by J. L. Beck
“And you, shut up. I’ll deal with you later.” The dismissive tone and raw anguish in his voice are like an arrow being slingshot through my heart. I’m in physical pain, and I’m not talking about my hand or face, I’m talking about my insides twisting with pain.
“Do you understand?” he asks Marie again.
“Yes.” Marie nods her head furiously.
I give her one final squeeze before she rushes past Julian and disappears from view. I step up to Julian, torn between wanting to slap him and wanting to fall into his embrace.
The police officer either got paid off, or he doesn’t care about the threat Julian just made because he simply locks the cell back up and walks away while whistling.
Julian grabs my injured hand, and I wince at the touch. He starts walking me out of the police station without another word. No one stops us or says anything to us, and I wonder how much money this little charade cost him.
A black SUV is waiting at the curb, and we climb inside without a word. Only when we are settled, and the car starts moving, do I get the courage to speak.
“I wasn’t leaving you if that’s what you think.”
“It sure as hell looked like it,” Julian snaps, not even looking at me. “How long did you plan this?”
“I didn’t!”
“Where were you going?”
“I wasn’t going anywhere!” My voice rises with each word.
“You were going back to your father.” He answers his own question, and I’m tempted to tell him he’s an idiot.
“Are you even listening to me?” I growl.
The car stops, and I don’t think I’ve gotten any bit of information into Julian’s brain. Looking out the window, I discover we are back at the pier. Like a child, he grabs my hand and drags me out of the car. I let him lead me onto a boat and sit down next to him, mostly because there isn’t anywhere else for me to go.
We’re both angry, right now, and if we’re going to make it through this, we need to let each other cool off first. Using all the effort I have, I keep my mouth shut the rest of the way back to the island. I look out at the water and let it calm me, hoping that Julian will be calm by the time we get back to the beach house.
The boat drops us off and turns right back around, leaving Julian and me alone on the beach. My lips part, and I’m about to say something when he leans down and scoops me up, throwing me over his shoulder like I’m a sack of potatoes.
I truly don’t understand his need to assert his alphaness on me.
“Julian.” I sigh. “Please, listen to me.”
He stays quiet, walking inside and heading straight to the bedroom. Kicking the door in, the wood cracks and gives beneath his foot. So much for him calming down. It seems the silence has only made things worse. Walking into the room and over the door’s splintered pieces, he throws me onto the bed.
I bounce off the mattress and land in the middle of a pile of fluffed pillows. All I can hear is the rush of my own blood in my ears and feel the heavy thump of my heart in my chest. Fear and anger collide inside of me, and I’m not sure which one is going to win out.
“Julian…” I start again, but it’s clear that my words fall onto deaf ears.
He’s a volcano, seconds away from erupting, and there is nothing I can do but sit back and watch, hoping the fire inside of him doesn’t burn me too badly. Spinning around with a loud roar, he swings his arms and hits the closest wall. His fists go straight through the sheetrock like he is the hulk. He pulls out his fist, just to hit the wall again a few inches to the right.
All I can do is stare, knowing that if I get up and try and stop him, things will only get worse. The dresser becomes his next target. Gripping it by the sides with an iron grip, he flips the whole thing over and kicks it to the side like trash. His muscles bulge, his body oozes rage. One by one, he attacks every piece of furniture inside the room until the whole space is nothing but debris and destroyed beyond repair. Pieces of wood and drywall fall like glitter around us.
Like a statue, I remain sitting on the bed, helpless in the center of the storm.
Chaos surrounds me while I’m completely still, untouched by the disorder.
Then as if the eye of the storm has settled on me, he stands unmoving. Nostrils flare and fists clench. His veins bulge with red hot anger.
His gaze lands on me, and ice skates down my spine when I see the darkness in his eyes. The man I’ve come to love has been replaced by a beast of a man, and I’m not sure I’m going to make it out of this room without being ripped to pieces.
