Chapter 27
Groaning aloud as I awakened, it wasn’t from the dull pain afflicting my body, but from the fact that my men had brought me back home despite my strict orders. Assholes! Hopefully, Aurora hadn’t seen me like this. Hell, of course she would’ve.
Wanting to get to my room just in case I was wrong, I slowly scrambled upright, unable to hide my grimace as I swung my heavy legs over the edge of the couch. Neither man was in this room, but I could hear their muffled voices coming from a nearby one, so I knew they were close by.
Once back on my feet, I felt remarkably better.
Pain was something I’d grown accustomed to my entire life.
As a young child, I’d been forced to undergo all types of torture.
My great-grandfather told me that it was to make me strong.
I needed to prove I could withstand anything thrown at me, especially by my enemies.
He couldn’t let me have my name and join the empire without proving I wouldn’t fold and give up the family and its secrets at the first sign of discomfort.
I’d also been made to prove that I could carry out any order given to me, and thus far, neither he, Cillian, nor Kingston could’ve ever said otherwise.
My own father had betrayed the family, and his attempted rape of Ekaterina hadn’t even been his worst deed, according to the man who’d found and taken care of me until his death.
Princeton Brannington’s biggest sin hadn’t been the assault itself, but leaving himself open to be taken out by a rival family.
The Russian Bratva. One of their princesses had taken out my father before I could ever meet him. Now, another Russian would make my girl his next princess, and she’d also be taken from me.
My girl.
I shook my head at that thought.
She isn’t mine. She never has been.
It doesn’t stop me from wishing otherwise.
Conor came into the room and narrowed his eyes at my expression. “Are you okay, Zarren?”
He must’ve seen my expression because he quickly closed his mouth. Forcing my thoughts about Aurora down, I only winced once or twice as I closed the distance between us. When within arm’s reach of him, I grabbed his collar and tugged him close.
“What the fuck am I doing here? I told you not to bring me back yet.”
“Yes, I know. You were unconscious, so we thought—”
“Who in the fuck gives the orders around here?”
“You, but—”
“Please tell me that Aurora hasn’t seen me.”
He gulped harshly, and I watched his Adam’s apple bob in his throat. “She treated your cuts.”
“For fuck’s sake,” I said as I released him. Scrubbing a hand down my face, I looked down at my chest, and although the cut looked bad, the heavy bruising was worse.
“We tried to make her go upstairs, but she insisted.”
“I’m sure she did.” And I hadn’t even meant that sarcastically.
Since arriving here, she’d been stubborn, and even more so than I had ever thought she’d be.
I couldn’t blame her, though. Not only had she been ripped away from her boring life, but she’d been confronted with the betrayal of her best friend and boyfriend, who should’ve been the closest ones to her.
She lost those relationships... her career. .. her freedom...
But she also lost her inhibitions and became the woman she was meant to be.
Where others might think her meek, I thought her assertive...
Where others might think her weak, I knew her to be strong...
Where another might think she was soon to be his, I knew she was only mine.
I covered my face with both hands. I needed to stop thinking like this. I’d intended to stay away until I knew the transaction was going down immediately. Conor and Liam had betrayed me, and that defiance would be punished, but not right now.
“You should’ve left me in a fucking ditch. Anywhere but here.”
“It was my decision,” I heard Liam say as he came up behind Conor.
The two men were cousins, and Liam was the oldest and, more often than not, would try his best to protect Conor from my wrath.
“I did try to get her to go upstairs. She’s so fucking stubborn.
I don’t think she’s ever heard the expression about ‘a hard head making a soft ass’ because she doesn’t care. ”
I smirked. No, Aurora gave no fucks once she put her mind to something. I’d been proud to watch her blossom into a stronger woman, at least stronger than she’d been the night I’d made that wager with Drake.
And she’d need to remain strong, too. There was no telling how she would be treated by Mikhail Bocharov. I knew of the man and the lengths he would go to when it came to his own family honor and duty, but I had no idea how he would treat Aurora.
Deep inside, she was still fragile, and I’d try to remember to be ashamed over trying to break her at some later time. Right now, all the blood I had left that I hadn’t lost at the fight clubs over the last two nights rushed straight to my groin.
I was the worst of the worst for wanting to fuck her.
It’d been inevitable, which was why I had asked Conor and Liam to keep me away from here.
I didn’t trust myself around her. After I fucked her the last time, it’d been the first time since I had been ripped from my mother’s arms that I’d felt helpless.
Aurora had taken my control and burned it to fucking ash.
