Just like that. Our organization is a powerful one.
Taking a deep breath, I finally turn to Natasha… only to see her cowering against the wall. Afraid. Of me, I realize.
“Natasha?”
“You… killed him,” she whispers.
“To save you. He was hurting you.”
“I know. But… you killed him.”
“I saved your life. You could be grateful. You don’t have to look at me like I’m a monster.” My words come our harsher than I mean them too but it’s what I feel. I saved Natasha’s life and yetshe’s looking at me likeI’mthe bad buy? None of that makes sense.
“You killed him.”
I reach out for her but she flinches back. With a sigh, I drop my hand. “Yes. We should go. Someone will come by to clean up the body. Don’t touch him. You don’t need to get your fingerprints anywhere near him. We need to go back to the villa now.” I offer her my hand but she doesn’t take it.
“You killed him,” she says once more.
“I did. But it was to save you. I’m not going to hurt you.”
“How do I know that? How do I know you won’t do this to me?”
“Kill you? Because then I’d have a war on my hands. Your father would come for my head. So no, I’ll never kill you. I have no desire to beat you or torture you. I don’t hurt women.”
“But you just killed a man without even blinking.” She flinches back from me again. “That’s not… normal.”
“We have to go, Natasha. I know you’re afraid. I get seeing someone die before your very eyes for the first time is frightening but we have to go. I won’t hurt you. Come on.”
When she still doesn’t move, I grab her arms and haul her away from the dead man. She only whimpers and clamps her eyes shut, like she’s still terrified I’m going to kill her.
Neither one of us says a word on the way back to the villa. Once we’re in inside, Natasha wrenches herself away from me.
“I won’t hurt you,” I say, raising my hands up. “I don’t know how to make it clearer. I killed that man to save your life.”
“But you didn’t have to kill him. You could have just scared him. The other man ran. Aren’t you worried he’ll ID you?”
“That fucker knows he did something wrong and he’ll know I’ll come kill him next if he tries ratting me out to the police. Besides, he doesn’t know my name. Where I live. Nothing. I’m not worried.”
“You didn’t have to kill that man.”
“I saved you.” I huff. “I don’t understand you, Natasha. Most women would be grateful I did what I did.”
“Then I guess I’m not like most women. I’m not like all the women you’ve dated before.”
I frown. “Why does that matter?”
“It doesn’t,” she snaps, turning away from me. “I’m just saying… I’m married to a man who’s a murderer.”
I run my hand over my face. None of this is going right. “Ok. I know you’re afraid. But I will not hurt you. And fine. I didn’t have to kill that man. But I was angry. So fucking angry that he put his hands on you. That he was making you afraid. It made me feel more angry than I’ve ever been in my entire life. So yes, I killed him for that reason.”
Slowly, Natasha faces me again. “You… cared that I was getting hurt?”
“Of course I cared,” I say, letting out a breath. “You’re my wife now, Natasha.”
“But you don’t seem to want anything to do with me. You left me again today to go to some club.”
I sigh. “I know. Because I’m figuring all of this out, right along with you. But I won’t let some fucker hurt you. Even if we don’t love each other. I’m not the kind of man who let’s women get hurt for the fun of it. I can promise you that. I protected you.”