“We can talk about this. Let me explain…” I start, but the menacing look in his eyes steals the air from my lungs, and I find the rest of my words get lodged in my throat.
Separating the distance between us in three huge strides, he stands before me as if he is a Greek god. I have enough common sense to keep my mouth shut and thank god because something tells me Julian wouldn’t hesitate to strangle me.
Fear zings through me with the intensity of a lightning bolt, and the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. When he leans forward and grabs a fist full of my shirt, tugging me to the edge of the bed in the process.
Gritting his teeth like an animal, he sneers, “I don’t want to talk… I want to hurt you.”
His words stir a fire of desire and anger inside of me, and without thinking my actions through, I lift my hand and slap him across the face. A sting of pain kisses my palm, and Julian’s face cuts to the side from the impact.
What happens next is something I never could’ve expected. Instead of hitting me back or hurting me, he kisses me. His lips press against mine with a hateful heat. It’s teeth and the coppery tang of blood explodes against my tongue when his own enters my mouth. I swear I feel every drop of pain, anger, and fear in that kiss.
It’s like he’s trying to suffocate me with it. The kiss becomes something else entirely when the world around us starts to fade away, and we start tugging at each other’s clothes. Fabric tears and buttons fly, and I’m only vaguely aware of my naked state when Julian pushes me back against the bed and climbs on top of me.
One large hand circles my throat, as he pins my naked body beneath his. My sex clenches and nipples harden as he squeezes my slim throat a little tighter, his eyes never wavering from mine. He’s pushing me, looking to see how far I will go.
“Hurt me. Do it. I know you want to.” I push the words out through my gritted teeth. Even as angry as I am with him, I’m turned on too. I lift my hips even though they’re pinned to the bed by the weight of his body.
“I do… I want to fucking strangle you for being so stupid. For thinking you could leave, and I wouldn’t find you,” he hisses and leans down, pressing his nose flat against mine. His nostrils flare like a bull that’s ready to charge. I want to push him, to anger him because at least when he’s like this, I can see how much he cares, see that he does want me even if he doesn’t always say it.
“If it wasn’t for the police, I could have. I’d be long gone by now.” It’s the wrong move and one that could end up burning me in the end, but I want to feel him right now, feel his fear, feel the love I know he refuses to admit for me.
Like a branch swaying in a storm, he snaps. In an instant, he’s lifting me and reversing our spots. The world around me spins for one brief moment, then he’s regaining his hold on my throat as he situates me on top of him.
Squirming against his thick cock, I mewl into the air, there is a thick, primal need frantically clawing up my spine.
“You want my cock, don’t you? Want me to fill you up? Touch that spot deep inside you that no one else will. You think you can run, but you would come back. There is nothing like what we share, and if you think I would let another man touch what is mine, you’re just as crazy as me. I’d kill him, and then fuck you right beside his still-warm body. You’re mine. All mine. Every fucking inch of you, and I’m going to punish your tight hole. Remind you of who it is that owns you, my wife.”
; There is no warning as he tightens his grip on my throat, and enters me in one swift move, his cock sliding all the way home. The muscles of my core quiver, and even though I’m slick with raw need, there is a tinge of pain that follows.
The pain fades to nothing when he starts moving, fucking me with an edge that makes me wonder if he will actually strangle me. His stroke is precise, like balancing on the edge of a blade, knowing that one slip will draw blood.
“Mine!” he growls into my ear, squeezing my throat even tighter.
The air in my lungs is cut off, but the pleasure spiraling through me is all the oxygen I need. Julian fucks me like he hates me, and it’s the most exhilarating thing in the world. My toes curl, and my spine stiffens as every bounce on his cock sends me to a new height of pleasure.
I’m close, so fucking close, and then he pulls out. Like a savage, he lifts me and tosses me down onto the bed. I whimper at the loss of his cock inside of me but moan with ecstasy when I feel him move behind me, and his cock slides deep inside of me once more.
