Chapter 10 - Beatrice #2
“I’m starving,” Anja said through a mouthful.
“You’re drunk!” Arko clicked his tongue.
“And who made you the moral police?” Alena put him right in place, and I laughed at how sheepish he looked.
“Oh my god.” I took a bite of the quiche and moaned, closing my eyes. When I opened them, I saw Arko watching my mouth and felt a heat sliver down my spine.
His eyes snapped to mine and away, and I knew he had been thinking of earlier today, like I had been too every time our eyes met since.
“It’s good, right? It’s that new café, Pastiche. Have you been?” Alena asked.
I shook my head and took another mouthful. “I haven’t been out in a while,” I said wistfully. “Not since…” My voice trailed off. “Since your brother kidnapped me,” I managed at last.
“Oh dear, that won’t do,” Anja frowned. “We have to get you out of here! How about we all go shopping this afternoon?”
“Shopping?” I quirked up at the idea. “Oh my god, I’d love that.”
“Let’s do it!” Alena squealed.
But just then—
“No!” Arko’s sharp voice slithered over me, dampening our collective spirits.
Alena and Anja exchanged quick looks while I turned to glare at him.
“What do you mean, no?” I asked, feeling my heart sink.
“We have something later,” he said, and the tone told me enough. We had no plans. He simply didn’t want to let me out of sight. I was furious, blood boiling over, but the last thing I wanted was to cause a scene.
“Oh well.” I turned to his sisters, putting on a nonchalant face. “Another day then.”
“Yes, another day,” Alena sighed, looking as disappointed as I felt.
***
The siblings left an hour or so later, and the minute we said our goodbyes and watched them pile into their cars to drive off, a stifling quiet fell over me. Until they had come and I’d been thrown into their company, I hadn’t realized just how much I had missed having people around.
The disappointment and anger I felt at Arko denying me that shopping trip with his sisters came spilling out as I whirled on him.
“So what plans do we have exactly?” My voice was ice-cold. “Why couldn’t I go shopping with your sisters?”
“There are no plans,” he said simply.
“You…You lied?” I couldn’t keep the anger out of my voice.
“Yes, I lied.” He turned to walk back indoors, and I followed at his heels, knowing I had had enough.
“How could you?” I slammed the main door shut behind us, and he turned to look at me. “I’m sick of being stuck indoors!”
“It’s not safe out there, and you know that, Beatrice,” Arko almost bellowed. “Look what happened that night we went out for one simple dinner. We could have been hurt or worse.”
“Well, it’s not my fault you planned it so wrong! That dinner was your idea, remember?” I matched his tone and volume, my voice echoing off the walls.
“Are you blaming me for what happened?” he roared back.
“I am! You could have chosen a different restaurant. I doubt anyone’s going to recognize me in a boutique store somewhere! It’s going to be just women at the stores we go to!”
“I’m not risking it,” he hissed. “Your safety is paramount.”
“My safety? Are you delusional? It’s not about my safety. All you want is to keep me in your grasp so your precious plans don’t go to waste,” I screamed.
I saw his face fall flat, wondered if I’d got something wrong, but I knew I couldn’t have. I knew I was right. My safety couldn’t really be what he was so worried about.
“My plans, your safety. None of it matters. You’re my prisoner, remember? If I say you can’t go, you can’t go,” he said in a deathly even tone that crept like ice around the edges of my heart. “I’m not arguing about this anymore.”
And just like that, he thought nothing of it to put me back in place.
This whole morning, I had tried so hard to let his siblings think the best of him, despite what he had done to me, and all of it now felt like it had been for nothing.
All the warmth, all the connection I thought we’d shared this morning and during breakfast evaporates in an instant.
“Right,” I said, giving him a sad, cold smile. “How silly of me to forget my position.”
“Look, Beatrice,” he sighed, running a hand through his hair as he took one step forward.
“Please don’t.” I extended a hand, halting him.
What was I thinking? That a few kisses and a family breakfast meant something had changed?
How fucking stupid of me. Yes, this morning in bed had felt different, special.
Yes, I’d never been in bed with a man before, touched by one in the way he touched me.
Yes, I’d kissed a few boys back in the day, but none lit me up like Arko had this morning.
But why was I so damn stupid to think any of it meant something to him? For him, I was probably just another woman, and today was just another chance to play frisky. The disappointment crashed over me then.
“I want to go to my room now, if that’s allowed?” I asked, keeping my tone cool.
“Fine,” he said, matching my tone for tone.
He didn’t even try to stop me as I walked away. I didn’t look back. If he wants to remind me that I’m his prisoner, then I’m not going to let him have the power of thinking that the way he kissed me left my head spinning wild.
Let him think it meant nothing to me, too.