Hers to Love

by Talia Ellison

  Loving Your Enemy Series

  Book Three

  HERS TO LOVE

  Talia Ellison

  Copyright © 2017 Talia Ellison

  All rights reserved. No part of this novel may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior permission in writing from the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  For more information about the author, go to: http://taliaellison.weebly.com

  Never miss a new release! Sign up for Talia's newsletter: http://eepurl.com/btLeVv

  Table of Contents

  Copyright Page

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  More books by Talia Ellison

  Chapter 1

  My head throbbed viciously when I cracked my eyes open. I squinted at the light above me and turned my head. The chair and the overflowing desk to my right were familiar.

  My room. I was in my room. How the hell had I gotten here? My throat was like sandpaper, and as I shifted on the bed in an attempt to sit up, something dug into my wrist, making me wince. I looked at my left wrist and realized it was cuffed to the headboard. What on...?

  I swore as the images of what had happened started flowing through my mind. My brother had done this. He’d shown me a video and insisted he wouldn’t let me go talk to Aaron about it. I lifted myself as far as the cuff permitted and leaned my back against the headboard. A groan escaped my lips. That video I’d seen... was it real or was it some kind of a trick Jason had come up with?

  He’d said he’d gotten the video from Sebastian Viteri, so anything was possible. I definitely had to find out the truth about it, but first I had to get out of here. Just what exactly did my brother think he was achieving by keeping me here? He couldn’t just trap me in my room forever. The rest of the family would be here soon anyway. And Jason was crazy if he thought he’d be able to convince me to change my mind. Yes, the video he’d shown me was terrible, and I wasn’t sure yet how I felt about it, but I needed to hear Aaron’s side of the story.

  I looked around the room for something that I could use to unlock the cuff or maybe even something that I could use against Jason if he decided to come here, but everything was out of my reach, and Jason had cleaned out my nightstand. Shit. I tugged at the cuff, wondering if I could break off the part of the headboard the cuff was attached to, but I was nowhere near strong enough to do that.

  I tapped my pockets for my phone or anything else, but Jason had taken that too. Pressing my free hand against my neck, I tapped the slightly painful spot where Jason had stabbed me with a needle. Who knows what he had given me? Maybe he was planning to take a leaf out of Roberto’s book and keep me drugged like Roberto had done with Aaron, but despite everything, I didn’t expect my brother to stoop so low. I still couldn’t wrap my mind around the fact that he’d been willing to negotiate with Sebastian Viteri.

  The door swung open and my gaze flew to Jason, who was wearing a white dress shirt and black pants. His black hair was unruffled, his brown eyes hard. Just for how long had I been out of it? Had to be more than an hour.

  “Hello, sis,” Jason said, and I noticed a plastic bottle of water in his hand. He tossed the bottle onto the bed next to me. “I thought you might need this.”

  I grabbed the bottle, unscrewing the cap, and looked up at him. “Did you put something in it?” I stared straight into his eyes. My voice was raspy, and I fought the urge to cough, but even if Jason hadn’t spiked my drink, I wanted to show him that I no longer trusted him in the least.

  “No, of course not.” He scowled. I eyed him for a few moments, then decided to take a sip. The refreshing liquid felt like heaven to my dry mouth and I drank almost half of the bottle. Taking a deep breath, I set the bottle down and lifted my cuffed hand.

  “Are you going to untie me or is this for my own protection too?” I arched my eyebrows.

  “I’m sorry, sis, but you gave me no choice.” He picked up a chair and placed it closer to the bed, then took a seat.

  A laugh bubbled up in my throat. “Oh, wait. Now it’s my fault you drugged me and tied me up in my room. Really, Jason? What the fuck is wrong with you? You can’t do this! I’m your sister!”

  “You weren’t thinking straight, and I...”

  “No, it’s you who wasn’t thinking straight. In fact, why don’t you call Dad and ask him who the crazy one here is?” I gritted my teeth. Jason had no intention of letting me go for now. Wonderful.

  “Didn’t you see that video? How can you even want to go to him after that? He raped an innocent girl. That’s unforgivable. I can’t just let you go ask him about it. He could hurt you. Who knows what he has planned? He’ll take what is ours through you. We can’t let that happen.”

  “And doing this to your own sister is fine?” I rattled the cuff. “Let me go now, and maybe I’ll find it in me to forgive you one day. If you don’t... I don’t know how I can ever trust you if you keep doing things like this to me.”

  “But you can trust him and whatever he says? He’ll come up with some story and you’ll believe it, won’t you? You just don’t see what I see.” His eyes softened. A frown line creased my brow. Jason really thought he was doing the right thing. It somehow all made sense in his weird mind.

  “Yeah, I don’t see how you were suddenly willing to work with Sebastian Viteri. Weren’t you all about how those people were our enemy and couldn’t be trusted? And now you want me to believe a video they sent you is real? Don’t you think Sebastian’s trying to trick you? He got the information he wanted, and you provided it to him. He used you,” I said, a smile tracing my lips. There was no way for me to know what Sebastian’s intentions were, but I’d think about that later. Now I just needed to convince Jason to let me go.

