"Chloe." Impatience seeped into his voice, barely held back. "How long you gonna keep this up?"
I met his stormy face with a calm stare.
"Keep what up? I came back, like we agreed."
"You know damn well what I mean." He stood, grinding his teeth. His tall frame loomed over me, oppressive as hell.
"I really don't." I slammed the magazine shut on my lap, staring right into his furious eyes without flinching. "Spell it out for me, clear as day."
Enzo went silent for a beat. Then he stood tall, looking down at me from that angle that made me shrink back instinctively. He snatched the magazine from my hands and chucked it to the floor.
"Don't play games with me." His voice dropped low. "What do you want? Say it."
He bent down, one hand bracing on the armchair back, the other reaching for my face. Fingers touched my chin, tilting it up gently.
"I know you're pissed at me." His voice was low, almost a whisper. "But Chloe, you're mine. Only mine."
I almost laughed in his face. After all the lies, betrayal, and threats, his first move was to claim ownership?
"Do what you want." I held his gaze, my voice so calm it felt alien. "You said it yourself—I'm stuck here till you're done with me. So what's the holdup? Come on."
With that, I shrugged off the sweater draped over me.
Enzo's hand froze. "What the hell are you doing?"
"Isn't this what you want?" I stared him down, every word deliberate. "You said everything I have is yours, including my body. Use it whenever you feel like it."
The room went dead quiet for a long stretch. Enzo sighed.
My voice turned vicious. "Sorry, forgot yesterday was your wedding night. Maybe you don't need my services right now."
His hand gripped the chair back, knuckles white. Jaw clenched, veins throbbing at his temples.
"Then you can go." I waited, saw he wasn't moving, and started buttoning up. "Your new wife's probably waiting for you at home."
Enzo didn't move an inch. His eyes darkened, the storm brewing even deeper inside them.
I straightened my clothes and started to get up, but before I could move, his hand shot out like lightning. His fingers clamped around my wrist like a steel vise, and he yanked me upright so hard that I stumbled straight into his chest.
"You're not going anywhere," he growled, his voice rough with barely contained rage. His patience had completely snapped. In one swift motion, he scooped me up and strode toward the bedroom.
I gasped, pushing against his shoulders, but he ignored me completely and kicked the door open with his foot.
Enzo threw me roughly onto the bed, his tall frame looming over me. "I've given you enough patience, Chloe. What the hell else do you want from me?!"
He braced his hands on either side of my body, chest heaving with fury, dark fire of jealousy and frustration burning in his eyes. "How long are you going to keep doing this to me? I already told you—the marriage to Valentina is nothing but a forced family alliance. There's no feeling between us at all! You know that, yet you still use this cold attitude to piss me off?"
He gripped my chin, leaning in with gritted teeth, his voice dripping with vicious intent. "But you? You know exactly what kind of dirty thoughts that Liam has about you, and you still let him put his hands on you?!"
"So what?" I glared back at him without flinching, my eyes stinging. "At least he treats me like a real person, not some married whore he has to keep hidden away in the shadows!"
That sentence lit the fuse.
"Good. Very good." He laughed through his anger, hooking his fingers into the collar of my shirt and ripping it open with one brutal tug. The fabric tore with a loud rip, buttons flying everywhere. Thematerial gave way like paper, exposing my bra and the curve of my heaving breasts. I sucked in a sharp breath. Beneath the shock, a hated wave of heat stirred deep inside me.
"You think you can provoke me with another man?" Before I could react, he grabbed the waistband of my pants and yanked them down roughly, leaving me in nothing but my panties. His hands were everywhere—rough, possessive, demanding. "Looks like I need to remind you exactly who you belong to."
One palm slid up my thigh, fingers digging possessively into my flesh, while the other pinned my shoulder down hard. "Whether you like it or not, this body is mine. It always has been. Every inch of your skin belongs to me, and I'll fuck it whenever the hell I want."
