Then Hate Me Read Online Zoe Blake, Alta Hensley

Categories Genre: Alpha Male, Angst, Billionaire, Contemporary, Dark, Erotic, Virgin Tags Authors: Alta Hensley, Zoe Blake Advertisement

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I had been lying in my bed, Olivia asleep next to me, keeping an eye on my tablet for those lights.

If Luc’s men were worth the no doubt impressive amount of money he was paying, they should have found my Rhode Island home hours ago.

Maybe Luc was a little short on funds after fucking me over all summer, or maybe the Manwarring Princess wasn’t as high on his priority list as I had thought.

I looked down at Olivia sleeping peacefully tucked inside my embrace. Her auburn hair fanned out beneath her. The soft, reddish locks poured over my arm and the silk pillowcase.

No, he was coming for her.

She was too precious to not take the highest priority.

After I sent the texts, I was overcome with more guilt.

I even tried to hack into Luc’s phone and retrieve them before he saw them, but was unsuccessful.

Fuck. What had I done?

Forcing the unwanted emotions aside, I had turned to caring for Olivia.

I ran her a bath. Despite her protests, I lifted her into the tub filled with silky bubbles and against my better judgment, gave her the privacy she was probably craving to soak her no doubt sore body.

When she was clean and relaxed and her fingers had started wrinkling like prunes, I returned to lift her out like a child. Once more enjoying drying her off and wrapping her in a towel I had warmed in the dryer. Afterward, I dressed her in one of my dress shirts and even let her use one of my expensive designer ties as a belt to make it look like a chic dress.

Personally my favorite part was knowing she wasn’t wearing anything underneath.

Then I fed her a simple meal of grilled cheese and tomato soup.

Enjoying the domestic intimacy of having her sit on the counter and watch me cook. When I let her use a spatula to flip a sandwich, she actually bounced up and down and laughed with delight, proud of herself for doing it right. I didn’t have the heart to tell her she flipped it too hard and now the bread was messed up.

Instead, I distracted her by requesting something from the refrigerator and fixed it as best as I could.

Olivia was being a good girl for me. She didn’t even fight when I blindfolded her and put her in the car to head to the docks.

I thought she hoped I wouldn’t send those pictures out if she were good.

Too bad she was too late.

Too bad I was a bastard and acted out of anger.

Too bad I let my petty revenge scheme ruin her sweet innocence.

Too bad I fucking destroyed something that could have been ...

Dammit.

I kept her blindfolded on the boat until we were a ways out to sea. When I came to remove it, I found her asleep on the bed. Curled up again, like a cute little chipmunk.

Knowing she needed the rest after all I had put her through, I removed the blindfold and crawled into bed next to her, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her close.

Now, flashlights moved around the yard surrounding my darkened home. Carefully, so as to not disturb Olivia, I slid my arm out from under her, then got up and silently slid open the glass French doors.

I wanted to watch the show, and initially, I had intended to have her watch with me, but given the strange turn of events, it was better if I let her sleep.

Ever since our hate fuck this afternoon, she had been docile. I was a little concerned I had managed to literally fuck her brains out until she called me a “self-entitled prick.” At that point, I figured it was just exhaustion, and she would be fine once she rested and then maybe ate something.

I took a seat on a lounge chair on the deck. I had picked the perfect spot to sit back and watch the show.

The air was perfectly cool, and crisp fall was settling in. Even in the dead of night, the full moon gave just enough light to hint at the brilliant reds and yellows of the trees. New England autumn truly was breathtaking, and the perfect backdrop to watch Luc Manwarring fail again.

Failure was a new experience for Luc, which made my victory so much sweeter.

It may be a bit early for a celebration, but fuck it.

I pulled the cork on a lovely red blend from my family’s vineyard in the Southern Rhone Valley, really the only region suitable for such robust red wines.

Well, there and the Côte d’Or, Burgundy’s “Golden Slope.” As soon as all of this was over and the Manwarrings were adequately dealt with, I would be expanding my family’s vineyards to include several acres in the region.

But that was a problem for a different day. In the meantime, I poured myself a glass and swirled it to help aerate the wine a bit before taking a sip and letting the bold, full flavor coat my palate as I settled in my seat. It only took a few moments for those beams of light to surround my home. There were a few on the inside, but most were around the perimeter.

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