Sold to the Enemy

‘Why? Because you care so deeply about my welfare? Or maybe because your master plan isn’t finished yet? What am I supposed to do next? Dance naked on national TV?’ It gave her some satisfaction to see the streaks of colour tracing the lines of his cheekbones. ‘You used me. The whole thing was a set-up—the champagne, the dress, the...the sex.’ Why on earth had she mentioned the sex? It was the last thing she wanted to think about. She wouldn’t let herself think about it. She didn’t dare. ‘It was all planned so that someone could take the most incriminating photos possible.’

‘That is not true.’

‘That’s why you rescued me, isn’t it? To score another blow against my father.’

He threw her a simmering glance of raw emotion. ‘Stop looking for conspiracy theories. None of this would have happened if you’d told someone your father was abusive.’

‘I tried. No one would believe me. We are a happy family, remember? My father is a pillar of society. A philanthropist. He is ruthless, but part of his appeal has always been that he is a family man. People believe that.’ She saw from the expression on his face that he’d believed it, too. ‘Do you know that he even supports a charity for abused women?’ The irony of it almost made her choke. ‘I called the police once.’

‘And?’

‘He told them I was going through a difficult teenage phase. They believed him. Or maybe they didn’t—’ she shrugged ‘—maybe they were just afraid of what would happen if they arrested him. Either way, it just made it worse for me and for my mother.’

He turned away and closed his hands over the rail of the yacht. His knuckles were white.

‘You let me think I caused those bruises.’ The rawness of his tone caught her off-balance. ‘You let me think I’d hurt you.’

A sharp stab of guilt punctured her anger. Thrown by the sudden shift in the conversation, she stared at his rigid shoulders and suddenly she was right back in his bed, naked and vulnerable. ‘I—I didn’t know what to say—’

‘The truth would have been good. I blamed myself for being rough with you but I couldn’t work out how or when. I went over and over it in my mind.’

‘I didn’t think it would bother you that much.’

‘Why? You think all men like to bruise their women?’ He turned, his voice a dangerous growl. ‘Is that what you think?’

She shook her head. ‘No. I just—I wasn’t thinking about you. I was thinking about my mother. If I’d told you the truth you either wouldn’t have believed me or you would have tried to stop me.’

‘Or perhaps I would have helped you. If you’d mentioned just once when you were presenting your business plan that this was all about escaping from your father we wouldn’t be here now. If you’d told me the truth instead of letting me think I’d hurt you—’

‘You did hurt me.’ Selene felt her insides wobble and reminded herself that everything that had happened between them had been fake. ‘I thought you were such a hero. You talked to me that night on the boat. You were kind to me when no one else was. When things were terrible at home, I lay there and dreamed about you. I planned how it was going to be when I finally met you again. How I was going to look. What I was going to say. And every time I imagined it you were the hero.’

His breathing was shallow. ‘Selene—’

‘And when I finally planned our escape you were part of it. I’d worked through every scenario, making sure that even if it didn’t work it wouldn’t make things worse. I had a market for my candles, a way of earning money. I was prepared for everything. Everything except a man who lied to me. A man who used me as a pawn in his stupid business rivalry.’ Dizziness washed over her like a giant wave and she swayed slightly, resisting her body’s attempts to persuade her to lie down.

Dark brows brought together in a frown of concern, Stefan reached for her.

She stepped away from him. ‘Do not touch me,’ she said thickly. ‘Do not touch me ever again, do you hear? You might not have bruised me physically but you hurt me more than my father ever did.’ Because she’d cared. Oh, God, she’d really cared. But there was no way she was admitting that now. He’d already had too much of her.