Page 10 of Ours (The Possession Duology #2)

Winding through the defunct meat packing plant, Lexi plastered a look of faux confidence over her face as she stepped directly behind Kade.

Keeping her exhausted eyes locked onto the back of his head, she squared her shoulders and tried her best to ignore the agitated men flanking her sides.

He assured her that they were only protecting her, but she knew that wasn’t the case.

They were making sure she wouldn’t bolt at the smallest opportunity.

It rubbed her the wrong way that after all he had put her through, he still didn’t trust her.

Guess the feeling is mutual then, huh? Nikki snickered. Why are you still upset by that? In the grand scheme of things, his trust issues are kinda trivial, don’t you think? I’m so sick of hearing about it. Move the fuck on, already!

Reluctantly agreeing with her alter, she continued to follow him through the maze of darkened corridors.

She was about to meet the only person in the world that truly terrified her to the core, and didn’t have the luxury of worrying about her toxic relationship with her lunatic lover.

Her only priorities were to make sure that she, and her son, survived this meeting.

Stalking down the hallway, Kade scowled as the pungent smell of blood and decay filled his nostrils.

He hated everything about the dilapidated slaughterhouse and avoided it whenever possible.

It held too many ghosts, too many unpleasant memories that he would rather suppress.

This was where Bloodbayne took those that needed to be broken into submission.

It was foolish of him to think that Lexi would be treated with a little more care.

Rounding the crumbling corner, he slowed his steps as the office door came into view. Glancing over his shoulder, he honed his dark eyes on Lexi and gave a wordless warning. She needed to behave herself from this moment on. All hell would break loose if she decided to do something stupid.

Understanding his command, she nodded once and tried to convey through her face that he needn’t worry. Just as long as he kept his end of the deal, she would be as compliant as a newborn kitten.

‘Good girl,’ he mouthed before giving each of his men a fleeting glance. They all looked just as pissed off as he felt. He had to use all but brute force to get them away from Callie’s cunt. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one that needed more time in bed.

Pushing out a sigh, he turned his attention back to the metal door and mentally readied himself for what lay ahead.

Years of preparation had brought him to this moment.

He should be filled with excitement that his plans were finally coming into fruition, but he was filled with apprehension instead.

He didn’t understand where this hesitation was coming from.

Because you actually love her, Demetri whispered. She’s not a toy like the others. She means something to you...to us . Don’t fuck this up. I’ll kill you if you do.

Reaching for the doorknob, a deep frown etched into his otherwise handsome face. His alter had just hit the nail on the head. Lexi was the only thing he had ever truly loved and that was a giant liability. For once in his life, he prayed his Boss would keep his word.

Turning the metal knob, he paused as the door was roughly pulled from his hand.

Lifting his lips into a grin, he straightened his posture and offered a warm greeting to the commanding blonde filling the doorway.

He hadn’t realized how much he had missed her until that moment. “It’s good to see you again,” he said.

Eyeing him critically from head to toe, Valentina suppressed a smile from cracking through her icy exterior. While she was thrilled to see him walking and talking, this was far from a happy reunion. Pleasantries would have to wait.

“Where is she?” she asked calmly.

Turning his body, Kade gently took Lexi’s elbow and ushered her towards Valentina with a look of triumph. This was the only introduction he wasn’t nervous about. He knew his pseudo sister would adore her just as much as he did.

“Valentina, meet Lexi,” he said, fixating his steely gaze on Lexi’s flushed face. “Lexi, meet Valentina.”

Blinking at the tall woman before her, Lexi was momentarily caught off guard by how regal she seemed. There was a thick air of authority surrounding her that made her stomach fill with butterflies. Valentina was clearly someone who shouldn’t be trifled with.

“Hello,” she said, holding her hand out in a formal greeting.

Brushing her hand away, Valentina took a step forward and brazenly pressed her hands against Lexi’s rounded belly, squeezing her palms in an effort to feel the child she had spent months protecting. “What is it? Girl or boy?” she asked curtly.

