I haven’t spoken to Easton for a few days now. Though it’s refreshing, I also find it terrifying at the same time because he’s never let me have this much time to myself. I got to shower, sleep, eat breakfast and dine alone, sometimes with Jill accompanying me. We’re talking again but not about anything specific. She’s been quiet about my escape ever since our big talk and so have I. We’ve moved past it already.
Still, I’m lonely without having Easton to talk to and argue with, as strange as that is. I’m used to him hovering over me, drawing me into conversation … or a fight. But nothing of the sorts has happened since he pulled me out of the chains and into the tub. And I have to admit, it was nice for a second to pretend I wasn’t there as a captive. It was sweet of him to wash me, and I honestly felt as though he actually cared about me for once.
But then it was all ruined by his one admission of sending my father footage of me.
The thought alone makes me clench my fist.
I shouldn’t have expected anything different from a man like him.
He’s only driven by revenge.
It shouldn’t upset me, but it does because, for a tiny sliver of time, I thought he meant it when he said he loved me. He didn’t fuck me, didn’t take me as he said he would … even when I told him I wanted it more than anything.
It was the truth.
A truth that made me want to disappear into the water and sink so deep no one could ever find me.
I don’t want to need a man like him. I don’t want my body to ache after his. Yet I do, so badly that it hurts being mad. And I’ve spent the past few hours fuming, trying to come to terms with that fact.
When someone knocks on my door, I’m not at all prepared.
“Yes?” I mutter, touching up my makeup in the mirror.
“Can I come in?”
He never asks. This is strange.
I take in a breath, and say, “Yes.”
The door unlocks, and in he walks, dressed in navy blue. Just as on our wedding day, way back when I didn’t have any of these feelings confusing the hell out of me.
Which is why I don’t look at him. If I did, I’d probably lose the fight for control over my heart. And I refuse to give it to him when he doesn’t deserve it.
Easton clears his throat. “I want to apologize to you for what I did.”
Well, that’s a first. Who is this man apologizing to me? That’s not Easton. Easton would never admit he made a mistake.
“I can’t take back sending those pictures to your father,” he says as I continue to stare at myself in the mirror. “I wish I didn’t need revenge so badly, but I do.”
I suck in another breath, trying so hard not to respond.
“But that’s no excuse for breaking your heart,” he adds.
I lick my lips and close my eyes as I absorb these words, trying to make sense of what they mean … and who is saying them. Is he really sorry, or is he trying to win me over? Does he truly love me or only my body?
“I won’t ask you to forgive me. But I will ask you to come downstairs when you’re ready,” he says.
I turn around, but the last thing I see is his back as he closes the door behind him.
What the …?
What just happened?
Why would he ask me to come downstairs? For what? I don’t understand what’s going on, but I can’t ask him either. He’s given me no choice but to follow him, so I do.
He’s already in the hallway when I’m staring down the staircase, and I take the first few steps hesitantly. The main door to the outside world is open, and my feet instinctively move faster as if to try for another escape attempt. But I know that would be foolish. After all, I came here to honor my end of a deal I made with Easton.
Did he leave it open to tempt me, to give me an idea of what I’ve lost just to throw it in my face? Or is there some other reason?
“I’m glad you took me up on the offer,” Easton says, standing tall and proud.
“I haven’t yet decided if I want to or not,” I mutter, eyeing him as I come downstairs.
“You came down. That’s all I requested,” he says, adding a cocky but sexy smile. He walks off toward the open door and stays put, staring out onto his property.
He takes a whiff, and says, “Fresh air always smells good, don’t you think?”
I nod when he looks at me. Is he taunting me to try to anger me further? Or is this a test to see if I’ll try to run when the door is open?
“I’m not going to run,” I say.
“Hmm?” He raises a brow.
“Why would I? We made a deal. Ashanti’s life for mine.”
He just looks at me without a single emotion showing on his face. “I know.”
I frown as he walks off into the garden, leaving me behind in the entryway.
I chase after him, halting right in front of the door as if it’s a magical barrier I can’t cross. He’s never left me like this without hooking his arm through mine, without having his guards escort me outside, or without pushing me into a car. I’ve never had the opportunity to decide until now.
