With his free hand, he reached out and picked up the delicate silver chain that connected the strange clamps that pinched my nipples. He tugged on it, and pain burst through my pleasure. His emerald eyes glittered with dark satisfaction, and the sharp lines of his beautiful face tightened with hunger.
“You’re mine, Nora,” he said with the weight of an oath.
I gasped at the dichotomy of the cruel clamps and Luca’s tongue on my sex. My husband rubbed his fingers over my g-spot, as though reminding me that my body belonged to him.
Dante released the clamps, and stinging pain seared my abused nipples. At the same time, Luca’s mouth worked my clit. The world washed white with a flash of lightning, and my back bowed as bliss tormented me.
Dante’s lips peeled back from his teeth like a feral beast. “Mine,” he growled, locking me in his burning gaze. Heat lashed my aching breasts as he snarled out his own release. He marked me with his cum while Luca continued to ravish me. Both men possessed me in their own way, staking a claim over my body.
But deep in my soul, I knew that no matter what Dante did or said, I belonged to Luca.
Chapter 10
Nora
“Get dressed,” Dante commanded. “You’re coming with me today.”
“What?” I eyed the outfit he’d placed on the bed for me: one of my own from before he’d kidnaped me. My blood ran cold. He’d given me normal clothes yesterday, when he’d forced me to attend that awful meeting with my father and Alberto.
He seemed to sense my disquiet, because he cupped my cheek in his hand, capturing me in a steady green stare. “Don’t worry, little bird. I won’t let them near you ever again. I’m taking you to see your sister.”
Giana. I longed to hug her and promise her that I was okay.
It would be a lie, but it would ease the worry that must have plagued her every day since Dante had kidnapped me. Concern for her tightened my chest. I had no idea what my father might’ve done to her in my absence. I’d always been her protector. She might be suffering without me to shield her.
“We’re going to your father’s house,” Dante continued, “but I won’t allow him to be in the same room as you. His home is well guarded. You’ll be safe there.”
I’d never been safe in that house, but I would risk a beating if it meant I could see Giana.
Why? Why would he allow me out of my cage to see my beloved sister? This must be some sort of trick, another sadistic game.
He seemed to read the doubt in my eyes. “I know you’re unhappy here,” he said. “That will change with time. I’ll earn your trust. You’ll believe me one day,” he added when I flinched. “I don’t want you to be miserable, and I know you love your sister. I won’t keep you from her.”
He urged me to get dressed, and I complied with hesitant movements. I still didn’t trust him. He was a monster out of my worst nightmares.
But he hadn’t lied to me yet, and if he said he was taking me to see Giana, I dared to hope that it might be true.
Once I wore my comfortable blouse and jeans, he approached me with a bulky vest. I shrank back, uncertain.
He didn’t pull away in the face of my concern; he simply fitted the vest around my chest. “This is Kevlar,” he explained. “You’ll wear it until we’re back on the estate. No one is going to hurt you, Nora. Not while I’m breathing.”
He put on his own vest and took me by the hand, leading me out of our bedroom. When we stepped through the front doors and out into the crisp fall air, we found three armored SUVs waiting for us. Dante directed me toward the one in the middle of the convoy. I couldn’t see through the dark tinted windows, but I knew a handful of men would already be in the other vehicles, Dante’s guards. He really was intent on protecting me.
I shook the thought away. He wanted to possess me completely, so he clearly didn’t want to see me dead. He had darker plans for me. As long as I was alive, he could use me to torment Luca.
I yanked my hand from his and stalked the last few steps toward the SUV. He opened the door for me without commenting on my sudden prickly demeanor. I only had a few seconds to draw in a deep, calming breath before he’d circled the vehicle to get in on the other side.
He reached over me and buckled my seatbelt, his hands lingering at my waist. I stiffened and turned my face away.
He sighed and secured his own seatbelt when the convoy started moving. I watched the mansion disappear, then looked out at the woods as we wound our way down the long drive. The terrible night when he’d chased me through those woods played through my mind, and a light shiver raced over my skin.
He snagged my hand and squeezed it in what was meant to be a pulse of comfort. But I found no reassurance in the monster’s touch as I recalled the way he’d ruthlessly hunted me down and then bound me cruelly beneath the moonlight.
“Would you like to play the piano when we return home tonight?” he asked, voice rich with warmth, as though he was completely unbothered by my hostility.
I gritted my teeth and didn’t respond. I didn’t feel like making small talk with my captor.
“The piano has been untouched since I lost my mother, but I had it tuned for you,” he continued, rubbing his thumb over my palm. “I’d love to hear you play.”