Glancing back and forth between the woman and Kade, Lexi’s face twisted in offense over the blonde’s flippant attitude. She didn’t care for the way she was touching her stomach, nor her rude question. Who the fuck did she think she was?

“I don’t see why that’s any of your concer—”

“Boy,” Kade interrupted, wrapping his long arm possessively around Lexi’s shoulders. “It’s a boy.”

Visibly relaxing the tension in her body, Valentina nodded in approval before finally turning her full attention towards Lexi. “Good. That should make things easier.”

Narrowing her green eyes, Lexi tried to pull away from Valentina’s touch. “Make what easier? What are you talking about? Why does it matter that I’m having a boy?” she asked.

“We,” Kade interjected, tightening his hold on Lexi to stop her from squirming. “ We are having a boy. Now please calm down Sweetheart, it was just a small formality.”

Sighing in annoyance, Valentina removed her hands from Lexi’s stomach. Standing to full height, she openly stared at her. She hoped Kade would have been able to tame some of her fire, but clearly that was a pipe dream. They hadn’t even begun, and things were already off to a shaky start.

“Let's get her inside. Leave your men here. Mitaka will be out in a few minutes to take them to their briefing on Bangkok,” she said.

Glancing to each of his men, Kade made sure that they understood their orders. He was thankful that they were being dismissed from the meeting. His love didn’t need the added pressure of an audience watching her every move.

“Follow me and don’t worry, everything will be alright,” he offered gently, leading her through the rusted doorway.

...

Standing ramrod straight, Lexi stared down the scarred troll sitting behind the desk before her.

Keeping her face stoic and her body language frigid, she waited impatiently for Bloodbayne to speak.

She didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that she was quaking beneath her stony exterior, that her heart was beating so quickly that she was sure it was on the verge of exploding.

No, he didn’t need to know just how frightened she was.

“Alexandria,” Bloodbayne began, the space where his lips used to be pulling back into the best sneer he could muster.

“It’s so good to finally meet the woman who almost put my heir apparent into his grave.

Though I must admit, from what I see, I’m not entirely sure how you did it.

You’re nothing more than a gutter rat and yet, you’ve managed to do what I thought was impossible. ”

Swallowing hard, she felt Kade’s radiating tension as he stood behind her. He was feeling just as uneasy as she. It was a realization that left a bad taste in her mouth.

“Before we go further, my dear, I think you should know just how close you came to having a bullet put through your brain. Valentina was mere seconds away from pulling the trigger when she found out about your little gift,” Bloodbayne purred, pointing his knobbed index finger towards her stomach.

“Gift?” she asked, her arms instinctively wrapping around her bump protectively.

Rising from his seat, Bloodbayne casually strolled around his desk to stand in front of her.

Annoyance flashed over what was left of his gnarled features.

He knew she was smarter than she was trying to let on.

Eventually, she would learn that false ignorance grated him to no end; but he would humor her this time.

“Yes. You see, when you put my boy into that coma, you effectively ended my empire. The doctors didn’t think he would ever wake up. They warned me that if he did, he would be drooling vegetable for the rest of his life.”

Pausing for a long moment, he let his blue eyes drift to Kade. There was a flash of pain as he relived the moment, he was told what had happened to his most trusted confidant, the memory caused his voice to rise and curdle as he continued.

“Hundreds of years of power gone in a blink of an eye. Because of you! A worthless whore!”

Seething from Bloodbayne’s words, Lexi’s blood ran hot under her cheeks. What she wouldn’t give to have her knife with her at that moment. She wanted nothing more than to gut him like a fish.

Careful, Lexi , Nikki warned. This isn’t the time.

Sensing her rising anger, Kade gently placed his fingertips on her lower back to soothe her. For her sake, and his son’s, she needed to breathe and realize that she wasn’t alone. He would do his best to protect them both.