My feet move as if they knew they had to, treading forward across the pavement, along the beautiful flowers and the big fountain in the middle that I’ve only seen from a car window.
My hand slides along the stone and dips into the cold water, and I close my eyes while taking in a whiff of the air, just as Easton did.
When I open my eyes again, he’s suddenly right in front of me.
I clutch my chest, and he chuckles.
“You didn’t have to follow me,” he says, glancing at the fountain.
I wipe my wet hand on my dress. “What else was I supposed to do?”
Easton touches the water the same way I did. “Make a choice.”
He cocks his head and stares at me. Then he turns around and walks off toward the gates, and I’m left trying to catch my breath. After everything that was said and done, this is what he wants me to do? Make a choice? I already did when I chose Ashanti. That means being with him for the rest of my life. I don’t understand what else he wants from me.
I tag along behind him as the gates open, and the outside world is within my reach once again. Approaching a parked car out front, he opens the back door and slides inside, leaving it open while gazing at me.
I stand frozen to the ground.
He doesn’t invite me in, but he doesn’t tell me to stay away either.
Should I run or stay or go with him?
He hasn’t told me what he wants to do or where we’ll go. It could be someplace I’ll never return from. Maybe now that he’s had his way with me, he’s done playing with me and wants to discard me. But that might be my irrational brain talking after all those confusing emotions flushed through me.
Easton apologized to me for what he did. He’d never apologize to someone unless they meant a great deal to him.
Still, I could choose to run. I’m outside the gates with no guards around and nothing to stop me. I could, but my heart longs to know where this may go, and the devil leads me astray.
Before I know it, my feet have already stepped toward the car, and Easton scoots aside while I sit down beside him.
The driver closes the door, but this time, it isn’t a stark reminder of my captivity. It’s a fitting answer to a question that wasn’t asked. A choice … that I just made.
We ride in silence. He probably wouldn’t tell me the truth if I asked where we’re going. His hand slides over mine, squeezing softly, and a warm fuzziness courses through my body. It’s the first time I’ve ever wanted to squeeze back.
Halfway through the ride, Easton suddenly withdraws his hand and fumbles in his pocket. He pulls out a black cloth and holds it up. “I want you to wear this.”
I narrow my eyes. “Why?”
“It’s a surprise,” he says.
A good surprise or a bad one?
He folds the scarf around my eyes and makes a knot behind my head, securing it tight. His finger lingers around my ear, caressing my neckline as he leans in to whisper, “Don’t peek.”
The darkness in his voice brings tingles to my body, and I instinctively lean in to him even though I always swore I’d never want to. No matter how hard I try to deny it, I am falling for him and his seductive ways …
“Where are we going?” I murmur as the car drives on.
“You’ll see,” he whispers, and a smile creeps across my lips.
I don’t know why this gets me so excited, but apparently, I love the thrill of not knowing what’s about to happen. Maybe Easton was right when he said I love to give up control. To surrender brings my body into a trance, amplifying every sensation until I lose myself in the moment.
Just as I do when he’s touching me.
Using me.
Fucking me.
Easton loves control, and I love … submission.
Is it true? Was I this powerless against his seduction all along, while fighting the inevitable?
I can’t ask him or myself that. If I did, it’d mean admitting all I thought about us was wrong.
The car stops, and my moment to myself ends. Easton steps out, and I wait until he opens my door. “Grab my hand,” he says, and I reach out until I find it.
I step out and follow him with gentle steps, afraid I might fall, but I know he’ll catch me if I do. His strong hand keeps me steady as we walk toward something, and Easton rings a doorbell.
A door opens. “Charlotte?”
My heart stops beating.
“You can take off the blindfold now,” Easton says with a soft voice.
I tear off the scarf with tears in my eyes as I rush toward the door.
“Deion,” I mutter, and I hug him tight.
“I thought I’d never see you again,” he mutters, tears staining his eyes.
I smile and try to hold my own tears back in vain. “I thought so too …”
I was wrong.
We both were.
But not merely about us meeting up again. We were wrong about Easton too.