  “I saw the opportunity to do away with Aaron and I took it. Father would never allow a move against Aaron and I couldn’t risk our whole family getting involved or breaking any rules. It was Sebastian who reached out to me, and honestly, I wasn’t willing to listen, but then I thought about it and... it was a good plan. Aaron and Roberto killing each other would’ve been perfect, and we wouldn’t be involved, so no one would’ve blamed us and we wouldn’t have had to unnecessarily risk our lives. That Sebastian guy hasn’t been here for years, and he’ll be an easy target. He’s like all the Viteris. Blinded by his arrogance and thirst for power.” He wrung his fingers.

  “Unfortunately,” he continued, “they weren’t capable of doing that right either. Roberto’s dead, but that scum’s alive and you’re still so desperately in love with him. You might not want to believe that video’s real, but I’m sure we can find someone to verify it. How could you ever love a rapist? He’s just like his father or worse. He’s playing you. Can’t you see he’s acting exactly how he wants you to see him? It’s his gra
ndfather’s scheme all over again!”

  “If you believe that video’s real so badly, then why don’t you untie me and come with me? If you’re afraid Aaron will do something to me, then we can go together and you can protect me. In fact, I could tell Aaron to come meet me in a public place.”

  Jason watched me for a moment. “He’d never tell you the truth in front of me. Why even bother? I told you, I can find someone to check the video, and once we know the truth, there’s nothing to discuss.”

  I really wished I could hit my brother over the head with something. “Did I ever stick my nose into your business and love life? Why do you have to stick yours in mine? I’m not a child. I can decide for myself what I’ll do with my life and who I’ll sleep with. And I can damn well decide who I can trust and forgive. I don’t need your help, brother.”

  “Yes, you do. No one else’s willing to do anything about it, so I have to. It’s my responsibility. I’m the only who sees Aaron for what he really is. What silly excuse did he give you for killing all those guards? That he wasn’t himself? That he had to do it? Oh, wait, maybe it was the whole the-devil-made-me-do-it thing.” Jason grinned. “That video I showed you was taken before Aaron came up with his little plan to overtake everything through you. I’m sure he’s already planning to propose. He knows he has you in his pocket. Then all he has to do is get rid of all of us, which will be easy, given that you’ll let him straight into our family, and he’ll have everything. He’s hiding his true self, and that video shows what he’s really like.”

  “Okay, fine. Let’s go with your theory that the video’s real,” I said, wondering what exactly I could say that would be enough for Jason to free me. If I suddenly agreed with him, he wouldn’t believe me.

  “It’s real.” The certainty in Jason’s voice was unnerving.

  “But we don’t know all the details. We don’t know what really happened. Maybe that girl was an actress and it was all a setup to please his father.” It was far more likely the video was fake, but, despite what Jason thought, there was simply no way for me to know. All I knew was that I didn’t want to condemn Aaron before figuring out what had really happened.

  Jason snorted. “You see? You’re trying to find an excuse for him.”

  “Maybe, but you can’t know that. You can’t know anything, so why don’t you just uncuff me and then we can investigate this?”

  “So you can run off to him and pretend you never saw that video? It’s a good thing I made copies, because you might get an idea to want to destroy it. Who knows what lies that asshole has filled your head with?”

  “Damn it, Jason. If you don’t want to let me go, then what? Are you going to keep me in here and expect I’ll magically change my mind?” I glared at him. “Do you think that whatever spell you think I’m under will wear off with time?”

  “No, I just... God, O.” He ran his hand across his face. “I don’t know what more proof you need that your precious Aaron is even more dangerous and cunning than his father. You keep falling for his lies and our parents aren’t doing anything about it either. Do you really think the son of Roberto Viteri could be a nice guy? Please! He can’t be.”

  “Well, Mom and Dad somehow got you, or maybe I should ask them if you were adopted.” I flashed him an icy smile. “Just wait until Dad comes home and you’ll see what he has to say about this.”

  My shoulders relaxed, and I gave Jason a challenging look. He had to know how my father would react when he found out what had happened to his little princess. I just wished my family would come home already. I was getting tired of this endless conversation with Jason when I could’ve already found Aaron and clarified this whole thing.

  Jason pressed his lips into a tight line, then pulled something out of his pocket. “Maybe we should test your boyfriend and see how he’ll react when he finds out you’re breaking up with him and are no longer interested. Then you’ll see his real face. He’ll come after you and want to forcefully take you so his plan doesn’t fail.”

  I recognized my phone in Jason’s hand. He was intending to text Aaron while pretending to be me. Great.

  Chapter 2

  Out of all of Jason’s brilliant ideas, this one might actually be useful. Jason set down my phone on his lap and pulled his own phone out, then checked both screens. I chewed on the inside of my cheek. There was no way in hell Aaron would believe I was leaving him and telling him that in a text. He’d at least want to check what was going on, and if he came here, he wouldn’t give up until he got to see me. Jason lifted his head and narrowed his eyes at me.

