by Penelope Sky
But that would be stupid.
I had to play his game.
I had to lose his game.
I stayed in the vehicle and examined the scene around me, watching my men hop out of their trucks with their rifles across their chests. Normally, Damien would be in the seat beside me, and we would be taking in everything as a team.
Now I was alone.
I knew he wouldn’t reveal Damien until I showed my face, so I got out of the SUV and walked across the soft grass to the open space between us, no-man’s-land. My suit had been replaced by a t-shirt, jeans, and a leather jacket. The watch Damien gave me for my birthday was on my wrist.
I stopped fifteen feet away from Maddox, my pistol snug in the back of my jeans. With my arms resting by my sides, I stared into the cold eyes that made me furious. Not only had he hurt my family, but he’d played me like a damn violin. He had me by the balls, and his squeeze only tightened with every passing second.
I hated that goddamn smile.
One day, I would kill him…just not today.
He pushed off the hood. “Drag him out.”
Two men moved to a truck parked in the rear. They opened the bed and yanked Damien out by his feet. After he fell to the dirt with a quiet moan, he was pulled to a stand and then was marched toward us. With cuffed hands and a gag in his mouth, he was a bloody prisoner. His face was black and blue from the beatings that had happened throughout the day. One eye was swollen, and judging from the way he held his body, a couple of ribs were broken. When he was shoved to the line, his eyes moved to mine.
He wasn’t scared. He was just sorry. This was all his fault—he knew it.
“You sure you want to do this?” Maddox asked. “Because this asshole doesn’t deserve a second chance. He’s an egotistical idiot who thinks he’s got it all figured out. That kind of arrogance will get you killed…and he would have been killed if he weren’t valuable.”
I couldn’t hold Damien’s gaze longer than a few seconds. It was too difficult to look at him that way, to see a strong man I admired reduced to blood and bruises. I’d murdered people in cold blood…but seeing the pain on his face made me sick. “We have a deal. Let him go.”
Maddox moved to Damien’s side, his eyebrows raised, a smile on his face. “You’ll give up everything for this guy? Your entire drug business, everything you’ve worked for, just gone?”
Damien obviously had no idea what Maddox had asked for in return for his life, and his eyes widened in fury at what his stupidity had cost me.
Asshole.
“I already said yes, didn’t I?” I wanted this deal to be over, to forget this god-awful night ever happened.
“Just want to make sure you’ll keep your word,” Maddox said. “Because if you don’t…there will be consequences.” He pulled a short blade from his pocket and sliced the zip ties that restrained Damien’s wrists. Then he ripped off the duct tape plastered across his mouth.
Damien bolted for me, moving across the grass and returning to my side where he belonged. He struggled to move, his body beaten and bloody. Some of my men came to his aid, swung his arms over their shoulders so they could get him into the back seat.
I continued to stare at Maddox. “Sofia is my wife. Find someone else.” I shouldn’t bring her up, but I needed my adversary to stay away from the most important thing I possessed. “She’s mine until I’m gone.”
He cocked his head slightly. “When I was told she was available, she seemed unencumbered.”
“I know Gustavo never told you that, so disregard your source. He’s an idiot.”
“It was Gustavo. You don’t believe me?”
Would that man really betray me? Did he find Maddox a more powerful ally than me? Should I care about the opinion of a dead man?
“Now that you’re finished, why would she stay? Her husband is now an ordinary banker, nothing special, easily forgotten. She’s used to a powerful man, used to fine luxuries. One day, she’ll get bored of you…and she’ll look for someone better.” He gave me a wink before he turned around and got into the car. His men followed suit, piling into their vehicles and driving away into the night.
I watched their taillights move all the way to the road miles away. The nighttime air was chilly across my neck, probably because my temperature ran at the heat of a furnace. My men piled into their cars, but I remained behind, unable to accept what had just happened.
It was over.
I sat beside Damien in the back seat, but it didn’t feel like old times.
I was so fucking pissed.
My eyes stayed out the window, my body pivoted away from him because I didn’t want even his shape in my peripheral vision. I’d just thrown away everything for him, but I still wanted nothing to do with him.
Damien had always been a talker—but now he was dead silent.
Because he knew he fucked up.
We drove back to the city, made our way through the streets as we headed to his home.
My phone rang. I glanced at it with no intention of answering it. The last thing I wanted to do was talk, to say anything at all. My mouth would run, and I would make death threats to someone who didn’t deserve it.
But it was Sofia.
Since my rage couldn’t displace my concern, since it couldn’t wash away my fear for the woman I loved, I took that call so damn fast. Damien had been taken from me, and I couldn’t imagine how shitty I’d feel if she’d been taken too. “Baby, are you okay?” That was all I wanted to know, all I needed to know.
“I’m fine.” Her quiet voice entered my ears, subdued like she was tired but too jolted to go to sleep. “You’re the one I’m worried about.”
“I’m fine. We’ll talk when I get home.”
“Is Damien okay—”
“I got him back. But we’ll talk when I get home.” I hung up.
