.”
“Right … But you still want to know if I’m a virgin,” she mocks as though that’s the only thing I’m interested in. But I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t the truth because I do want to know. I need to know if someone other than me has claimed her pussy. Because that right, to be the first and only man to come between her legs, should be mine.
“Nothing about you has changed,” she retorts with a snort.
“Did you expect it to?” I ask.
“Yes … Actually, I did. I was gone for such a long time, I thought maybe you’d finally come to your senses.”
“So you thought about me after all.” The smirk on my face makes her eyes smolder with heat.
My hand travels down her shoulder. “Did you fantasize about me touching you? Did you miss my hands on your body?”
“I missed nothing,” she hisses as I grab her breast and squeeze. Still, her nipple grows taut underneath my hand.
“You missed having me near … handing over control to me … letting me do whatever I wanted to your body to stop your mind from wandering,” I whisper, pinching her nipple.
Her eyes roll into the back of her head before she snaps them shut, but I saw. I definitely fucking saw.
“You can say it’s not true, but I don’t believe the lies you tell me, Charlotte,” I groan, ripping open her shirt to fondle her tits. “You didn’t even want that man. No matter how good or charming he is, he would never be able to give you what I give you.” One hand plunges down between her legs, and I clutch her pussy right through the fabric of her leggings and push my finger against her clit. “Complete and utter bliss.”
“I loved him,” she murmurs as I plant kisses all over her neck.
“You loved the idea of him. But it was a fantasy, just like your life with him. You could never truly love a man who can’t give you this,” I growl.
My hand dives into her panties, and I rub her clit until it engorges, just as her nipples did. She mewls under my command, and the sound makes my dick hard.
I groan in excitement. “Your pussy is still untouched …?”
“What if it’s not?” she mumbles.
My finger slides down, and before she can even gasp, I’ve pushed it up into her pussy. She’s so goddamn wet that it makes my mouth water. Fuck.
“Oh, yes … you are,” I growl. “Don’t lie, Charlotte. It’ll only make me angry.”
“Why should I care?” she hisses.
I clutch her neck and make her look at me through the mirror. “Because I am your husband, and nothing will ever change that.”
She grabs my hand, and again, my eyes settle on her ring finger that’s missing the ring.
“What did you do with the ring?” I ask.
“I threw it away,” she says with a smug smile.
I narrow my eyes at her. “Guess we’ll have to replace it with a better one … After I’m done punishing you.”
Her eyes widen. “Punish?”
My tongue dips out to lick her ear. “I told you what would happen if you defied me, and you ran away from me … Bad princess.”
Before she can respond, I tear off the necklace and tuck it into my pocket. “Starting with this.”
She turns in her seat. “Give that back,” she pleads.
“No,” I say, the look on her face turning icy cold.
“It’s the only thing I have left of them,” she says through gritted teeth.
I pat my pocket. “And it’ll stay right here with me until you’ve earned it back.”
“How?” she asks.
My lip curls up into a devilish smile. “By doing everything I ask you to do. By being a good wife. A perfect pet.”
Her lip twitches in annoyance, and she places her hands on her thighs.
My eyes follow her every movement and every smoldering gaze she throws back at me. Precisely how I like it … Pure submission.
And I say, “Kneel.”
