“I’m going to go back downstairs and enjoy the rest of the night with my family. You’ll be a good girl and wait up here for my brother, right? Naked and on all fours, I think he said.” He winks and turns to leave.
I blush, realizing he heard what Damon said. Then again, everyone did, I suppose. It wasn’t like he was quiet when he dismissed me.
“Oh, and one more thing.” His eyes pierce mine, the dark orbs promising pain and misery. “Don’t tell Damon about my son. He has his weakness, and I have mine, but my son is an innocent in this war—and I want him to remain hidden for as long as possible. I’m trusting you to keep this between us, Keira.”
“Yes, I promise.” I can’t believe we are actually agreeing on something. I don’t care that Xander might be a monster. That baby is an innocent in this world, and the less people who know about his existence, the better.
“Thank you.” He smiles one last time before slipping out the door.
I rush to the bed and lay on it. Xander just saidthank you.Though that’s not the most shocking revelation to take place this evening. Finding out I won’t be going anywhere in a body bag any time soon takes the cake.
I sit at the edge of the bed in my dress, counting down the seconds until Damon comes back. Seconds turn to hours, and eventually, my eyes grow heavy. I slump against the silky sheets, burrowing into them.
I tell myself I’ll only sleep for a short time, but as soon as my head hits the pillow, I’m out, my dreams carrying me to a faraway land.
Chapter 18
Damon
I’m not sure how much I’ve had to drink, but by the time I stand, I’m well aware of the effect of the alcohol. I’m not wasted, but I’m definitely tipsy. I make my way to the patio overlooking the garden.
The garden is my favorite and least favorite place rolled into one. It protected me from my father when he went on his beating sprees, but it also reminds me of my entire fucked up childhood.
“Why didn’t you burn the thing down to the fucking ground?” I ask, meeting Xander, watching as he takes a puff from his cigar. The sweet aroma tingles my nostrils.
“It’s far too beautiful to burn to the ground. Plus, you’d miss it as much as me. Even if it is a stark reminder of our father, it’s also a reminder that we had each other.”
I notice a change in his attitude. He’s calmer, happier, and I don’t fucking like it. He’s much too happy—which only means one thing: there’s something going on I don’t know about.
“We did have each other. When you killed dad, you changed. You took over this fucking place, and you turned it into a darker man than our father.” Venom coats my words. I want him to feel all the pain I have the last couple years. But I know he won’t feel shit, not without having a heart. He has no weaknesses, no fucking vices—not like me.
“You’re right, I did turn into something worse than our father. I did it because I had to. I did it for you.”
That’s it, I’ve heard enough of his nonsense today. I turn to make my way backto the house. “Whatever game you’re playing, I’m not going to play with you. My life was fucking perfect before you walked back into it.”
I’m so pissed off, angry he dragged me here to play his sick, twisted game. It feels like we’re kids all over again, except now he’s holding the fact that he protected me from our father over my head.
“I’m going to bed,” I mutter, walking through the kitchen, and my brother follows.
“Oh, yes…” He inhales smoke into his lungs, then exhales a moment later. “That’s right, you have something waiting for you upstairs.” He smirks, and my blood runs cold. “I might have left dinner a little early to help her find her way to your room, and I made sure she remembered to kneel for her king.” I don’t even let him finish his fucking statement. I’m so angry, so mad—at myself, at Keira, at the fucking world we live in. I stomp up the stairs, taking two steps at a time.
All I need is to see her and touch her, but as I run down the hallway leading to my old bedroom, I’m overtaken by emotions.
She’s going to be my wife.
I’ve sacrificed everything for her, and this is how she repays me—by letting my brother show her around his mansion. I might be unreasonable, but fuck, I can’t think straight right now. I’m fueled with enough madness, once I reach the door, I almost kick it in.
The lights turn on as I walk into the bedroom. I take in a sharp breath, relief flooding my veins. Keira is lying on the bed. Her hair resembles a halo, the russet-brown circling her head. She's still wearing her dress, and her tiny hands are cupped beneath her cheek.
A small wave of calmness washes over me knowing she is safe—but only from the monsters downstairs. She’s not safe from me. Never me.
Walking up to the bed, I take in her perfect little body, peacefully sleeping in a room that holds so many horrible memories for me. I clench and unclench my fists a few times, trying to ward off some of the fury inside me.
With a gentleness I'm not aware I even possess, I slowly unzip her dress and shimmy it off her shoulders. She stirs, but doesn’t wake up—not even when I pull the dress all the way off her body. My mouth waters. Underneath the beautiful dress, she is wearing black lace lingerie. It makes her creamy white skin more prominent.
My dick is on high alert. I was hard earlier, but now I'm hard enough to break fucking steel.
I thought seeing or touching her would calm the anger in my veins, but now that I’m here, I feel just as unhinged. I need to have her. I need to make sure she knows she’ll belong to me until the end of days.