“Say it. Say that you’re mine.” I can all but see the cords in his neck tightening, the grip he has on my hips is bruising as he forces his cock inside me over and over again.
When I don’t answer fast enough, he grabs a fist full of hair and tugs my head backward, and somehow, the movement drives his cock deeper inside of me.
He’s all I can feel, smell, and taste.
“Fuckin’ say it. Tell me who owns you. Whose pussy is this? Whose body is this? Say it, Elena. Say it, so I can feel that tight pink pussy quiver around my cock.”
Gritting my teeth, I try to fight off the orgasm, rising up with each penetrating stroke. I try and ignore his hot breath against my skin, his deep, dangerous scent that fills my nostrils with each breath I take, but there is no escaping him. Julian Moretti owns me. He owns my body, my heart, my mind, and my soul.
“Come on, baby, say it, so I can let you come…” His teeth nip my ear hard, and I tighten around his cock. “Yes, just like that. Tell me who owns you. Otherwise, I’m going to pull out and come down your throat.”
The idea of not coming is deterring enough and is the last push I need to admit that I’m completely taken by this man.
“You. It’s you. You own me,” I cry into the demolished room with my head tipped back, my neck aching, and my fingers clawing at the sheets. A moment later, Julian releases his grip on my hair. His hands find my hips, and he fucks me right into the mattress. I grab onto the sheets to keep myself in place as the headboard crashes against the wall over and over again.
Crumbling, my orgasm slams into me fiercely, stealing the breath from my lungs. My eyes drift closed, and all I can hear is the thundering beat of my own heart. As the pleasure washes away, I find Julian is still fucking me. He continues owning me, forcing me to orgasm three more times before he allows himself to come, painting the inside of my womb with his warm release.
Sagging against me, I feel his sweat-slicked skin against mine, and a warm sensation works its way through my limbs. In his arms, nothing in the world can reach me. He is my protector, and my savior.
For a short time, we both lie there, trying to catch our breath. Rolling off me, he falls onto the mattress beside me but then drags me over his body. He makes me lie on top of him, my head resting on his chest as he draws circles against the small of my back. All the anger that was consuming him an hour ago has vanished now.
“I wasn’t trying to run away. Clyde was trying to hurt Marie. He had her pinned against the counter with his hand up her dress. He was going to rape her if I didn’t stop him,” I whisper, turning my face to rest my cheek against the mattress on the other side, so I can see his face. “I didn’t think. All I did was react, and when I saw him dead on the floor and Marie started crying, saying you would kill her. I knew she was right. I had to get her off the island.”
“Do you think that low of me? That I would kill her for saying no to one of my guards?”
Do I? He isn’t all that fond of Marie, and his men are above the maids and cooks.
He sighs. “I can tell by the look on your face that you believe I would’ve killed her.”
“I’m sorry. You don’t exactly like Marie, and I was afraid for her. I wasn’t leaving you. I swear. I want to be here with you.”
There is a long moment of silence, and I wonder what he’s thinking. Running a hand through his sweaty hair, he stares at me, his gaze penetrating. “You should’ve come to me and told me what happened. All that leaving did was put you in danger. What if I hadn’t got a call? I never would’ve found you, and god knows what could’ve happened.” The anguish in his voice clings to my skin.
“I know. I’m sorry,” I apologize almost shamefully.
“I know you are. I can see it in your eyes, and that is the only reason you’re not shackled to the bed, and I’m not spanking your ass until it’s pink and sore. I understand that you were afraid, but I am your husband, and enough bad things have happened to you recently. I can’t risk losing you. You’re more important to me than you think. When I discovered you were gone… betrayal sliced through me, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe.”
Reaching for his hand, I grasp onto it and squeeze. “I wasn’t leaving, Julian.”
“I know…” he brings my hand to his lips and brushes them against my knuckles. “Do not do something like that again. I’m not sure I’ll be able to withstand it.”
