Devotion

“I’ve never been married,” he admits. “Never been in love before this.”

“Noah, please.” I want more. I need more.

There are too many questions floating around in my head, and I think he just said he loves me. A part of me doesn’t want the answers, because I know something isn’t right here. I think it’s why I’ve been letting him take over and haven’t been pushing for more. I get lost in him because I know something is coming. This perfect little world I’ve fallen into is going to crumble. Nothing this good can be true.

He drops his forehead to mine. “It’s not that I don’t want to tell you things, little star. I want to give you everything you could ever want and more.”

“I don’t understand.” I wrap my arms around his neck, needing to touch him. The hands on my hips grip me tighter, and he lifts me up. I wrap my legs around him as he makes his way out of the office and down the hall. He takes me back into our bedroom and sits down on the bed, with me straddling him.

“Anna works for me. Worked for me,” he corrects. “She wanted me to come back to our offices in New York, but I have no plans of going anywhere you’re not.” His hands grip me possessively, as if I might disappear. “There is nothing, and there has never been, anything between Anna and me. She’s a workaholic who can get carried away. Before you, I didn’t care, because I was on that same page. She worked well as my assistant, but now I’m here on the island. With you.”

“You’re not a dance instructor, are you?” I search his dark eyes. He leans up, taking my mouth in a slow, soft kiss before he answers me.

“The only dance I know is yours.”

“Am I some toy?” I ask, recalling what Anna had said before. I don’t want to be someone’s plaything. I don’t want to be something for someone to show off like my mother always did with me, but then neglect and resent me when I’m not shiny and new anymore.

He releases his grip on my hips and cups my face with gentle hands. “No, Aurora. You’re my everything. I brought you here to let you blossom. To watch you become whatever woman you want to be. To be free.”

“Am I free?” I lean in, looking into his eyes. “Have I just gone from one cage to another?”

“If you want to leave the island, we will leave.” He smiles at me and strokes my cheek. “You are free to go anywhere you want.”

My heart aches at the thought of leaving the island.

Something flashes in his eyes, and I see a dark promise. “But you will never be free of me.”

Chapter Fourteen

Noah

“I need to tell you the truth about how you came to be here, Aurora.”

She nods, and I see trepidation on her face.

“I tried the traditional way of getting to you.” I smile, thinking of how desperate my attempts were. “After the first time I saw you on stage, I was done. One look at you and I was a goner.”

Her features soften, and I feel her hands rubbing against my chest.

“I sent flowers to you at every show. But eventually I found out that your mother intercepted them. I tried sneaking backstage, but after the flowers, she spoke to the director and had security tightened.” I shake my head, remembering how impossible she was to get past. “Eventually I knew that if I was able to get close to you, she would somehow keep me away. So I created this elaborate way to have you. A year alone in a secluded place to have you all to myself. To make you fall in love with me.”

“Noah, I—”

“To make sure you could never leave me,” I say.

Reaching down, I rub her lower belly and then look into her eyes.

“By any means necessary.”

Her cheeks flush, and then she bites her lip. “We never used any protection.”

“I know. You may already be bred with my baby. At least, that’s what I hope. I want you pregnant as soon as possible.”

“But why? Why did you do all this for me?” There’s no trace of fear in her question, only hope.

“Because you’re my one. I love you, Aurora, and I will never let you go.”

“I love you, too, Noah. I don’t know how this can all happen so fast, but I’ve never felt this before.”

I see the truth in her eyes as she clings to me. I wrap my arms around her and flip us so that she’s on her back on the bed and I’m hovering over her.

“Forever, Aurora. No matter where we live or what we do. You’re mine forever.”

“Yours,” she answers, and I lean down, pressing my lips to hers.