Damien leaned his head against the window, breathing heavily because he was battling the pain all over his body. “Don’t be a dick to her.”
“Wow…” I kept my eyes out the window. “How about you try not being a dick to me?”
He sighed. “Just don’t take it out on her. You’ve worked too hard to push her away—”
“Shut the fuck up.” I turned my head and looked at him, my jaw so tight, I actually strained the cords in my neck. My eyes twitched from widening so far. Just looking at his goddamn face made the adrenaline pump through every inch of my body. “Don’t tell me how to treat my wife. She can wait until I get home, wait until I’m calm enough to carry on a conversation. You’re the one who needs to learn how to treat people, how to listen to what the fuck you’re told.”
He rested his forehead against the glass. “He almost killed me—”
“That’s your fault. I told you to back off. Now look what happened. Everything we’ve built is gone.” I snapped my fingers. “Like that.”
He couldn’t meet my gaze, the shame too much. “You didn’t have to make the trade…”
I turned back to look out the window. “Now I wish I hadn’t.”
I entered our bedroom, finding her sitting in the armchair by the window. She was in one of my t-shirts, her long legs crossed and one of her bare feet on the rug. Her dark hair was slightly messy like she’d been fingering it, pulling it over her shoulder because she needed to fidget. It was three in the morning, so the lights were off. She sat in the glow from the streetlight, the pale glow making her look like a black-and-white picture.
I stripped off my jacket and tossed it on the floor.
She rose to her feet. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” I kicked off my shoes then poured myself a drink, letting the booze soothe all the sore muscles in my core. It was always a kick on the way down, but a bigger kick once it was in my bloodstream.
She came up behind me, her hands touching my triceps, while she rested her forehead against my back. “You don’t seem okay…”
I was still so angry at the turn of events, that my best friend ruined everythi
ng with his stupidity. But I remembered all that I would have sacrificed to garner this kind of attention from her, to see her vulnerable as she showed her concern. She held on to me like she didn’t want to watch me slip away, like she wanted to be a crutch just as I’d been for her.
It somehow sheathed my anger… that simple gesture.
I abandoned my drink and turned around, letting my chin fall so I could look down at her. Her makeup was faded and smeared like she had been too anxious to notice her appearance in the mirror. But that kind of genuine devotion was so sexy…to know she’d been waiting all night for me to walk through that door…that she’d called to make sure I’d survived.
I’d wanted this for so long—and now I finally had it.
My hand moved to her neck then slowly migrated up to her hair. I brushed the strands away, showing the beautiful contours of her face. My eyes memorized the fullness of her lips, the sparkle of her eyes. Even on my darkest night, she could somehow make it day. “Damien is in bad shape, but he’ll live.”
“Good…I’m glad he’s okay. Where is he?”
“Dropped him off at home.”
“Who’s going to take care of him?”
I shrugged. “Not my problem.”
“You really think he should be alone right now? In that condition? He’s probably traumatized. It’s not like he had a woman to go home to.”
True. There was nothing better than walking in the door to see this woman waiting for me. “What’s he going to do here? I’m not helping him.”
“I could help him.” Her eyes shifted back and forth as she looked into mine. “That man is like your brother… Why does it seem like you hate him?”
“Because I do hate him.” My hand slid out of her hair and back to her neck. “This is all his fault. If he’d just listened to me, none of this would have happened. That little asshole fucked up everything.”
“I’m sure he didn’t mean it.”
“Doesn’t matter. This is the real world. There are shitty consequences for shitty actions.”
“It seems like he’s the only one who was punished.”
Not even close. “I had to make a trade to save his life.”
“Oh…”
“I had to give up my company…and that’s exactly what I did.”
Her eyes softened as her hand slowly dragged down my chest.
“I built that organization all on my own. Now it’s gone—because of him. I could have let him die instead. That’s what most men would have done. But…” I shook my head. “I couldn’t do it. I’m pissed at him. Want nothing to do with him. But I can’t live without him, so I did what I had to do.”
Her hands slowly moved back up my chest, her eyes still glued to mine. “You love him.”
I refused to acknowledge it. That was pussy shit.
“That’s sweet.”
I dropped my gaze. Most people would find me weak, find me pathetic. But Sofia was different from all those people. She’d never been impressed by my power or my money. Only wanted it when she needed it. She valued the qualities underneath my suit—and that gave me hope for something more.
Her arms hooked around my neck, and she moved close to me, our faces almost touching. “I’m glad you’re home…I was worried the entire time. I wanted to call so many times, but I knew I shouldn’t. Then I got impatient.”
I closed my eyes and felt my dick get hard. That was such a turn-on, to imagine her expecting me, checking the time as she anxiously waited for me to come home. She cared about me, needed me. “You can call me whenever you want. You’re my wife—that’s your right.”
She rested her forehead against mine, her hands moving to my biceps. “So, it’s over? Do we need to worry about that man again?”
