Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 107402 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107402 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
I shake my head and roll my eyes.“We got together when I was nineteen.”
He has his hands in his pockets, and his feet are planted apart, his eyes focused on the ground. God, he looks so damn handsome. What is it about sleeves rolled up and a strong jawline that makes me so wet for him? The way his black hair is slicked back except the one strand that has fallen in front of his eye—my hell.
“Elaborate. How you met and the entirety of your relationship, Emelia,” he growls.
“Uh, okay. Well, we met when he was hired to work in my dad’s army. He was my bodyguard, and we spent a lot of time together. That time turned into a friendship and then a relationship.” The elevator opens to the garage, and he takes my hand, leading me to his Maserati. I follow behind him, my shorter stature not allowing me to walk side by side with him.
Once we get to the car, he opens my door and ushers me inside, and I buckle myself in as he rounds the car.
Where is he taking us?
He slides in effortlessly and hits the button, the engine roaring to life, and the seat under me vibrates.
“Nico, where are we going?”
“Don’t change the subject.” He reminds me of what I’m supposed to be talking about.
“It was my first relationship. I don’t know what you want me to say!”
He revs the engine and pulls out of the garage, and I brace myself, gripping onto the center console and the door panel.
“Did you love him, or did you just say that to piss me off that day?”
All right, how do I answer this?
If I tell him I loved him, is he going to snap, or is he going to take it like it's no big deal?
He caught me in a room simply talking to Damian, and that led to him carving his ownership of me into his skin. So really, how do I answer that?
“Is that relevant? We are married. He's not a threat,” I point out.
“Really? You don't think he’s a threat? Did he ever hurt you?”
I look down in my lap, recalling the crying I did for weeks in private when he left.“Only when he left,” I whisper.
“So he ended it? Why?” He gets on the freeway, and I look at the cars next to us.
“He said he got another job, but I think he was scared of my father finding out about us. Maybe my father did, and he just bowed out. I really don’t know the truth.”
“Do you still love him, Emelia?” His words are like a gunshot to the heart.
“What? Nico, you are acting insane. Where are we going, and why do you suddenly care about Damian so much?”
Shit. Did Damian show up? Did he do something stupid and cross Nico, and now he’s going to kill him? Fuck.
My palms start to sweat, and my spine turns painfully cold.“Nico. Please.”
“Do. You. Still. Love. Him?”
My eyes water, and Nico continues to accelerate and weave in and out of traffic erratically.
“It doesn’t—”
“Do you still love him, Emelia!” he yells, and he slams his hand down on the steering wheel, making the answer fall from me like word vomit.
“Yes, I do! He was the only man who truly loved me and protected me.” It comes out fast, and I wish I could take it back, but it's too late. I look up at Nico as one tear slowly falls, and his grin is not charming.
It’s wicked.
“Nico? Is he here? Did he come here and do something?”
“He is the only man who has ever protected you?” A gust of air mockingly releases from his flared nostrils.
“Yes. He was there to comfort me after my father would hurt me, and he loved me.”
“Really? Did he ever hit your dad back or get you out?” he asks.
“No,” I admit, dropping my head.
“But I did. I got you out. And I almost killed your father. Stopped only because you asked. But that's the man you still love and defend? So am I just nothing to you?”
Where is this coming from?
“Are you asking me if I love you?” I blurt out.
“No, Emelia. I don’t love you, and you don’t love me, but you seem to think there is a man still superior to your husband out there and that is something I don’t like.”
The way he said he doesn’t love me shouldn't have hurt, but it did. I don't expect him to. In fact, I never even thought he would one day, but for some reason, it stung.
“I didn't say he was superior.”
“Oh, but you did, principessa, just in lesser words, and I don’t like it,” he growls, looking over at me.
I swallow thickly.“And you’ve never loved anyone or wished I was someone else? There was never another woman you wish you would have married instead of me?” I flip the tables. Nico has the nerve to ridicule me over something I can’t help. Especially when it is apparent it isn't really about love. It’s about fucking power.