“I’m not sure our furniture will withstand it either. Look at this room.”
“They are just things. I do want to look at you. Your hand and you eye to be more specific.”
“It’s fine. It’s just a cut and a bruise.” My hand stopped bleeding a long time ago, and with everything going on, I totally forgot about it. “It doesn’t even hurt anymore.”
“You know if Clyde wasn’t already dead, I would have killed him from touching you.”
“I know…”
40
Julian
We left the next day. The honeymoon was tainted, and there was no way either one of us could enjoy the rest of it. She said she didn’t intend to leave me, and I believe her, but she still didn’t trust me enough to protect her and Marie from my rogue guard. She put herself in danger to protect her friend, and I wasn’t okay with that. It made me feel inadequate as a husband.
We flew back home, and now we’re settling in as newlyweds.
Elena is still mad at me for firing Marie, and I’m actually thinking about rehiring her just to make my wife smile again.
As promised, I gave Elena some freedoms, but not nearly enough to keep her happy. I let her walk around the house as she wishes but only with two guards or me by her side. She uses that freedom to spend a lot of time in the kitchen, watching Celeste cook, chatting with her about music, movies, and desserts. She lacks the spark of joy that makes her who she is, and I can see it from a mile away.
I know Elena is seeking normality. She just wants to act and live like a normal person, but unfortunately, this is not something I can easily give her. I can’t have her be unprotected, ever. Her father is still out there, and just like any criminal, I have a long line of enemies waiting to find my one true weakness.
Like most days, I find her in the library after I’m done working for the day. She is curled up on one of the chaise lounges, her nose buried deep in a book. It’s usually a romance novel that she prefers to read, but occasionally, I’ll see her with a thriller. Her need to read and expand her mind only makes me want her all the more.
When she notices my presence, she closes the book and drops it on her lap while her lips turn into a frown like she is disappointed to see me. I would be offended if I wasn’t sure it’s fake. Even when she is pissed at me, she seeks my body, cuddles into me at night, melts into my touch, and moans when I steal a kiss. Part of the way she acts is fake, but part of it is real too. She misses Marie and wants to be free, but she never will be.
“Don’t pout, my wife. A smile becomes you much bette
r.”
“Then give me something to smile about,” she quips. “Take me on a date.”
I raise my eyebrows at her. “A date? You know I don’t do those.”
“Then, I have nothing to smile about,” she says almost dramatically. Her frown deepens, and I almost roll my eyes at her. She is showing her young age right now, and I’d laugh if I knew I wouldn’t get a book thrown at my face.
“Fine, I’ll take you on a date,” I agree before I can come to my senses.
Now it’s her eyebrows that are shooting up with surprise. “Like a real date? You’re going to take me on a real date, like the kind that a normal couple would go on?”
“I don’t know what you consider to be normal, but yes, if that’s what will make you happy–”
“Yes!” She jumps up from her seat and rushes forward and into my arms. “Can we go right now?”
“I guess now is as good a time as any.” Worry worms its way through my body, and I have to tell myself to calm down. It’s just a date. What the hell could possibly happen?
The hostess leads us to a secluded table in the darkest corner of the restaurant, just as I asked. I keep Elena’s hand wrapped up in my own, pulling her close to my side. I’ve got two guns strapped to the inside of my jacket, and a knife at each ankle. I might be overly prepared, but if something does happen, I want to know that I can protect us.
Elena is beaming, smiling from ear to ear. She chose a simple but elegant dress for dinner, and I haven’t been able to keep my eyes off her.
“Does this match up with your idea of a date?”
“Yes! It’s perfect.” Her eyes gleam with joy, and I find my own lips tipping up at the sides.
The waitress comes over, and I order food for both of us, along with a bottle of wine. When she walks away, leaving us alone, I turn my attention back to Elena.
“I thought if it would make you happy, maybe Marie could return to the mansion, and work for me. I know you miss her, and if it makes you return to your normal self.”