He got what he wanted. He defeated me, humiliated me. Now that I was out of the way, nothing would stop him from taking everything he wanted. “No.” My hand glided up her neck again, cupping her cheek because I wanted to feel those lips against mine. She sheathed my anger like it was a sword, drenched my rage with cool water.
She looked at me through her thick lashes, her lips parted in preparation for a kiss.
My hand slid into her hair, and my fingers dug deep as I cradled her head to mine, kissing her with a softness I didn’t know I possessed. I breathed into her mouth, let the horrible evening wash away. It somehow seemed insignificant now that I was with her…like she was the only thing that really mattered.
Our relationship had changed so much in just a week. She had been indifferent to me, fiery and disobedient. She’d resisted my every request on principle, refusing to trust me. But then one night…all of that changed. Her walls finally came down, and instead of defying me, she wanted to please me.
She wanted to be my wife…finally.
It reminded me of the way we used to be, the untamable desire that consumed us both like a wildfire. We couldn’t get enough of each other, couldn’t satisfy our urges no matter how many nights we spent together.
Maybe one day we could be more. Maybe with enough trust, affection, and lust, she would see me as something more. Maybe she could allow herself to love a man for the first time.
And maybe we could break my curse.
I straightened my tie in the mirror before I turned to leave.
Sofia only had a towel wrapped around her waist because she’d just stepped out of the shower. Her wet hair settled across her shoulders, looking like a teenage fantasy. Her wedding ring was still on her finger because I asked her to wear it always, even if she was home alone. “Leaving?”
I clasped the watch around my wrist. “Yes.”
“Where are you going?”
“Work.” Where else was I going?
“I thought you didn’t have a job anymore?” She walked up to me, her arms crossed over her chest.
“The bank still needs my attention.” At least I had something else to fall back on. I had more money than I could ever spend in a lifetime, so financial gain wasn’t my motivation to go to work every day. I did it because I enjoyed it. It gave me purpose; it gave me power. If I retired and lived a mundane existence, I’d shoot myself in the head.
“I see…” She lingered in front of me, something clearly on her mind.
“What is it?”
“I was thinking of stopping by Damien’s place…to check on him.”
“You don’t need to do that.”
“I know I don’t. But if he’s family to you, he’s family to me, right?”
My mood soured. “Not anymore.”
Her eyes softened. “I’m going to bring him over here. We have several guest bedrooms on this floor. He shouldn’t be alone right now.”
“You don’t need to be his nurse.”
“No. But I can be his friend.”
I was a bit jealous that Damien was getting all of Sofia’s attention. If I came home bruised and bloody, she would probably be attentive to me too. Maybe I should walk down a dark alleyway and pick a fight with somebody.
“Is that okay?”
“Does that mean you’ll be staying home?”
“For a couple of days.”
I preferred to have her here instead of at the hotel, so that worked out in my favor. “Alright.” My arm hooked around her waist, and I pulled her in for a kiss. My fingers gripped the cotton towel in my fingertips, tempted to rip it off her body and take that clean body on the bed. But I had shit to do, problems to fix. “I’ll see you later.”
Her hands cupped my face as she kissed me. “Be safe.”
“Always.” I left the bedroom and called Damien.
He answered after several rings had passed. “If you just want to yell at me, it can wait…” He took a deep breath between his words, like carrying on a conversation was too difficult. “Because I feel like—”
“Sofia wants you to stay with us until you’re back on your feet.”
“What?”
“Just get over here. Can you manage that?”
There was a long paus
e before his next words. “Yeah. I’m just surprised she wants me there.”
“Says you shouldn’t be alone right now. I couldn’t give a damn, but she’s the better one of the two of us.”
“I don’t know what to say…”
“Then get off the phone.” I hung up.
11
Sofia
Damien was in terrible shape.
When his men helped him into the house, I hardly recognized him. With swollen eyes and a face so discolored, he barely looked human, he had been beaten so badly that it was a shock he’d survived at all.
It left me speechless.
He was escorted to a spare bedroom on the top level, a few doors away from our bedroom. I had Helena prepare it, pulling back the sheets on the bed so he could slip inside easily. A vase of fresh flowers was on the nightstand, and the windows were open to reveal plenty of sunlight.
He lay back on the bed and sighed, fully dressed because he was too weak to get his clothes off. When his men tried to help him strip down, he kicked them away. “Are you kidding me? Get out.”
The guys left.
I slowly approached the bed, looking at his remains as if I were at a wake. I stopped above him, staring down at a plum instead of a face. “You shouldn’t have gone home alone in the first place.”
With his eyes closed, he shrugged. “I just wanted to get home…get in bed.” He took a deep breath, the exertion of conversation too difficult.
“You want me to take you to the hospital?”
“And give that asshole the satisfaction?” he asked bitterly. “I’d rather die.”
“Well…they have something magical called morphine. That might defeat your pride.”
He was quiet as if he was considering it. “No.”
“How would he even know you’re in the hospital?”
“Trust me, he’d know.”
I dragged the armchair toward the bed and took a seat. “How about I help you get undressed? You seem uncomfortable.”