Page 9

9

SEAN

For a moment, I consider getting in the car and driving far away, just to avoid another battle of wills with Ellie first thing in the morning.

Dad would kill me, though.

He’s already breathing down my neck about the marriage and producing another heir, though that is something I have no intention of doing.

Not with Ellie at least.

She’d sooner cut off my balls than have a child with me. A child means being attached to someone for the rest of your life.

At least with this marriage, I might be able to talk Dad into allowing a divorce.

I’m a grown man. I shouldn’t have to talk him into anything, let alone allowing me to leave a woman I’m only going to grow old and miserable with.

Ellie glares at me as I walk into the kitchen. “You should put on a shirt. Nobody wants your happy trail hair in their damn waffles.”

For a moment, I stand there, shell-shocked to see feisty Ellie standing in front of me.

She spent the rest of her second week here acting like an angel, and now she’s back to being demon Ellie.

I didn’t know how much I was looking forward to her snarky tone until it was gone. She brings an energy to the house that’s been missing for a long time.

Dad never allowed anyone to talk back, cutting out tongues several times for anyone who dared to get a little too brave.

It’s one of the things I want to change the moment I get my hands on the mafia.

Ellie cocks a hip, planting one hand on it while the other waves the spatula in my direction. “I just worked a fifteen-hour shift and I’m not in the mood to gag on anything belonging to you.”

The corner of my mouth tips upward as I sit down at the island. “You sure about that?”

Her cheeks flush slightly as she turns her back to me. “I should go back to work, so I don’t have to deal with this.”

“You’re the one who didn’t want me going out and fucking other women. That means that you get to sit here and deal with this.”

She gives me the coldest glare known to man while scooping waffles onto a plate and sliding it over to me. “Sleep with other women all you want. I get to sleep with other men. I’ll have a much better time gagging.”

I nearly choke on the bite of waffle I just took.

Ellie laughs, the sound light and musical. It’s the first time I think I’ve heard her truly laugh since moving in. Most of the time she’s been here, she either spends her days working double shifts or reading books on the dock.

We have as little to do with each other as possible and it’s working for us.

I cough up the waffle trying to kill me, taking a large gulp from the glass of water in front of me. “You’re not going to sleep with any other men. We made that clear.”

Her eyes narrow. “I seem to remember you talking at me but never really asking how I felt about the matter.”

“I didn’t need to know how you felt about the matter.” I shove the food away from me, standing up and grabbing a shirt from the basket of laundry sitting on the couch.

Aiden told me to try getting along with her.

It would be a good idea to play nice, especially while suspecting that she’s going to try to escape.

“What are you doing with the rest of your day?” I pull on the shirt, glad that my jeans keep my stiff cock compressed.

It would be lying to say that the talk about her gagging didn’t have me picturing her on her knees while I drive my cock down her throat.

She’d beg for more too.

Ellie shrugs, pushing a slice of strawberry around her plate. “I’m off today, so I’m probably going to sleep and then spend some time by the pool reading.”

When she looks at me, there’s confusion shining in her eyes. This is unfamiliar territory for both of us and it’s uncomfortable as hell.

I nod, clearing my throat and sitting down to eat a little more of the food she made. “This is delicious. Thank you.”

Her lips part slightly, eyes narrowing. “I was thinking of lighting the library on fire after that.”

I pull out my wallet, taking the credit card I got for her. “Well, if you’re going to do that, then at least use this to buy whatever books you want to replace them.”

She glances down at the card. “Ellie Andino? I don’t know who that is, but it’s not me.”

“You’d be wrong about that.” I grab the can of whipped cream, spraying some on top of the stack. “Your name was changed the day we were married. It was on those documents we had to sign.”

Her eyebrows pull together. “I didn’t sign any documents.”

“Jade is good at forging your signature. Aiden told her it was the only way to keep you safe, so she did it.”

If steam could pour out of Ellie’s ears right now, it would be.

She slams her fork down on the counter. “Now you even have my sisters turning against me?”

“They’re not turning against you. They’re trying to keep you safe.” I slide the credit card closer to her. “This is yours. Use it for whatever you need. It’s tied to my accounts.”

Her soft pink-painted nails scrape against the card, sliding it closer to her. “I’m going to buy a plane since you changed my name without my damn consent.”

“Buy whatever you want. There’s more than enough money on that card to cover it.”

Ellie shifts, tucking the card into the back pocket of her linen shorts. She grabs her knife and fork, eyes narrowing as she looks at me.

“You’re going to stop manhandling my life, you know that?” She cuts into the waffles like they’ve personally offended her. “I had enough of Aiden doing that when I lived at home. Now, I’ve gone from one house to the other and it still seems like I don’t get to control my own life.”

