Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 73423 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 367(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73423 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 367(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
God, I hate what they do to him. How they degrade him to nothing more than a simple lap dog to do as they please. It’s wrong on so many levels.
“I told you to fucking behave, Beast,” Raymond says, and he spits on the floor. “Now do as you’re fucking told, or we’ll give you pain.”
Beast rises to his feet, his head hanging, but his eyes blazing with a fury that I can only describe as terrifying.
“You’re both coming upstairs,” Raymond says, and two others whisk me away, up the steps.
I jerk free of their grip once there. “Stop manhandling me. I can walk.”
Raymond grabs my arm and hauls me to the side. “You want a collar too?”
I shake my head.
“Then behave and do as you’re told.”
Before I have a chance to say anything back, they drag us through the hallway, into the foyer, and right into what looks like a dining room, complete with a giant table, where Lex is casually sipping a coffee.
“Ah, finally,” he mutters, and he puts down his coffee and points at the chair. “Sit, sit.”
The guard grabs a chair and signals for me to sit down. I don’t think it’s a good idea to rebel right now, so I do as he said.
However, the second Beast tries to grab a chair, Lex intervenes, “Not you.”
The glare they exchange could light this whole room on fire.
“Stay at the door,” Lex barks at him.
I glance at Beast whose only response is flaring nostrils as he puts his hands on his back and stands tall and proud.
Even now, when he’s treated like vermin, he refuses to bow down, and I admire that.
I feel so out of place in this fancy purple dress, but the moment Lex claps his hands, I understand why he made me wear it. A whole bunch of waiters come in and place mountains of food on the table. Fresh strawberries, cured meats, all kinds of bread and buns, poached eggs, deliciously smelling bacon, and, to top it all off, a lavishly decorated white cake.
Lex merely smiles at me as he grabs a few strawberries and throws them into his mouth, vigorously chewing. “Feel free to grab whatever you like,” he says.
I can’t do anything but stare at the fantastic feast, saliva forming in my mouth, but to actually eat it? My eyes instantly drift toward Beast.
“Don’t look at him,” Lex commands.
The rage in his eyes is almost too much to take, and when I pick up a knife and fork, all I want to do is stab him with it.
But if I did that, I’d never see the light of day again.
“Why did you invite me up here?” I ask.
“I’d like a little company while I eat,” he responds. “After all, a man can get quite lonely when his wife goes off on a business trip.”
He picks up another strawberry and chucks it in his mouth like no one’s watching even though I can practically feel Beast’s eyes penetrating my back.
“Go on. Eat.” Lex stares me down until I finally pick up my fork and prick into an egg, placing it on my plate. He doesn’t stop watching me until I’ve cut into it and taken a bite.
The taste is heavenly, so much more than I expected from my memories. It’s been so long since I last tasted anything but stale bread, and it’s making me tear up. Especially when I take one glance over my shoulder and see Beast lick his lips like he’s picturing himself eating the same food.
The fork drops from my hand.
“What’s wrong, dear?” Lex asks.
“This is wrong, and you know it,” I reply.
He raises his brow, shoving a piece of bacon into his mouth. “What is?”
“Why are you feeding me but not him?”
He pauses and puts down his fork. “You sure sound like you care an awful lot.”
My cheeks flush with heat, but I ignore it. “I-Iwant him to be able to eat just like us, that’s all.”
“Sure. The man who tried to kill you,” he jests, chuckling. “Needs food.”
“You tried to kill me,” I say. “It was your decision, not his.”
He stops eating altogether now. “He is a tool. A pet. A dog. To do with as I please.”
“He’s a human being,” I rebuke. “How can you treat someone like this?”
He slams his fist onto the table, and it makes me jolt up and down. “I will treat my dog anyway I damn well like!”
I swallow, the food I just ate feeling like it’s making its way back up my throat. I feel guilty for even having taken a single bite.
“And you will eat when I tell you to. Now eat.”
I stare at the plate, my hands shaking.
I feel the same way I did when he pushed me to scream out loud I was using Beast to get out. Like all of this … is a trap.