We ride in a black Escalade in silence, and it’s the most uncomfortable I’ve felt in my life. His presence is suffocating, and the fact that his face is set in a permanent frown doesn’t make it any easier.
After about an hour, we arrive at an estate that seems more like a fortress than a home. Tall, fancy black gates spill open to reveal manicured lawns and armed guards with their weapons strapped across their chests.
One mansion stands out among the other smaller ones, and as Dominic steps out of the car without sparing me a glance, I figure that’s where he’s heading.
I fumble with the gown, rushing out and doing my best to match his pace. If he hears the sound of my struggle or the scrape of my heels against the stone driveway, he doesn’t acknowledge it.
Soon we reach inside. The scent of polished wood and leather is the first thing that reaches my nostrils, and then I notice the intricate patterns of chandeliers that gleam on the marble floors.
Unlike our mansion, this place is far too big and empty. I wrap my arms around my middle, the weight of everything pressing down on my chest.
Suddenly, he turns, grey eyes sweeping over me once. Bland and cold like before, eliciting a nervous shiver down my spine. As he takes a step closer, the unbearable weight of his presence presses against my chest.
“Rule number one,” he says, voice low and commanding. My blood chills a few degrees. “You do not leave this house without my permission. Ever.”
I unfurl my arms, the urge to say something now tightening my chest. I just had my whole life thwarted in front of me; the last thing I need is rules.
“Rule number two,” he continues without a trace of emotion. “You will play the role of my wife and act accordingly, but only in public. In private, you stay the hell away from me.”
“Rule number three.” Something in his voice changes, and he walks toward me. He stops when there’s barely a thread of space between us, hot smoky breath fanning my face. His eyebrows dip into an intense curve, and a frown settles on his face.
“What happened last night was a mistake,” he deadpans.
Chapter two
Dominic
“Congratulations on your wedding, Dominic.”
Elias Grimaldi’s smooth voice reaches my ear from over the phone. “A wife will do wonders for your reputation. Investors believe that a man who builds a home can be trusted, especially in a billion-dollar project like ours.”
I exhale a puff of smoke. Indeed… A complete redevelopment of the Eastern docks, projected to funnel trades through Europe like veins of gold.
Grimaldi is the head of a powerful investment consortium and my business partner. He has land rights, permits, and the trust of foreign investors, but is also a traditional man who wants the security of a marriage before signing the contract.
“Thank you, Mr. Grimaldi,” I say as more of a formality than sincerity.
After all, I already have the construction empire, muscle, political strengths…and now a wife. Isabella.
Grimaldi ends the call as her name burns my mind in ways I hate to remember.
I adjust myself behind the large mahogany desk in my office, watching the smoke curl from my cigar. I’d seen her sister, Elena, before at some charity gala, but I’d never set my eyes on Isabella…not until that night, and even then I didn’t know who she was.
Fuck. Now I’m suddenly reminded of that night…
How her body danced in tune to my thrusts. The feeling of her soft thighs around me as I ravaged her delicious, wet pussy.Fuck!
She felt so delicate. So tight. I could have fucked her until dawn. And maybe even fucked her knowing she was Elena’s sister. Her pussy was that good.
The lights had played their tricks, and what I saw wasn’t enough to make out her face, but it was enough to make me see that she was…different. Unorthodox.
She didn’t look like every other girl out there who plasters their face and dyes their hair a certain shade to be socially acceptable.She didn’t look like she was begging for attention. No fake smiles. No desperate giggles.
And that’s what stuck out to me.
I wanted something different. And fuck, was she the perfect kind of different.
Her scent, her beautiful ginger hair…not to mention her luscious curves. Those hips, those perfect tits, and that voluptuous ass of hers were enough to wreck a man. Goddamn!
