“Where are we going?”
“My room.”
“Your room?”
“Yes. Don’t get any ideas of trying to run away. You’ll never get away in time.”
“I had no intention of running. It’s pointless. I know you’d stop me.”
“Damn right. We’re about to walk up some stairs.” His grip tightened on her hips, halting her. “Step. Step. Step.” He kept on doing this for ten more steps before walking her down a short corridor, or at least, she thought it was. He stopped her again and leaned around her to open the door.
She was moved inside, and she heard him close the door and flick the lock into place. Her heart rate picked up.
“We’re not in my room. I can’t give you a tour. I’ve got to get you ready for a shower. You smell.”
Again, she didn’t bite. He was baiting her, and she didn’t understand why, but she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of showing she even cared. He took her into his bathroom.
She heard him turn on the shower and the distinctive sound of him removing his clothes. Next, he was touching her. This time, she anticipated his touch and didn’t flinch. After everything that had happened to them, she felt off balance and so alone.
Once she was naked, Diego stood behind her once again, guiding her into the shower. The water wasn’t cold as she stepped inside, the warmth a welcome against the cool of the night.
“I don’t like your dad,” she said.
“Neither do I. There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Belle. It’s all the bad stuff you don’t need to know.”
“I’ve never lied to you.”
“I know. It’s what makes you a good person, when I’m not.”
“You can be a good person as well,” she said.
He took her hand, placing it over his chest. His heart raced beneath her touch. “You’ve felt every single one of my scars. They weren’t from accidents. They were from fights, from training. From killing people.”
She went to pull her hand away, but he circled her wrist, stopping her from going anywhere. “Diego, why are you telling me all this stuff now?”
“You have a right to know. There’s no reason to keep secrets from you. You know everything else. You know who I am.”
“Wait, you’ve killed people?”
“Yes.”
“Why aren’t you in jail?”
“I kill bad people.”
“What gives you the right to decide that?”
“I’m the judge, jury, and executioner in my city, Belle. The men that shot at us, who put your father in the hospital, the justice system won’t make them pay. If the evidence is not there, it’ll get thrown out. I won’t take that chance with your safety. I don’t answer to the law. I make my own.”
“Is there anything else I need to know?” she asked.
He was overloading her with information, so why not completely bombard her?
“Melanie won’t be giving you trouble any time soon.”
“What?”
“She overdosed.”
“How do you know this?”
“I made sure she did.”
“What?” She pulled away from him, but he caught her arms.
“I took care of the bitch. She was a slut. I walked in on her being fucked in the ass by her dealer so she could score more drugs, Belle. The world is not full of fairy tales. You can’t rely on anyone or expect to get anything done.”
“You don’t know that. You don’t know anything. You’re filling it up with your toxic interpretations.”
“Melanie left you not once but twice to go and get her fix. Her arms were covered with track marks, and she was doing the hard drugs. She left you. You nearly got raped and killed. I’m not taking that chance.” He cupped her face, tilting her head back. “You can hate me all you want, Belle. I accept it, but you are going to realize that you belong to me. I take care of what’s mine, and you are mine.”
“You don’t get to make that choice.”
His lips slammed down on hers, startling her. At first, she didn’t respond to his kiss, but then, her body betrayed her, wanting him so much.
He is a liar.
A cheat.
You’re his other woman.
She pushed him away, trying not to react to his touch, but it was impossible. She wanted him, even after knowing the truth.
“I get to make that choice. The moment I took your virginity on my office desk, Belle. You became mine.”
“I’m not the first virgin you had, Diego. You can’t make the claim that I’m special.”
“I can, and I will. You are fucking special because you’re the only virgin I want.” With that, he kissed her again.
At first, she fought him, but in truth it wasn’t a real fight. She wanted him, even after everything. Groaning into his mouth, she wrapped her arms around his neck, his body pressing against hers. The hardness of his cock dug into her stomach, letting her know he wanted to be here just as much as she did.