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“What do you see, Giada?” When she didn’t answer me right away, I was ready to lose my patience. “I asked you a question. You will answer me now and always.”
The visible shudder was affirmation I’d gotten through to her. It was a shame I’d had to raise my voice.
“The ocean.”
“Not good enough. Turn around in a full circle and tell me exactly what you see.”
Her tension seemed to increase as she finally accepted her need for obedience, shifting around slowly. “Beautiful turquoise waters, which indicates a very tropical location. Flowers in exquisite colors. A pearlescent beach that glows in the sunlight.”
“Keep going.”
“Towers. One. Two of them. I’m guessing there are more,” she half whispered.
“They are lookout towers, Giada. I’m assuming you realize why they’re needed.”
“Security. To keep unwanted visitors off the island.” The tactics used weren’t that different from those of her father’s.
“Yes, you are correct. I have state of the art fucking everything. Around that bend is a location where barriers are installed, coiled barbed wire designed to keep predators away. Every guard is equipped with night vision goggles and automatic rifles, and a communications system that is capable of withstanding severe storms. I even have satellite communications, which allows me to hack any computer system in the world. If you go further around that bend, you’ll find the airstrip and dock, both manned twenty-four hours a day, the heavy artillery they have at their disposal capable of starting a war.”
“Why are you telling me this?” she asked, finally tilting her head so her lovely lavender eyes could stare into mine. They held more fear in them than I’d seen before. Perhaps I was breaking through her defense system.
“Do I need to state the obvious to you?” I closed the distance, absorbed by the scent of perfume she’d chosen, a luxury I should have kept as a gift for good behavior. “In case you’re thinking about swimming, the nearest inhabited island is fifty miles away, the waters shark infested. And if you long to continue playing a game of cat and mouse, the beautiful tropical foliage you see around you is laden with poisonous snakes and spiders. The estate is a sanctuary, Giada. Do you understand me?” She didn’t answer, further irritating me. “I asked you a question and you will answer me.”
She jumped when I raised my voice, her lower lip quivering.
“Yes, I understand I’m a prisoner here. I just wanted to be outside. That’s all. I wasn’t trying to escape. God knows what you’d do to me.”
“You and I both know that’s not true,printsessa. You were testing the boundaries, finding out for yourself if there’s any opportunity for you to get away from your horrible environment, praying your daddy would come save you. Let me assure you, that’s not going to happen.”
“I’m not a fool, Sevastian. I’ve seen the men with guns walking the beaches and near your house. I know you’ve instructed then to detain me if not worse. I just wanted a few minutes of peace. And leave my father out of this. He doesn’t give a shit what happens to me.”
There was discord in her voice for more than the current situation.
“Peace?” I couldn’t help but laugh. “Have you ever had a moment of peace, Giada? I’m curious. On that day I met you so long ago, did you have a peaceful feeling deep in your soul? Were you enjoying a party with no friends your age in attendance? Did you not know your father was behind closed doors making a deal with my father? Two powerful monsters coming head-to-head after a massacre. Did you not see the dead bodies strewn on the ground or witness their vacant eyes?”
“Stop it. Just stop it! Why are you doing this? Are you trying to hurt me?” She backed away, her hands fisted and her look of fear turning to horror.
I shook my head and when I reached out to touch her, she flinched, backing away another step. I grabbed her arm, yanking her against me, drinking in her essence. “I’m trying to get through to you that there is no escaping this life we were born into. No peace. There is only the here and now, what enjoyment we can get in this fortress-like location.”
“Our life is what we choose it to be. Let go of me.”
“Do you really believe that, Giada? If you do, then you’re a fool and I don’t see you that way.” I lowered my head as I brushed my fingers down the side of her face. She closed her eyes, turning away but the electricity we shared buzzed just beneath the surface. She’d been protected far too much, which had given her a naïve perspective on life.
“You’re such a horrible person, Sevastian. You lost your soul such a long time ago that there is no hope of regaining it back.”
“Who said I feel that need?”
She blinked several times, tears welling in her eyes as they’d done before. The only thing on my mind was teaching her a lesson, one she’d never forget. The usual anger that swept me into near madness was threatening to derail what was left of my humanity.
There was no reason to lose control other than out of sheer frustration. No one backed me into a corner and lived.
“Asshole.”
“What other names are you going to feel compelled to call me?” I laughed, clamping my fingers on her chin.
“Whatever is necessary.” She continued to try to recoil, even if her entire body shimmered from the same desire we’d experienced before.
Disgusted with myself, I pulled my hand away, shutting down the desire that was wrecking my system. “We’re returning to the house where you will remain. I have business to attend to.”