  “You’re awfully quiet. Aren’t you going to protest...?” Jason stopped mid-sentence. Shit. He must have realized exactly what I’d been thinking. “You believe he’s going to come here.”

  “Do whatever you want. It won’t matter. Aaron and I are the only ones who get to decide about our relationship, not you or anyone else.”

  “Maybe I can get you to see reason.” Jason tucked both phones into his pockets, and his eyes gleamed with a strange emotion. “You were in shock, so you couldn’t see that video properly. Let me show you again and you’ll see it’s all real.”

  I rolled my eyes as Jason started to get up. We didn’t have time for this, and I was getting sick and tired of being tied up and listening to my brother’s insane ideas. I had to do something. “You should know you can’t just brainwash me into agreeing with you. Showing me that video again won’t change my mind, and you acting like this certainly doesn’t help. Your persuasive skills are really terrible.” Now I understood why my father wasn’t in a hurry to hand over the business to Jason, as the eldest son, or to let him make any important decisions.

  “What does that piece of shit have to do so you’ll finally open your eyes? Shoot one of us in the face?” Jason asked, his jaw tense. “He’ll never make a move against us openly. We’ll just start disappearing or getting into accidents one by one, and then what? When you see him for who he is, it’ll be too late.”

  “You keep saying that, but you have no idea who Aaron really is, because you’ve barely spent any time around him!” I snapped.

  “I’ll be right back.” Jason ignored me and headed for the door.

  I strained against the cuff. “I have to pee. Do you expect me to just do it here?”

  Jason stopped and turned toward me with a groan. “You’re messing with me so I’ll let you go, aren’t you? Even if you get out of here, you won’t be able to get off this floor. I told the guards not to let anyone in or out. And they won’t listen to you, because I told them you accidentally ingested some drug.”

  “Thanks for letting me know, but I really need to go.” I couldn’t believe Jason had secured the whole floor just so I couldn’t run away. Was he protecting the windows too so I wouldn’t climb out?

  “Fine. But if you try anything, it’ll be your fault if you get hurt.”

  “Is that a threat?” I said incredulously. “Wow, Jason. You’re becoming worse than a Viteri. Maybe you should keep yourself away from me too. Or do you just prefer to be the one who gets to cause me pain instead of someone else? Is that it, Jason? Admit it. You never really liked me that much because I’m Dad’s favorite.” I was baiting him and hoping to get him distracted enough to do what I planned to.

  My brother’s eyes were shooting daggers at me as he strode across the room, fishing a key out of the small pocket on his dress shirt. “I love you, Octavia. I don’t want to hurt you, but...”

  “Ah, there’s a ‘but’. You see, I’m right. You just don’t want to admit it. Maybe I should tie you up somewhere and talk you to death until you see my point. Don’t you get now how stupid that sounds?”

  Jason simply climbed onto the bed and gripped my wrist tightly as he poised the key over the lock with his free hand. “Don’t try anything funny,” he said through his teeth. His breath reeked of something bitter, and I wondered if he’d been drinking. Probably. A sane person wouldn’t be doing this to his sister.

  As soon
as the cuff fell open, I pushed myself up and rolled over the bed. I dashed toward the door, aware that Jason would catch me easily. He slammed into me just as I swung the door open, and we both ended up on the floor. Pain erupted in my shoulder, but I ignored it, kicking out at Jason and trying to scramble to my feet. His fingers closed around my ankle, and I turned, bringing my elbow up as he climbed on top of me. I caught him in the neck, and he gasped, his grip on me loosening as he coughed.

  But I knew fighting Jason was futile. He was bigger and stronger than me, and he was the one who’d trained me. There wasn’t a move I could make without him being able to anticipate it. My plan wasn’t to escape, though. Before I could twist away from him, Jason wrapped his arm around my waist and slammed me back against the floor. My breath left me with a whoosh, and I stared at him as pain shot through my body.

  “Enough, O,” Jason said, and I snuck my hand into the pocket of his pants and my fingers closed around my phone. It was a good thing I’d seen in which pocket he’d put it.

  “Okay, okay. Just get... off me...” I made a grimace of pain, and Jason’s brow actually drew in worry. I couldn’t imagine him being too concerned about my well-being when he’d just thrown me to the ground, but somehow he was. Slipping my hand with the phone underneath me, I let out a small cry.

  Jason quickly pushed himself up and he ran a shaky hand through his hair. “Sis, I... If you’d just agree with me and...” He turned around, and I used the opportunity to lift my phone. Quickly tapping the screen, I found my dad’s phone number and typed him a text that said: SOS. Jason attacked me.

  “Fuck.” Jason dived toward me when he realized what I was doing, but I’d already hit the send button. Before he could get to me, I threw the phone across the room. That should’ve been enough time for the message to go through.