“VIN.”
I meet her gaze with a sigh. “Yeah?”
“You cannot do this. You are not allowed to watch me oncameras 24/7 and do whatever you like to my restaurant and my home.” She says it like she thinks she can stop me. “We are not together. I am not yours!”
“Sophie.” I adopt the same matter-of-fact tone she used. “I’m going to protect you both whether you like it or not.”
A sneer twitches at the corner of her lip and I raise an eyebrow. I’ve never seen her do that before.
“That may be so,” she says. “But Vin, you are not mine. You don’t get that kind of access to me. You can be part of our child’s life, and you can protect our child as is your right.” Her jaw is tight. “But I will not be with someone who believes they can control every part of my life.”
“Soph, protection isn’t—”
“I may be submissive,” she cuts me off. “But I am not powerless. I can do this without you, and I will, Vin. You need to get used to that.”
She goes into her bedroom and closes the door quietly behind her.
I stand in the middle of her living room with a roomful of contractors watching me. I hold up one finger. “Give me a minute.”
I walk to her door and stand there, listening. The sound of her crying quietly drifts out and I lean my forehead against the door, gripping the door knob tightly.
Every instinct I have says go in. Every instinct I have says figure out what the fuck is getting in the way of what I want and removeit. It’s what I do best. But in this case, I can’t tell if the obstacle blocking me from getting what I want is her. Or if it’s me.
Either way, barging into her room will only prove her point.
I take my hand off the door knob and turn back to the guys in the living room.
“Pack it up,” I say. “All of it. Windows stay. Everything else goes. We’ll get this done first thing in the morning.”
The lead contractor opens his mouth.
“Now,” I say. “All of it.”
They pack it up, and I consider my options.
When the last contractor is gone, I knock on her bedroom door.
“Go away, Vin.”
“I sent them home, all of them.” I wait but she says nothing. “Sophie.” I flatten my palm against the door. “Please. I’ll do anything you want. Whatever it is. Just—” I stop and pull in a long breath. I have no fucking idea what the words are for this. “Try me. Please. I’m begging you. Just try me.”
The silence lasts a long time, way too long, but I force myself to be quiet and give her space. To wait for her.
Then the door opens. She doesn’t say anything at first. Then she steps back and allows me to walk in.
53
SOPHIE
Iwake up in Vin’s arms, my back against his chest, the early morning light breaking across the dark room like a flashlight. At first, it feels natural, normal, safe. Like home. Like the whole last year didn’t happen.
Then everything comes flooding back to me, and I feel a stab in my chest that hurts so badly that I almost can’t breathe.
Almost.
I shift, try to escape his grasp, but his arms tighten around me, holding me in place. His hard cock grows harder against my ass, and I try to wriggle away. “Vin…”
It comes out breathier than I want it to, like I want him to keep going, not like I want him to stop.