I finish eating breakfast, depositing my dishes into the dishwasher. “We’re not having this conversation again. I have places to be, and I don’t have time to keep doing this with you.”

As I leave her standing in the kitchen, I’m sure that I’m seconds away from getting a knife in my back.

I press the knife to the man’s throat, lip curling at the tears rolling down his cheeks. “You’re pathetic.”

He looks up at me, eyelashes sweeping rapidly across his cheeks as he tries to hold back his tears. “You don’t have to do this. I have a wife and a family.”

“Sure, so do I.” I press the knife harder, breaking the skin. “That doesn’t change what’s about to happen. You crossed me when you decided to threaten my wife, Logan. That’s a problem for me.”

“I didn’t mean anything by it. I was just doing my job. Noah told me that I had to do it.”

“And that’s the issue, isn’t it?” I drag the knife slowly from just below his earlobe to a fraction of an inch from his vein. “You were just doing your job and now I’m just doing mine.”

“Noah was planning on kidnapping her originally. He thought that it would be fun to take her and torture her.”

Logan’s throat bobs as he swallows hard and looks around. His eyes squeeze shut for a moment, his lips moving as if he’s counting to ten.

He shifts slightly, but he can’t move too far with the knife pressed to his throat. “He thought that if we sent her body to Aiden in pieces, he would come after Noah out of rage instead of sitting back to plan an attack.”

I pull the knife away slightly, giving him room to breathe as a reward for turning on his boss.

One way or another, he’s still going to die for putting his hands on Ellie, but for the moment he can think there’s a chance he might survive.

Crossing my arms, I wait for him to say more.

One of the foghorns sounds just outside the warehouse in the marina. It’s a miserable day outside—perfect for getting information out of the man who wanted to hurt Ellie.

Logan’s mouth curves up at the corner. “I told him that we should hold back. Just scare her a little and see what happened. He listened to me. I saved her from being killed.”

I scoff, crouching down so my gaze is level with his. “Am I supposed to be grateful to you for that?”

“You should be.”

The knife finds its home against his throat again. “Nobody lays a hand on my wife and survives.”

I slit his throat, smirking at the fear in his eyes as the blood drains from his body.

The door to my interrogation room opens and Dominic walks in, not sparing the body a second glance as he stands beside me.

Dominic’s entire body tenses as he blows out a long breath. “We have a problem at home.”

“Thank you for stopping her, Kara.” I nod to the bodyguard outside Ellie’s bedroom door.

She gives me a half smile, but I’m sure she feels guilty right now.

From what I’ve heard from Aiden, Kara is the only real friend Ellie has. It’s why I hired her to continue to work Ellie’s security detail. If I hadn’t, I’m sure she would’ve only caused me more problems.

Kara steps to the side. “She’s in there and she’s pissed. Boss, I mean this as someone who knows Ellie and not someone who would think to tell you what to do, but you should let her cool down. She’s like a feral cat when she’s angry.”

“Thank you, but I know how to deal with her. I’ve been doing it for the last sixteen years of my goddamn life.” I sigh and gesture down the hall. “You can take the rest of the night off. I’ll be with her.”

Kara casts a glance at the door. “It’s your funeral, Boss.”

I chuckle. “I appreciate the concern, but I can handle Ellie. Take the rest of the night off.”

Her teeth sink into her lower lip, her gaze wavering.

I don’t know what it is she thinks I’m going to do to Ellie without her around, but she shouldn’t be worried.

Ellie—for as long as I need her—is safe enough around me.

After another moment of hesitation, Kara dips her head and walks down the hall.

I take a couple seconds to press my ear to the door and listen, but it’s made of heavy wood, and I can’t hear anything from the other side.

It’s so quiet I would almost think that Ellie threw herself out of a window, but I know Kara would have prevented that possibility.

Which means that she’s fuming and when I walk through that door, I doubt I’m going to hear the end of it.

My hand closes around the glass knob, twisting it.

The moment I enter, a pillow comes flying at my head.

I swat it out of the air with ease, one eyebrow rising at the sight of Ellie sitting in a massive armchair near the bookshelves. “Well, now you and I have two problems, Ellie.”

She juts her chin out, defiance shining in those pretty eyes of hers. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I’m talking about the fact that security had to drag you back here. From what I saw on the cameras on my way over, you made poor Kara sprint from the house down the dock. You want to tell me exactly what you were planning when you got to that dock?”

“To get away from here.”

“That much is obvious.” I shut the door, twisting the lock into place. “You’re going to have to be punished for this. There’s no escaping me, Ellie, and you should know that by now.”

She stands, arm crossing. “You’re not doing anything to me. I’ve already been dragged back and locked in a room for the last two hours.”