She might as well have taken a shard of that broken glass and plunged it straight into me.
“Where is she now?”
Conor quickly answered. “She went upstairs after making sure you were warm.”
“Warm?” I asked, and almost laughed. If my Bellezza only knew how she always set my body on damn fire, she might’ve been better off getting an ice pack instead of wrapping me in a blanket in front of the fireplace.
“She’s a very caring one,” Liam offered up, causing me to arch a brow.
“Dare I say that almost sounded like a compliment?” I teased him, especially knowing he’d never been in her corner. He’d even suggested once or twice that I bring her to the underground prison in a safe house on the outskirts of the city to await her fate.
“She has her moments,” he said before grunting. “She did tend to you quite well, and even left some aspirin and a drink for you right over there.”
I turned in the direction he was pointing and spied the bottle. I moved over to it, popped the pills into my mouth, then chased it down with the water. I did have to admit it helped the parched state of my throat. I quickly finished the rest of the bottle, then threw it away and headed upstairs.
As soon as I got to the top of the staircase, a haunting voice sounded from her room. Any hopes I had of showering and leaving without being noticed died upon learning that she was still awake.
I had no idea what time of night it was, only that it was pitch black outside the window. I should’ve just reversed course and left for anywhere but here, but as I drew closer to her room, it almost sounded like...
No, she couldn’t be...
Could she?
She was singing about diamonds, summer nights, and city lights.
Her voice was so hypnotic, and like a moth to her flame, I moved closer, knowing it would burn.
Her door was slightly ajar, so I slipped inside then stayed out of the way as she stood in front of the mirror brushing her hair in long, rhythmic strokes.
Aurora continued on from memory, singing about channeling angels, rock and roll, and electric souls.
She had no idea I was standing just outside her bathroom door, at least until a low growl escaped the moment her voice dropped an entire octave for what I had assumed was the bridge.
Her voice now sounded even smokier as she mentioned bringing a man to Heaven.
Little do you know, but you make me believe there’s actually one, Bellezza.
She gasped upon hearing me, and she stopped singing mid-word. “What are you doing acting like a fucking creeper?”
I let out a low chuckle. “I mistook you for an angel with that voice, but it’s good to know you still have that same venomous tongue.”
She glared. “What do you want, Zarren?”
You... It seemed simple, but I knew it was impossible.
When she stared up at me expectantly, I cleared my throat. “I wanted to thank you for taking care of me earlier tonight.”
“You live a violent life, which I care nothing about,” she said. “And you don’t have to stay away from here on my account. This is your home after all, and I’m just a prisoner.”
“You’re more than that...” I began until she shrugged. “The song. What was it?”
“You really want to know what I was singing?” Her incredulous tone matched her face.
“Well?” I asked as I moved closer to her, now caging her between me and the counter. “What was it?”
“Lana Del Rey,” she finally said.
“A favorite song of yours?”
Aurora went to push at my chest, but when her eyes dropped down, she quickly pulled them back. “None of this matters.”
“It matters to me.”
“Why? It was just a fucking song. Be glad I don’t have my Spotify playlist, or else you would’ve been subjected to the top one hundred pop songs during my time here.”
“Is it a favorite song of yours?” I asked her once more. This time I stroked the side of her face, savoring her softness. Knowing this could be the last time I feel her beneath my palm made my soul ache as she had so eloquently sung minutes ago.
“It doesn’t mat—”
“It matters to me. Just answer the damn question.”
“I was supposed to go to her concert tonight with Brae. We’ve had tickets for months now. Unless you plan to let me leave to see it, I’d rather forget about it.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, apologizing for the very first time, and actually meaning it.
“If you were, you’d let me go. You’re going to do it soon enough anyway. There’s no time like the present to start.”
Leaning in, I pressed my forehead to hers.
Her warm breath tickled my chin, and I wanted nothing more than to lift her up onto this counter and lose myself in her.
But, she was right. There was no need to get in any deeper than either of us already had.
It would only make letting her go even harder than it already was going to be.
I glanced into the mirror at her back, which was visible due to the backless nightgown she’d packed when thinking she was going on a romantic rendezvous with another man. Something akin to jealousy stirred inside of me, and needing to keep my control in check, I let out a sharp exhale.
“You’re right. I’m sorry to have bothered you. Good night, Aurora.”
With that, I turned and left the room. Halfway down the staircase, my cell phone rang and I snatched it out of my pocket. Shaking my head in irritation now, I waited until I cleared the last step, then motioned at Conor and Liam to follow me into my rec room.