A Debt Repaid

by Wild, Clarissa

  A smile forms on my lips, and I fight back the tears. “I’d love that.”

  He nods, and the smile that follows is the first semblance of humanity I’ve seen in him in ages. The last time was when he donated all those toys to those kids. Maybe there is more to him than meets the eye.

  “You will keep your promise, right?” I ask.

  “Are you afraid I’ll suddenly go back on it?” he retorts while keeping his eyes on the road.

  I glance at him. “It wouldn’t be the first time.”

  He narrows his eyes at me. “This time is different.”

  Why does it feel like he’s a completely different person from who I remember him to be? Did our time apart change him that much? Or did I just never see the real man he could be underneath the beast?

  “I won’t punish him … if you come home with me without a fight,” Easton adds.

  Goose bumps scatter on my skin. I should’ve known there’d be a threat sooner or later. I jumped to conclusions too soon, thinking he’d finally be a better man. That he’d finally be that boy I remembered from my father’s wedding when we were young … but that boy is probably dead by now. Easton buried him a long time ago.

  “You mean, if you can do anything you want to me,” I say, turning my head so I no longer have to look at him.

  He leans sideways, and whispers, “You ran away from home.”

  “I ran away from you,” I snap back, looking straight at him. “From your fearmongering and dictatorship.”

  “Did you just compare me to a—”

  “Yes, I did,” I say, folding my arms. “You chased me away.”

  His nostrils flare, and his lips part, twitching as he gnaws his teeth, but then he retracts his fangs and sits up straight. “If you feel that way, I will accept that.” He turns toward the road again so he can see what he’s doing before we drive off the road and into a wall.

  I frown and lean back into the seat. I can’t believe what I’m hearing. “Did you just say you’ll accept my feelings?”

  He sighs. “I’m not going to repeat myself, Charlotte.”

  Well, I’ll be damned. I look out the window and smile to myself. Maybe he has changed after all.

  “What did you do to the notebook?” Easton asks.

  I glare his way before responding. “I threw it away.”

  I don’t look at him directly, but I still catch his reaction from the corner of my eyes. And oh boy … was it worthwhile.

  Easton suddenly shifts the topic. “That man … did he touch you in any way?”

  “Deion?” I mutter, and a blush appears on my cheeks at the thought. “No. He’d never.”

  Easton grabs my chin and makes me look at him. “Tell me the truth, Charlotte.”

  “I am. We haven’t done anything,” I say.

  “But you lived with him in his house for quite some time, didn’t you?”

  “Yes, but he’s a dad,” I say, making a face. “Why would we …?”

  “Because he’s a man,” Easton explains. “And men do these things.”

  I jerk away from his grasp. “Deion’s different.”

  “You think he is, but he’s not. And the mere fact he took you in …” Easton balls his hands into a fist, and I can’t help but notice how scrunched up his face looks.

  Is he … jealous?

  “Oh my God,” I say, laughing a little.

  “What?” Easton says, taking his eyes off the road shortly.

  I rub my lips with my fingers to hide my laughter. “Nothing.”

  “Don’t do that,” he says.

  I raise a brow. “Do what?”

  “If you’re going to act like a brat all the way home, I’m going to have to remind you of the rules … and that involves your ass turning bright red on my lap.” The groan that follows makes my pussy clench.

  Fuck. I forgot how seductive he can get when he’s pissed off at me and just how much my body responds to it. It’s only gotten worse since I last saw him.

  “You’re mine, Charlotte. Don’t ever forget that. You gave your life to me.”

  “You took my life,” I correct.

  “I didn’t kill you,” he says.

  I look straight into his eyes. “Locking me up is the same thing.”

  He blows out a breath through his nose. “I never wanted to lock you up, but if I didn’t, you would’ve escaped.”

  “And I did escape,” I retort. “So what was the point?”

  He takes another big breath and turns his head away, nostrils flaring. He knows damn well I’m right, but he won’t admit it. You can chain me up and keep me trapped, but it won’t ever stop me from trying to escape.

  Suddenly, he stops the car in the middle of the road and presses a button. The doors unlock. “Get out then.”

  My eyes widen. “What?”

  “You heard me. Get out.”

  “But—”

  “You wanted out, right? Then go.”

  I frown, flabbergasted by his proposal. Is he for real? Or is this all a joke?

  “Leave,” he growls.

  I grab the handle and open the door and put one foot outside onto the pavement. But my body refuses to get up from the seat. No matter how much I push myself to go while I can, to leave this man behind and never look back … I can’t.

  My body won’t let me even though my brain tells me to walk. Freedom is within my grasp. He’s handing it to me on a golden platter. I should take this opportunity before he changes his mind.

  But then why won’t my legs move?

  I shudder as I suck in a breath and stay put, wind brushing past my leg.

  This man took everything from me.

  But this same man saved Ashanti from my father’s minions too. He brought her back unharmed and let both of them be as he promised. No monster would do that.

  I close my eyes and let out a sigh.

  “You can choose to leave … or you can give in to what your heart desires,” Easton suddenly says.

  I swallow away the lump in my throat as though I’m trying to keep my heart down.

  “Why?”

  “Because I’m not just a bad guy, Charlotte,” he replies. “I care about you. And I’m sorry your father got in the way and ruined everything.”

  “My father? This isn’t about him,” I reply with one foot still out the door.

  “Yes, it is. He’s been driving a wedge between us since day one,” he says. “Even now, when I was trying to find you, he went behind my back and kidnapped that little girl.”

  So it wasn’t Easton’s idea, after all? Wow. My father went to great lengths to get to me.

  “He took her so he could get to me,” I mumble, staying put.

  “If you hadn’t called me, I’m sure he’d have killed her,” he says.

  I shake my head. “He wouldn’t. He’s not that vicious.”

  “He is when his life is at stake,” Easton replies, glaring at me. “You know your father only cares about himself and his business.”

  I lick my lips. “He wouldn’t hurt an innocent girl.”

  “When I found her, she was surrounded by gun-wielding men who looked as though they’d done it before. You think he didn’t know who he was hiring? Wrong. He was counting on you to be obstinate, and he was planning to kill her as an example. I just know it.”

  My heart beats in my clamped down throat, and it’s suddenly hard to breathe.

  “He would’ve used her father to get you to come out of hiding and surrender,” Easton adds.

  I try my best to keep the tears at bay, but I can’t stop seeing Ashanti in front of me … covered in bullet wounds with blood seeping out.

  “No …”

  “No,” Easton repeats. “I wouldn’t let that fucking happen. No one hurts goddamn kids under my watch,” he growls, taking his hands off the wheel to ball them into fists. “If he’d fucking told me his plan beforehand, I would’ve stopped him then and there.”

  I bite my lip and look at him. “You’d do that even
if it meant not finding me?”

  “I’m not as evil as you think I am, Charlotte,” he growls. “I know what’s right and wrong.”

  I look away and take a deep breath because it’s a lot to take in right now. Ashanti could’ve almost died if I hadn’t called Easton. He saved her. And not just to take me back, but I guess that was a nice bonus for him.

  Maybe he isn’t as bad as I thought.

  And for some reason, somehow, this simple thought is enough to make me pull my leg back in and close the door.

  His eyes gleam with victory. “Now, let’s go home.”

  Chapter 12

  Easton

  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 t
oo.

  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?”