And when I’m finished punishing her, I’m going to punish all of you. And unlike her, you’re not going to like it.
Chapter34
Rialta
Andrea is a fucking liar,and I’m going to kill him if Lennox doesn’t. He woke me in the middle of the night from Lennox’s bed and told me Vincent was on the phone waiting for me.
Next thing I know, I passed out and woke up here, listening to Andrea tell me he thinks Lennox is still a Retribution King. Lennox only sees me as property, he can’t protect me, and he’s an abuser. He said Lennox will only hurt me.
Lie after lie after lie.
Andrea told me what’s about to happen is a test, and that Lennox will have to face many tests if he wants to stay Vincent’s successor. If he passes, I will have a better bond with Lennox, but he doesn’t think he’ll pass. He said I should be prepared to divorce him, to not get too attached. He’ll most likely be dead within the month if he fails.
I want to fight.
I want to tell Andrea how wrong he is.
I want to kick him in the balls.
But I do none of those things. I keep a blank, shocked expression. I don’t let Andrea know whose side I’m on. I can’t let him know how I feel.
I play the long game. I don’t know when this ends, but it doesn’t end tonight. Lennox will survive whatever test is placed in front of him. And if Andrea thinks he can convince me to leave Lennox, then I can use that to my advantage and extract information from him to learn what he’s scheming.
But when I saw Lennox dragged into the dungy basement—naked and handcuffed—I almost broke. Yet, somehow even as he stood naked before everyone, Lennox looked like the most menacing man here.
He didn’t look afraid. He looked powerful and mine.
Fuck, Lennox is mine.
I can’t lose him.
I don’t know when I started thinking of him in that way. And it doesn’t change how I felt about Kit. But Kit was the sweet crush who taught me how to make love. Lennox is the bad boy asshole I want to teach me how to fuck. Both are mine in very different ways. Both of them I’ll protect with my life.
I’ve already protected Kit. Now it’s time to protect Lennox.
I can’t let Lennox die. Andrea spoke of an arrangement Lennox has with Vincent that prevents him from killing him now, but I doubt that will stop him if he doesn’t get what he wants from Lennox—which is to put a wedge between us. To make me hate Lennox. To get me to call Vincent immediately when I leave here and demand a divorce.
Punish me—that’s what Andrea said he wanted Lennox to do.
I wink at Lennox. I’m a-okay with Lennox punishing me. He’s read my journal. He knows what I fantasize about. And I trust him to punish me in a way that I’ll enjoy. Lennox understands me better than I understand myself. He proved it when he reminded me how strong I am, how to wield my strength.
I trust him.
Lennox glares around the room. His eyes tell every man in the room that if they don’t eventually bow to him, they’ll soon be buried six feet under.
I follow his gaze around the room, and it seems that most of them get the message. But it’s not enough for them to put a stop to this.
Andrea pushes me forward, and Lennox growls at him. It echoes through the room.
Everyone stops breathing as Lennox speaks like he’s possessed by the devil himself, “Don’t. Touch. My. Wife. Ever. Again.”
Andrea just smiles. “I will if she still wants to remain your wife after tonight.”
I fist my hands at my side to keep from turning and throwing a punch at Andrea. He’s just trying to show that Lennox is too weak to fight back, that he can’t protect me.
Andrea doesn’t realize that Lennox is my fucked up villain. I’ve barely gotten to see his dark side, but I’ve gotten a tiny taste, and now I want more.
Andrea doesn’t know that I’m as fucked up as Lennox is. I crave being defiled, and I have a very dark fantasy about being fucked in front of others. I need to be told I’m his and no one else’s.