Chapter 33
Chapter Thirty-Three
O liver
He flipped her onto her back, moving her up on the bed at the same time until the pillows were beneath her head. With the movement, her arms automatically wrapped around his neck, holding onto him as he settled back between her thighs. His body was now as bare as hers and while her brow furrowed with puzzlement, she did not resist him. Then her gaze drifted to the fresh tattoo inked over his heart, and her beautiful gray eyes widened. Her arms dropped from his neck, crossing instead over her bare breasts.
“Oliver… what have you done?”
“I placed you where you belong.”
Her chin trembled; her plump pink lips moistened by the tip of her tongue nervously swiping them. “That doesn’t make sense.”
“It makes perfect sense. You’ve been there since the moment I laid eyes on you. Somehow, you wiggled your way inside this darkness; I don’t want to lose that light.” His jaw clenched with the confession. He hadn’t meant to reveal that; it gave away too much of his power and exposed him to her hatred. To disdain. After all, who could truly love the villain in the fairy tale? When Londyn’s eyes softened and glistened with unshed tears, Oliver shuddered with the enormity of what he’d said aloud. “I want you… I want you to look at me like you did in the limo when you climbed into my lap and took what you wanted. I want you to look at me as if you love me.”
Londyn let out a little sob. “I don’t know anything about you, Oliver, and you know nothing about me. I don’t know what your favorite food is. What your favorite color is. Your favorite song or book. We don’t?—”
“Gray,” Oliver interrupted, tracing her cheekbone with his thumb and staring into her eyes. “That’s my favorite color. Dove gray, to be precise. Those other things will come in time. Londyn, my sweet, little dove, don’t you know what has happened? I am fucking consumed by you. You occupy my every thought, my dreams. Even my fucking nightmares. Since the night I first you, you’ve possessed me.”
“Oliver…”
“I won’t apologize for buying you in that auction. I won’t apologize for the things I’ve done. I can only swear that, even when I hurt you, pleasure will always accompany the pain. If you ask me for something, I will burn this damn world to get it for you. If you ask me to bleed, I will give you every drop of blood that flows through my veins. And if you want it, I’ll carve out this black heart of mine, place it on a silver platter, and bow down before you. But I will never let you go, Londyn. Do you understand? Never. What I feel for you is complete madness, but it’s our madness, Londyn. Mine and yours. That will never change, and I hope that one day you will feel the same.”
Tears tracked down Londyn’s cheeks. She said nothing, processing his abrupt confession as the silence hung between them in a heavy curtain of mistrust and shame. Then, hesitantly, as if approaching a wild animal, Londyn’s arms lifted again until they looped around his neck.
“I-I feel that way now,” she softly admitted. “I don’t understand why, but I do.” Then she pulled on his neck, drawing him down until their mouths were mere inches from touching. “I hate this power you have over me, the way you make me want these wicked, dark things, but I want you .” She lifted her head until the distance was erased, and her lips pressed his with a sweetness that made Oliver’s head reel. “Make me yours. Take whatever you want from me. I won’t stop you because I can’t stop myself.”
“I don’t want to hurt you, Londyn. I’ve been so fucking rough with you…”
“I want you. I want the pain and the bliss that always comes with it,” she breathed against his mouth, wrapping her legs around his waist and lifting her hips to meet his. “Please, Oliver.”
“You don’t have to beg me, dove.” He moved until his cock nudged the entrance of her body. A moan slipped from her when she kissed him again, and slowly, with excruciating care, Oliver eased into her. The fullness of his possession, the way her insides accepted and clamped down on him, made him tremble. “Fuck, you feel amazing.”
With shallow thrusts, he quickly coaxed her body back into a fevered state, one hand coming up so he could hook a finger into the ring of her diamond collar. He held her hostage in that manner, kissing her with growing intensity as his hips moved with increasing force. Londyn whimpered at his actions, her fingers plunging into his thick, dark hair as their tongues tangled and fused together.
Oliver plunged in and out of her as she tightened her legs around his waist and sobbed with pleasure.
“Come for me, wife. But don’t you dare look away or close your eyes when you do. I want to see your soul as I claim you.”
With the jet on standby at Walsh Grove’s only private airfield, Oliver led Londyn to the car he had arranged. He decided against using a limo, rationalizing it would draw too much attention in the small town. Only the security crew knew they would arrive at the nursing care facility soon, and he intended on keeping their visit as low-key as possible.
Once Londyn was settled into the passenger seat of the Bentley GT Coupe, Oliver revved the engine, and they turned onto the main highway. They drove several miles in silence before Londyn spoke.
“I hope she recognizes my voice,” she said softly, smoothing her hands down the front of the jeans he had packed for her. Every now and then, the streetlights would illuminate the car’s interior and reflect off the diamond on her finger. It flashed like blue fire, and Oliver couldn’t stop staring at it. It was definitely caveman of him, but seeing the small visual reminder of his commitment made his blood thump harder and faster in his veins. Fucking Londyn while she wore nothing but his ring, his collar, and his motto was more addictive than any drug. He couldn’t wait until they were back on the jet and he could do it all over again.
