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“When I ask you to do something, Brielle, I expect you to obey. I don’t want to repeat myself, and I don’t need you putting yourself in harm’s way. There are reasons for everything I do, and having you sass me at every turn isn’t helping matters.”
Frustration ebbs through me and flows out between us. There’s no denying the electric current sparking in the room, but I fight my wayward thoughts at every turn. I do not want to feel anything for Judah. I don’t care how much I find him attractive.
“I’m not a child to be sent to my room when you’re in a bad mood,” I throw back as I spin on my heel and walk to the window. I can’t look at him, because if I do, I’ll end up distracted by his perfect lips, or his sharp features, or the way his eyes shimmer when he glares at me.
Even in his anger, he looks like a perfectly created statue.
“I don’t give a shit what you think, or don’t think, you are,” Judah grits through clenched teeth. I watch the tick in his jaw as he closes the distance between us. “This life, this island, is filled with threats.”
“I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself,” I whisper, the heat of my confidence causing my tone to deepen. “I’ve lived—”
“You haven’t lived in my world for very long, Brielle. You don’t understand what could happen to you. I have many enemies, and if they hurt you…” His words falter for a moment, and the silence eats its way between us.
“Do… Do you care about me?” The moment the question falls from my lips, I want to drag it back in. It’s stupid to think he gives a shit about me. There must be more to it than him feeling any sort of affection for me.
“I don’t need innocent blood spilled in my home. There’s enough on my hands,” he says, stepping back suddenly as if I’ve slapped him. “Just obey, and we won’t have any issues.”
“Look at me,” I order him, unable to keep myself from fighting back.
I know I have to be careful because I don’t want to appear too strong while living with the Princes. I want them to underestimate me. Judah’s right, this world is very different to the one I grew up in. I’m not disputing that at all. But I am more than capable of taking care of myself.
Judah spins on his heel, his eyes blazing with fury. “Never,” he says as he takes a step towards me, “ever think I won’t kill you.”
His words have a dark promise to them. There’s no doubt this man would willingly snap my neck if I gave him reason to. It doesn’t matter that I’m meant to marry the bastard. He doesn’t care, which means he can’t ever love me.
Suddenly, without warning, tears sting my eyes when the realisation hits me square in the face. I swallow back the lump in my throat as I look up at him.
“I am exactly the bastard you think I am,” Judah tells me as he grips my cheeks, causing my lips to pout. “I like seeing those tears,” he admits with a glance at my eyes. “And I intend to see them often. You’ll have them streaming down your cheeks on our wedding night when you finally learn the truth. You may have saidI doto me, but you belong to all of us—you’re mine, Valen’s, and Kai’s. Every night after we’ll share what we own. And make no mistake, Brielle, you may be a gentle princess right now, but soon you’ll become a cold-hearted queen, just like your kings. Anything that happens between the two of us,” he says as he leans in close, “includes them as well.”
He pushes me away and I stumble backwards into the wall, but he doesn’t cast me another glance as he makes his way out of my room. When the door clicks shut, I half expect him to have locked me in, but when I try the handle, I realise it still opens.
I shut myself in and settle on the bed. Where Judah’s fingers held me, it still tingles from his touch. It’s stupid to even consider a future where we could be happy. I know he’ll never love me.But would he allow me to be with someone else?Valen is handsome and sweet, and he treats me as an equal. The problem is, he’s Judah’s best friend, and I wasn’t given to Valen or Kai. I was gifted to the leader of the pack.
Sighing, I lie back on the bed and stare up at the ornate ceiling. Thoughts race through my mind, and I wonder if I’ll ever be free again.
Born into this world, I know none of the guys have had any life beyond their families, beyond the legacy they have to uphold. It saddens me when I think about them growing up without the freedom to choose their own future.
I’d always thought I was free to decide my fate, so when Papa said he needed me to come back with him to Italy, to return to the world he’d run from, I was shocked. I haven’t told the Princes the explanation that my father gave me for returning. They wouldn’t understand.
As much as I’m angry with the man who raised me, I know he’s only doing it to keep me safe. Even though I don’t like being here, or being near Judah and his friends, I know they’ll protect me—as long as I keep obeying the commands of the soon-to-be Boss of the Venier family.
Rolling my eyes, I push to my feet and head to the bathroom. Perhaps a shower will freshen me up before I go down for dinner.
The water massages my aching muscles as I lean against the tiles. I close my eyes and allow the spray to drench me. Slowly, I lather up, but the more I run my fingertips over my skin, the more I can’t get Valen out of my mind, and as much as I want to fight it, Judah appears too easily, and my hands become his hands.
Biting my lower lip, I fight the urge to moan as pleasure skitters down my spine. My knees are weakened by the desire coursing through me. I can easily recall Valen’s gaze on me today. When I think about how he watched me, taking in every outfit I modelled for him, I know without a doubt he’s attracted to me.
But then, it’s thoughts of Judah’s touch that send heat racing between my thighs, and I can’t stop my fingertips from brushing over my clit. I’m wet, and it’s not only from the shower. The warmth of the water caressing my skin, along with the light touch against my pussy, sends me reeling as I grip my throat with my free hand and squeeze, ever so gently. It’s not me, though. In my mind’s eye, it’s Judah holding me hostage while Valen drops to his knees and kisses between my thighs before his mouth captures my wetness and he laps at me. And, in the background, there’s a glimpse of Kai’s handsome face as he watches the display.
My knees go weak when I imagine all three men watching me. All of them staring with desire dancing in their eyes, and I can’t hold back the pleasure that takes over. I whimper as I tremble, and my orgasm shatters through me, causing me to cry out.
As my hand slows, and my eyes flutter open, I half expect them to be standing at the door, watching me, but the bathroom is empty, filled instead with steam from the hot shower.
I quickly turn off the spray and step out onto the fluffy mat. Wrapped in a towel, I make my way into my empty bedroom and sigh with relief. No one heard me. I dress quickly, ignoring the reality of what I just did.
Earlier, when Judah mentioned something about me being owned by Val and Kai as well as him, my mind was a mess at the time, but since then I’ve run through all the scenarios of what it could mean. The only thing I can come up with is that they intend to share me. All of them.
But Malachi hasn’t spent any time with me. Since I’ve been here, Valen is the one who’s taken the lead. I wonder if he’s the calmer and more approachable one. Maybe they’re slowly easing me into the idea of living here, being in this world and in their lives.
