Total pages in book: 266
Estimated words: 250787 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1254(@200wpm)___ 1003(@250wpm)___ 836(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 250787 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1254(@200wpm)___ 1003(@250wpm)___ 836(@300wpm)
“Shh.” He rubs my back. “You’re okay.”
I need him. There’s an ache between my legs and a pain in my chest. I need him right now. As his wife, as his whore. What I saw on those two videos was only ten minutes of his life. What else has he gone through? How many other times did they punish him? Was it because of Ashtyn or someone else? Pulling away, I gasp, needing to breathe, and he cups my face with both of his hands.
“I’m…sorry.” I manage to say through the lump in my throat.
He gives me a soft smile, running his hand through my hair. “Don’t be sorry, doll face.”
My husband thinks I’m apologizing because I almost turned him in. And I don’t correct him.
HAIDYN
“Come on.” I help her up and walk over to the bathtub. I turn on the faucet, and she goes over to her sink and brushes her teeth, followed by mouthwash. She’s still silently crying, but she’s not sobbing anymore.
She’s got herself so worked up that she’s made herself sick again. Poor thing.
I grab a towel and place it on the counter and then help her into the tub. She pulls her knees to her chest and stares down at the water as the tears fall down her cheeks.
“I’ll be right back,” I say and then make my way to the kitchen. Grabbing her a bottle of water, I return and set it on the edge of the Jacuzzi tub. “You need to drink something.”
She stays silent while I bathe her. Her tear-filled eyes remain on the water while I wash her hair and then her body. She doesn’t even ask me how it went at the cathedral. Which I’m glad. I don’t want to have to lie to my wife, but I will if she asks. I don’t want to upset her more than she already is.
Rinsing the conditioner out of her hair, I grab her hands and help her stand on her shaking legs. Then I dry her off and cup her face, forcing her eyes to meet mine. “It’s all going to be okay,” I assure her.
She nods as if she believes me, but we both know she doesn’t. And why should she? I’ve blackmailed her for my own selfish reasons. More than she knows. I’m almost sorry for what I’ve done to her. But like I once told Charlotte, I have no regrets. That’s still very true.
“I have something for you,” I tell her.
Her large, tear-filled eyes meet mine. I hate to see her so upset, but her eyes are gorgeous when she cries. She swallows nervously before licking her lips but says nothing. I drop mine to her left hand and remove the small ring the fake boy toy gave her earlier tonight. I feel sorry for the fucking bastard. That he’ll never get to have her…not like I’ll get to. I’m a proud enough man to know what I have, but I’m too selfish to let anyone else experience it. I set the ring on the black marble counter with the reminder to throw it away later.
Reaching into the pocket of my jeans, I remove the box and open it up. Her eyes drop to it, and she gasps when I remove the ring and slide it on her finger. “You deserved more,” I tell her.
“What…how…?” Her eyes go from mine to the wedding ring and back to mine again. “Haidyn it’s…gorgeous.”
“Just like you,” I say, pushing wet strands of dark hair behind her ear as my eyes search hers. “I want you to see what I see every time I look into your eyes.”
Her breathing picks up once again and I take her face in my hands. “Hey, it’s okay.” She’s starting to panic…regretting her decision to be my wife. It’s too late. She can have second thoughts all she wants. She belongs to me now and I’m not going to let her go.
“Can I have a minute, please?” she asks softly.
I lean in and kiss her forehead. “Of course,” I say and then exit the bathroom, closing the doors behind me and letting her do whatever she needs to do alone. Tell herself what she needs to hear to assure herself she did the right thing.
I need a drink. For some reason, my chest is bothering me more than usual tonight.
SIXTY-SIX
CHARLOTTE
“Iwant you to see what I see every time I look into your eyes.”
My hands tremble as I look down at the ring he just slid on my finger. It looks massive on me. A large sapphire diamond in the center with two tapered baguettes on either side of a silver band. Something tells me it’s platinum. The center stone has to be over five carats and it makes me sick to my stomach. What I almost did to him. How differently tonight could have gone.