“I’m sure she will, dove.”
She smiled shyly, blushing when Oliver took her hand in his. “Thank you for this, Oliver. It means everything. I’ve been so worried.”
“I’d like to move her to New York, closer to our estate. You can see her more often if she’s closer. With the right kind of therapy and the care of a doctor specializing in this sort of thing, she has a better chance of recovering.”
“Move her?” Londyn looked alarmed by that. “Do you think it’s possible?”
“Londyn, I can do anything you want.” He squeezed her hand, convincing her that he spoke the truth. “She’ll be safer in New York. Safer than here anyway, even with my men watching over her.”
“Sheriff Franklin will still try to hurt her, although he hasn’t done so yet. I know the second she’s better, he won’t let her live long enough to say what he did to her.” Her knees bounced with nerves when she mentioned the corrupt sheriff.
“I can solve that problem with relative ease.”
“I know,” Londyn whispered. “And while I know that would be best, I don’t know if I can actually....”
“You don’t have to do anything, wife. Your husband will handle it.” And he would, too. Knowing what he knew about the sheriff of the small town Londyn had grown up in, there was no way the man would be breathing for long. As soon as Franklin was tracked down, Oliver planned on putting a bullet between his eyes.
Londyn shook her head. “It’s so strange hearing you call me that. I don’t know if I’ll get used to it.”
Oliver turned the car into the nursing facility’s parking lot, pulling into a space near the front door. “You’ll be hearing it for a long time.” Throwing the car into park, he turned toward Londyn, cupping her face with his large hand. “Once we’re done here, we’ll return to the jet and continue to New York. But before we go inside, I need to tell you something, and I don’t want you to be frightened.”
Londyn regarded him, her eyes wide and solemn. “What is it?”
“The sheriff is currently missing,” Oliver hesitated and then explained further. “My men have investigated, and we think he is possibly headed for Colorado. There has been some type of communication with Diamond Lake Ranch. My concern is that he is partly to blame for the ranch wanting you back. There must be some connection there, but it’s one I haven’t uncovered yet.”
A deep shuddering breath escaped Londyn. “My sister… she’s in more danger than you led me to believe. If you have no idea where Adam Franklin is, he could still hurt her. You don’t know what he’s capable of.”
“My men are watching her carefully, Londyn. No one can get to her. Or you.”
“You can’t be sure, though. I mean, if he was able to disappear, he could easily slip past your men. I want to take her with us when we leave.”
“That’s not possible.” He stroked her jaw with his thumb, attempting to calm her. Seeing how frightened she was only reinforced his plan to eliminate the sheriff. “Your sister’s condition is too delicate, and the jet is not equipped for the type of care she needs. I can arrange it so she is flown out tomorrow once I have a suitable facility lined up. It only takes a couple of phone calls to make that happen.”
Londyn’s chin tilted in that stubborn gesture Oliver recognized. “Then I want to stay with her until that is arranged.”
“That’s not going to happen. There is no scenario where I let you stray far from my side.”
She pulled away from him, frustration evident in the narrowing of her eyes. “You might as well clip your leash to this collar around my neck. Am I your wife? Or your prized pet?”
Oliver’s lip twitched with a smile. “Both. And I’m not fucking around when I say you aren’t leaving my side until this business with the sheriff and Diamond Lake Ranch is over. They may not be connected at all, but my gut tells me they are. The Andrey brothers want you back to resell you. To conduct another hunt. And there’s someone or something driving that; otherwise, they would have already moved past the auction and onto to the next. You came here with me, and you will leave here with me. Now,” he tilted her chin with the end of his forefinger, “put a smile on your pretty face and go see your sister. You have an hour before we must get back to the airfield.”
Londyn’s mouth opened, an argument against his statement clearly formed, but a second later, her lips thinned into a line of irritation. She nodded, remaining silent as Oliver exited the car and rounded it to open her door and help her out. Catching her elbow before she could move past him, he peered into her face.
“You think I’m simply being cruel, but I am doing this for your safety, dove. Can you understand that?”
“Yes,” she replied, her body rigid against his. Oliver wished they were back on the jet, back in that magical moment when she had softened for him, her eyes wide and her body bending in willing submission. With an inaudible sigh, he released her arm and let her brush past him. Following her as she entered the facility, Oliver bent his head in subtle acknowledgment to one of the men hired to secure Paris’s safety. He leaned against the wall where a locked door led back to the residents of the facility. Only admittance by someone at the front desk would allow a person to move past the facility’s built-in security.
Oliver spoke softly to the receptionist, signing the log on Londyn’s behalf with her first initial and his last name. A wild excitement zinged along his veins seeing just that tiny example of their connection in black ink. Londyn Juliette Skye Winter. It had a certain poetic sound to it.
A buzzer alerted them to the door unlocking, and Oliver ushered Londyn through it, giving Cooper, the stoic ex-military guard on his payroll, a nod as they passed.