I cross the room, stopping inches from her. “When are you going to learn that you don’t get to set the rules here?”

“When are you going to learn that I’m not going to listen to your rules?” She brushes by me, the hem of her skirt rising higher as she perches on the edge of the bed.

“You keep breaking my rules and I swear, Ellie, I will put you over my lap and spank your tight ass until my handprint is permanently burned there.”

Her thighs press together, lust flooding her eyes. “You wouldn’t dare.”

I follow her to the bed, taking her chin in my hand as my cock strains against my pants. “You want to fucking test me, Ellie?”

“And what if I do?” She smirks, her tongue darting out to wet her bottom lip as her gaze drops to the front of my pants. “You seem to like the idea.”

“You may be the biggest pain in the ass I’ve ever met, but I haven’t slept with anyone else in two months, Ellie. First, your ass is going to glow, and then I’m going to fuck you until the only name you know is mine.”

Her breath hitches as I lunge for her, scooping her up and draping her over my lap.

When I flip her skirt up, she isn’t wearing any panties. I bite back a groan, but I know she can feel the way my hardened cock is pressing into her chest.

One of these days, I’m going to fuck her breasts, but tonight is all about fucking her out of my system.

The sooner I get rid of the attraction to her, the better.

Her pussy is dripping with her arousal as I bring my hand down on her ass, the smack cracking through the room.

Ellie’s fingers dig into my thigh where she holds on, her thighs pressing hard together.

I smack her again, harder this time, wanting to hear her cry out.

I’m rewarded with her cry on the third smack, my handprint glowing on the creamy skin of her ass while her thighs glisten with arousal.

As I pull her up, she looks at me, her lips parting. She straddles my lap without a second thought, her fingers digging into my shoulders as she grinds her soaked pussy against my cock.

My fingers dig into her hips, hauling her harder against me. “This is what you wanted, isn’t it? You wanted to act like a little slut and get my handprint on your ass before I fucked you senseless.”

“This means nothing.”

She gasps as I reach between us, undoing my pants enough to pull out my cock.

It slides through her slick folds, the tip dipping into her pussy before I pull back.

Ellie leans back enough to pull her shirt over her head, tossing it to the side and revealing her stiff nipples.

I suck one of the sensitive buds into my mouth, rolling my tongue over the skin until she’s writhing against me.

With one quick movement, I flip her onto the bed, kneeling between her legs as I rip her skirt down her body. “You’re going to take my cock like the good little slut you are. You’re going to submit to me instead of fighting me every fucking step of the way.”

Ellie sits up, fisting the hem of my shirt and pulling it over my head. “Do whatever the hell you want; I just need to fuck you out of my system.”

At least we’re on the same page about that.

I shove her back down onto the mattress, kicking off the rest of my clothing.

My cock slides against her pussy again before I inch into her. Her pussy milks my cock with every inch she takes.

“Fuck, Ellie. Does your fucking pink dick feel like this?” I nip at her neck, sucking hard until there’s a dark mark there to remind her who she belongs to every time she looks in the mirror.

Her nails rake down my back so hard I’m sure there are going to be marks there, leaving a claim of her own behind.

It only makes me harder.

I lose all control as she moans, her long legs hooking over my hips.

Her back arches off the bed as she meets me thrust for thrust. Fingers roam my body, teeth grazing against flesh.

Rolling my hips, I drive deeper into her. She rocks up into me, her pussy squeezing tighter around me.

I rip her hands from my body, holding them above her head. “Come for me, Ellie. Come all over my cock like you’ve been dying to do for the last two weeks.”

“More,” she mumbles against my skin as she arches off the bed. She sucks on my pulse and my hips piston faster.

She squeezes around me, only becoming wetter as I drive harder and faster into her. Her body moves with mine as she comes, her pussy pulsing around me.

I keep thrusting, moving faster as my cock stiffens. My balls pull tight before I bury myself to the hilt in her.

Groaning, my head drops to her shoulder as I come, filling her as my thrusts slow.

As I pull out and fall to the bed beside her, I know that she’s still in my system, buried so deep that I’m not sure I’m going to be able to get her out.

Ellie rolls to the side, her back to me. It’s a sharp reminder that this is nothing more than two people relieving their tension together. Stress relief, in the best form.

I wait until her soft snores fill the room before sliding out of the bed and heading for the door.

It’s best to distance myself from her now, while there are still boundaries between us, and an attraction that we’re both still fighting.

She doesn’t want to let me take control and I’ll be damned if fighting tooth and nail with her isn’t the most fun I’ve ever had.

The moment she gives in to me is the moment everything changes.

After that, it’s only a matter of time until Noah tries to kill her.