I knew that wouldn’t be nearly enough to make my father concede his rightful place as the don’s chosen successor. He wouldn’t back down because of a few slights and insults. His rival, Gabriel Costa, would literally take power over my father’s dead body.
“I agree. You need to tell your father about this,” Marco said, his face twisting with fury that matched my own. He’d grown attached to Ashlyn too, despite the fact that she didn’t like him.
Attached wasn’t a strong enough word. I’d seen the way he’d held her last night. I’d heard him call her princess. I knew what that meant.
He was just as obsessed as I was.
I speared him with a significant stare. “I’m having dinner with my dad tonight, so I’ll be in the city for several hours. You won’t do anything while I’m gone, will you?”
“Like what?” he asked, feigning ignorance.
“You know what. I don’t want you to frighten her again. I think she’s finally coming around after last night. She’s not scared of you anymore. Don’t undo the progress we’ve made.”
He frowned. “You’re wrong about her. She might look delicate, but she could handle me. She could handle us.”
“I swear to god, Marco, don’t keep pushing me on this. Back off.”
His frown deepened to a scowl, but I saw the hurt flash in his eyes. “You really don’t want to share her with me? You really think I’d do something to hurt her?”
I blew out a breath. “I know you’d never hurt her. But you don’t understand her. Not like I do.”
“I think you’re the one who doesn’t understand. You’re blinded by your obsession with what you think she is. You want her to be this pure, perfect angel who’ll save you from your ugly life. She might be pure and perfect, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t want you. The real you. Stop holding back.”
Longing tugged at my chest, and for the first time, doubt crept into my mind. Ever since I’d captured her and told her that I was keeping her, she’d been…different. Sometimes, she seemed like her mind was somewhere else when she was with me.
“You know I’m right,” Marco pressed on, reading my hesitation.
I shook my head. “If she’s been acting distant sometimes, it’s because I haven’t earned her trust back yet. It’ll take time for her to open up to me again. I betrayed her with my deception.”
He cocked his head at me. “And how long has she been acting distant?”
“Since we kidnapped her, obviously.”
“She didn’t seem distant in those first couple days with you. I saw the way she looked at you. I heard her screaming out her orgasms. Are you sure her distance didn’t start a little later? Maybe after she saw my sketches?”
My stomach turned. “If that’s the cause, then she’s putting distance between us because she’s scared of what she saw.”
“I don’t think so. She wants it, Joseph.”
I held up a hand. “Stop this. Just stop. I won’t risk scaring her away. I need her, Marco. Don’t you get that?”
He sobered, his hard demeanor easing. “Of course I do. I saw how you were without her, and I’ve seen you together. I know you, Joseph. I get it. But I still think you’re wrong about her.”
“Then we’ll agree to disagree,” I declared, tired of the argument. I sighed. “I need to check on Ashlyn. I don’t want her to wake up alone.”
He nodded, allowing me to close the subject.
I left him in the kitchen and headed upstairs. I planned to spend every minute with Ashlyn before I had to leave. I didn’t want to go into the city, not after she’d been threatened, but she’d be safe on the estate. She’d be safe with Marco.
I needed to deal with the threat where it really mattered. If Ashlyn was being targeted, it was actually an attack on my father, an attempt to intimidate us. No one in the family wanted to strike first, so my father’s enemies would make subtler power plays until things escalated out of control.
I hoped it wouldn’t get to that point, but if they thought they could come anywhere near Ashlyn, I’d do whatever it took to keep her safe.
I opened the bedroom door softly. I didn’t want to truly disturb her; she needed to rest. But I at least had to see her, had to touch her. I was addicted to her, just as obsessed as Marco claimed.
I brushed her sable hair back from her face and pressed a soft kiss against her ivory cheek. She let out a happy little humming noise and stretched like a sleepy kitten. She was so adorable, it made my heart ache. I’d be perfectly content to stay here and touch her all day. I’d never get enough of her: her soft body; her sounds of pleasure as I stroked her skin with reverence; her screams of ecstasy when I pinned her down and fucked her hard.