The second man working for Oliver sat in a chair outside of Paris’s room. Londyn continued into the room while Oliver shook the man’s hand when he stood.
“Good to see you, Lawson.”
“Winter,” Lawson acknowledged. “How goes it?”
“As well as can be expected. Has her doctor been in yet?” Oliver asked as Londyn pushed the door until it was almost shut. He heard her begin crying as she rushed to her sister’s bedside, the soft murmur of her voice soothing as she spoke to Paris.
“Due to arrive in about ten minutes. I understand congratulations are in order.”
Word was certainly traveling quickly. Oliver realized his next phone call should be to his own brother. He needed Kingston to know what had taken place and why.
“Thank you. Just to give you a heads-up, I’m having her flown to a facility in New York. Ideally, it will happen tomorrow or the day after if necessary. Are you and Cooper available to travel with her? Or should I make other arrangements for security?”
“We’re yours until you say otherwise,” Lawson assured him. “Still no word from Bradford and Tyler regarding the sheriff’s whereabouts?”
Oliver shook his head. “None. But I expect an update shortly. They should be in Colorado by now.”
Lawson nodded, then jerked his chin toward the half-shut door. “Let me know if you or Mrs. Winter need anything.”
After he entered the room, Oliver quietly pushed the door shut behind him. He watched from a distance as Londyn bent over the girl in the bed, stroking her hair and tucking the covers around her shoulders. She spoke quietly to her sister, and seeing them together, Oliver realized how similar they were in appearance. Both girls possessed dark hair, although Paris’s was cut much shorter and barely brushed the tops of her shoulders. She lay motionless, her face blank and eyes dull, without even a spark of life in their pretty hazel depths.
Oliver’s jaw clenched. He’d seen death too many times not to notice it in this girl’s features. Her skin was pale, her body thin. Fuck, the girl was slowly wasting away, and there was probably nothing that could be done for her.
Londyn glanced up as he approached the bed, tears tracking down her cheeks in the soft glow of a bedside lamp. The room was prettily decorated, its appearance more like a bedroom than a hospital room, although all the necessary equipment for someone in Paris’s condition was in place.
“They put a feeding tube in her,” Londyn cried, her brow creased in confusion. “A feeding tube. Why would they do that? She was eating on her own the last time I saw her. Slowly, but still, she was doing it. I don’t understand why she looks worse than before. I don’t understand…”
Oliver reached for her hand, pulling her into his hard body. “I’m sorry, dove. I should have warned you. She stopped eating at the other facility, and the doctors here decided to keep the tube in place. They tell me she’s stable for the moment, but the tube is not something that can be removed. I approved their recommendation to keep her on it.”
Londyn clung to him, sobbing against his shirt. “You didn’t tell me. How could you not tell me?”
Oliver’s heart throbbed like it was being cut from his chest as her pain leached into him. “I didn’t want to worry you.” He almost lifted a hand to rub the pain away before stopping himself.
Her breath came in a shuddering gasp. “I had a right to know, Oliver.”
“That’s true.” He embraced her tighter. “I’m sorry. Sorry, I didn’t tell you.”
They were words he never thought he’d utter aloud, much less to another person. Londyn’s slender body stiffened as he murmured them against the crown of her head.
“Is she… is she dying?”
Oliver couldn’t bring himself to tell her the truth, not when it felt like her despair was ripping his insides to bloody, painful shreds. “The doctors here are experts in this field and doing everything possible, dove. When she is transferred to New York, I will make sure the same occurs there as well. She will have the finest care, with every specialist I can find in charge of her.” Squeezing her harder, Oliver hoped she would not ask any more questions. He didn’t want to lie to her, not when he’d sworn he never would. “Go sit with her, Londyn. Hold her hand. Tell her everything and anything you want to. She’ll know you are here with her; I’m sure of it.”
He knew that from personal experience. Over the years, the number of men close to death at his hands always knew when someone was close by. And it didn’t matter if it was a loved one or someone they feared and hated. They always knew.
Londyn sniffled, nodding in agreement and sinking into the chair beside Paris’s bed. She took her sister’s hand and began talking in a low voice that Oliver would have had to strain to hear. Whatever she was saying was something he had no business listening to.
He retreated from the room, leaving Londyn there. Pacing down the hallway, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and made two phone calls: one to a private hospital transport company and one to Neil, a physician hired by his father long ago to attend to the family’s maladies and a trusted friend of both his and Kingston’s. Neil would know exactly what to do and who to hire for Paris’s extended care in New York.
Once that was done, he dialed Kingston’s number, unable to contain his own rueful chuckle when his brother answered. Kingston’s tone was hesitant, expecting bad news because, after all, Oliver never called him up voluntarily or just to chat.
“O? What is it? What’s wrong?”
“Everything is fine at the moment, King—no need to call on the troops just yet. I just wanted you to know I took your advice, brother. I married her, and we’re coming home. I’ll explain more when I see you.”