Chapter 69
CHAPTER 69
MARTIN
T his is the treatment I get whenever I defy him, but the twisted part is he knew I would. He already knew I would take any punishment to protect her. It doesn’t matter what kind of issues I have with her past actions. There is only one face painted across the beating muscle in my chest and it is the face of a green eyed goddess.
Two members of my father’s private security team pins my arms in place, crossing my lower back.
“When are you going to learn to behave, Martin?” my father asks as he lights one of his cigars. My bare chest is already covered in dark purple bruises from the repeated punches, but I know that’s not the worst of my torment.
He stands there, all posh and put together, as he puffs on that damn cigar. He pushes off the edge of his desk and walks over as I scowl at him. Sweat pours down my face, but I’m not scared.
“Are you going to apologize for your insolence, son?” he presses, but my eyes just narrow further. “You know, if you don’t start acting like a member of this family, I might have to redirect your punishments to that young woman you seem so infatuated with. Emotional attachments are a pesky thing. They only bring trouble and give people a way of punishing you without laying a finger on you.”
I yank at my arms, but the guards hold them tighter, twisting my wrists at a painful angle.
My father is unfazed. “So emotional. Tsk.” He slowly shakes his head in disappointment. “Such a shame. You’re just going to make her punishment that much worse. Is that what you want?”
He’s going to keep doing this until I concede. He’ll continue to threaten Beth over and over and each time it will get progressively worse.
I won’t let him touch her. He knows that. We wouldn’t be here right now if he didn’t. He’s punishing me because he knows it will upset her to know why and because I protected her from his wrath. He doesn’t like being bested by anyone, definitely not by someone he considers to be less than himself.
“Don’t punish her,” I grit through my teeth from the pain.
My father throws his head back and laughs. “You think you’re in a place to make demands?”
I meet his eyes with shame deep inside me, a reaction he wants. “I’ll apologize and I’ll take her punishment. However, if you touch her, I can’t guarantee I won’t kill you afterwards. You should’ve seen what I did to O’Reilly when I found out what he did to her. It took him a few weeks to start looking normal again.” Then, I narrow my eyes at him. “And I actually liked him before.”
For a fraction of a second, he pales, but the expression is gone almost as soon as it came. It was a threat and he knows it, but it was veiled to look like a warning.
My father doesn’t like being embarrassed. He’ll let someone verbally degrade him for hours as long as it’s just the two of them, but if there is another person in the equation, he goes scorched earth.
He exchanges a glance with one of the guards before he gives a curt nod.
“I think my son can handle another round. Show him how painful those pesky emotions can get. Don’t be afraid to mess up his pretty face.”