Page 36 of Love to Defy You (The Dark Love #2)

He takes a sip of champagne and studies me for a long pause. When he doesn’t say anything, I scoff and turn away from him, watching the buildings move past the window as the car pulls into traffic.

We don’t talk for the rest of the ride. When we reach the airport, the car pulls directly onto the tarmac and drops us in front of a small jet. The royal crest of Lichtenstein is painted on the tail, and the sun is setting behind it, haloing the glossy, black body of the plane in orange sunlight.

Okay, I’ll admit it’s impressive.

Enzo slides out first, then holds the door open for me.

Instead, I open the door on my side and climb out, but my sneakers don’t hit asphalt.

There’s a black carpet rolled out that leads to the stairs of the plane, and the golden crest of the Liechtenstein royal family is embroidered into the rug beneath my feet.

As I climb the stairs, I feel Enzo’s eyes on my ass, and I curse myself when heat floods my center. God, I’m such an attention whore.

But just because I like Enzo’s adoration doesn’t mean I want to act on it. Although, I wouldn’t mind him sitting in the corner of my bedroom watching me and Alek go at it.

When we reach the top of the stairs, I sit in one of the beige leather seats.

“Are you all right?” Enzo takes the seat across the aisle from me, and I’m thankful for the distance. “You’re flushed.”

“Just winded from the stairs.” I grimace at him before averting my gaze.

Enzo snorts. “Really? From what I’ve seen, I’d say your stamina is superb.”

I should tell him off for talking that way to me, but instead, it just makes my arousal worse, and I swallow to assuage the dryness in my throat.

“What? No witty comeback?” Enzo spreads out and leans back, and my eyes are drawn to the seam of his pants below his zipper. He swivels his seat to face me, giving me an unobstructed view of the distinct bulge growing there.

I glance away, but it’s too late.

“You’re thinking about how many inches I have on Kurochkin, aren’t you?” Enzo’s dark eyes glint with wicked mischief.

“Oh, my God. Shut up.” I fold my arms and stare out the window at the tarmac.

A stewardess in a tight skirt emerges from a door at the back of the plane and makes her way down the aisle. “Can I offer you any champagne before takeoff?” I turn around to acknowledge her, but she’s staring at his crotch and fluffs her curly blonde bob. “Or anything else, Mr. Messina?”

Enzo addresses her when he speaks, but he pins his intense gaze on me. “Champagne will be fine. Thank you, Gretchen.”

She saunters off toward the back, and the extra sway she puts into her hips is way too obvious.

“Would you like her to watch while you ride my cock?” Enzo asks.

“Jesus Christ, will you ever give up?” I reach up to pull my hair into a ponytail. “And can we cool it off in here? It’s scorching.”

A molten look flashes across his face. “Funny, it’s set to twenty-one degrees Celsius, which I believe is sixty-nine degrees Fahrenheit—”

“Sixty-nine degrees? Really?” I roll my eyes. “You’re gross.”

He rises from his seat and takes a step toward me, placing his hand on the back of my chair.

His form towers over me, but the bulge in his pants is right at eye level.

“You say I’m gross, but your face is flushed.

” Enzo grabs my chin and forces me to tilt my face up.

“Your pupils are dilated.” His voice grows husky as he leans closer.

“Your perfect breasts are rising and falling with shallow breaths.”

I try to turn my face away, but his grip is too strong.

“No, you’re not repulsed by me, Willow Baker.” He brings his lips to my ear. “You’re aroused by me.”

I bring my hands to his hard chest and shove him back. He straightens up and laughs, then sits back down in his chair.

But Enzo’s right. The wet desire between my legs is pooling in an uncomfortable ache.

I clear my throat. “Do I like that you’re attracted to me? Yes, it’s flattering. But do I want you to fuck me? No.”

“You keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better.” He sets his elbow on the armrest and rests his head in his palm.

A dark smile curves across his mouth. “But you love it when I watch you get fucked, and it’s driving you crazy that I didn’t whip my cock out for you like everyone else during the Trial of Lust.”

I open my mouth.

“Don’t deny it,” he says. “How would you feel if it was me fucking that needy little cunt of yours while your precious Aleksandr watched?” His dark eyes drop to my throat when I swallow. “Yes, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

My blood is hot beneath my skin as anger courses through me.

“You’re a toy to me, Enzo. Nothing more.

Like you said, I’ve used you in my little games with Alek, but only because the sex is fucking incredible when Alek gets jealous.

” I narrow my gaze at him. “But make no mistake, I am loyal to Alek.”

His villainous grin melts into a frown. “Why are you loyal to a guy who isn’t loyal to you?”

“Alek’s never cheated on me.” I don’t break eye contact, and my voice is firm.

Enzo cocks an eyebrow. “Are you sure about that?”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

He glances at the floor, jaw clenched, and lets out a long exhale. A silent war seems to be raging inside of him, and indecision is etched into every hard line of his face.

“I’m sorry, but I refuse to keep his secrets any longer.

” Enzo reaches into his pocket and slides out his phone, then taps the screen a couple of times.

“I never intended to share this, but...” He offers the phone to me.

“But I can’t let you marry a guy who’s unfaithful to you. I care about you too much.”

I stare at the phone sitting in his palm. “What are you talking about?”

“Just look.”

A knot forms in the pit of my stomach as I accept the phone. Cold dread replaces my boiling rage, and when I look at the screen, my entire body turns frozen.

It’s Alek, in the suit he wore at the Feast of Apollo, but he’s in a room surrounded by other men and women in lingerie. And one of those women stands in front of Alek, wearing a seductive smile with her hand pressed to his abs, just above his belt.

And his hand is on her wrist... holding it there?

That’s what I’m looking at in the dark photo, but it’s not adding up. Alek sought me out to give him a lap dance afterward. He said he didn’t touch anyone that night, and I believed him.

“I... I don’t understand.”

“Mikhail hired her, so she spoke Russian. I couldn’t understand what they were saying, but I didn’t have to. The intention was clear.”

I shake my head. “This has to be a mistake.” When I glance up, Enzo’s giving me a look of pity that makes me want to shove some sense into him. “This isn’t what it looks like.”

“Willow.” He leans forward, placing his elbows on his knees, and takes my hand in his. “They didn’t stop there.”

I yank my hand away. “No.” I push the phone back into his lap. “I... I don’t believe you.”

The door opens at the back of the plane, and I startle. As the stewardess emerges, I swivel my seat to face the window, away from Enzo’s pitying gaze.

The stewardess sets a glass of champagne on my table before passing one to Enzo. I don’t look at them, but I can hear her whisper in a hungry purr, “Are you sure I can’t take care of that for you?”

“I’m sure,” Enzo snaps. “Now leave us alone.”

Gretchen lets out a huff before retreating to the back and shutting the door, and the cabin plunges into a silence louder than the engines of the plane revving up as we begin to taxi toward the runway.

“Willow, I’m so sorry,” Enzo says. “I didn’t want to hurt you like this. That’s why I kept it a secret for so long.”

“Stop talking.” I snatch my glass of champagne off the table and down it.

My mind comes up with all sorts of rationalizations to explain what’s going on in the photo, but doubt spoils every excuse like sour milk.

It’s hard to take a complete breath. The walls of the plane are closing in on me, and I glance around the cabin for the nearest bathroom to escape to. But when I try to stand up, I stumble.

Enzo grabs my waist to steady me. “Whoa, careful there.”

Adrenaline rushes through me, making me tremble as I grip his shoulder for support. Every time I take a breath, I can’t get any oxygen in my lungs, and I clutch my heaving chest as hot tears blur my vision.

“Willow?” Enzo gives my hips a little shake. “Are you okay?”

“I’m...” The ground starts to tilt beneath my feet.

“What? What’s wrong?”

“I’m having a panic attack.”

“Oh, shit.” Enzo pulls me down onto his lap and wraps his arms around me, holding me flush against his chest. Pressing his lips to my ear, he murmurs, “Breathe with me, Willow. In...” His chest inflates against my back. “And out...”

I choke on a sob. “I can’t!”

“Yes, you can.” He places his hand over my pounding heart, and the gesture is oddly soothing. “Now, breathe with me. In...”

Enzo cocoons me in his arms, keeping me from completely losing grip on reality, but I’m only tethered by a thread. The weight of impending doom starts to lift as I breathe with Enzo, even though each intake of air sends a violent shudder through my body.

“That’s it,” he whispers. “You’re doing great. Keep going. In...”

Tears pour from my eyes as my breathing evens out, and eventually, the tension gripping my muscles starts to release.

Enzo takes his hand from my heart and removes my ponytail tie. “I’ve got you.” My hair falls past my shoulders, and Enzo rakes his fingers along my scalp, easing the pounding in my temples. “I’m right here.”

As the panic ebbs, my limbs feel heavy. I tend to crash out after attacks, and I have a hard time keeping my eyelids open. While Enzo massages my head, my body relaxes more and more into his until I can’t fight off my weariness any longer.

“Willow, wake up. We’re here.”