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“This is so good,” she moans and takes another bite. This time her eyes close and another happy sound erupts from her throat.
Fuck me. I should have left. I shouldn’t be sitting here watching her eat like what she’s tasting is better than any sex she’s ever had. “I’ll make sure to tell Mrs. Chambers you enjoyed it.”
She watches me carefully as she chews another piece of French toast, as if she’s trying to figure out how to ask something. “Why do you call her that?”
“Who?”
“Mary. She asked me to call her that and she hates that everyone else calls her Mrs. Chambers, so why do you call her that?”
I consider my answer for a moment because I don’t know why I’ve refused to use her first name for all these years. Or maybe I do know, but I’m not sure if being so vulnerable with the woman I’m holding against her will is the best choice. “Mrs. Chambers raised me. I suppose it’s the same way you don’t start calling your mother by her name. She’ll always be Mrs. Chambers to me.” I shrug.
Snow’s eyes soften as she takes her next bite. “I suppose I can see that.”
“She really wants to make you feel at home here and to make your adjustment as easy as she can on you.”
Snow sighs. “What exactly did you expect when you stole me away from my family and my life? Did you think I was going to lie down and take it? Because you claim to know me so well, and if that’s the case, you should know there’s no way I won’t fight until my dying breath.”
I chuckle, my head dropping until my chin brushes my chest. “No, Snowflake. I knew you were going to fight. In fact, I counted on it. But you can fight all you want, it’s not going to make a difference to the end result. This is happening, and there isn’t a thing you can do about it. The sooner you accept your fate, the easier it’s going to be on you.”
Without waiting for a response, I push myself from the bed and cross the room without looking back. Spending any amount of time on a bed with Snow Saint James when I can’t take her the way I want is a bad idea, and I need to get back to work. The sooner I find someone to take some of my responsibilities, the sooner I can start putting the rest of the wheels in motion so Snow has no other choice than to be mine for the rest of her life.
17
Snow
If I didn’t already know I needed to find a way out of here after my altercation with Elijah yesterday, I certainly know it now. And not entirely because he’s a raving lunatic who stole me from my life with crazy expectations that we’re going to get married and live happily ever after.
No, the reason I need to get the fuck out of here is because when he touches me, he sets my body on fire. There’s something about having his hands on me, hands that have killed people, who have torn people’s lives apart without so much as a thought, that takes the air from my lungs and makes my heart beat so hard it hurts.
Perhaps it’s my self-destructive nature talking, or maybe it’s more than that, but regardless, I need to run.
Lucky for me, Elijah presented me with the perfect opportunity this afternoon. He walked straight into my room and told me we’re going to have dinner with my family, and then he left without another word. I can only assume we’re going somewhere public and not to the estate where I would have the upper hand but seeing as we’ve spent a total of half an hour together since I arrived here, I’m quietly confident my siblings will be able to see through the charade he’s trying to portray and rescue me.
So instead of fighting everything he says as I have with everything else he’s ordered me to do over the last few days, I set to getting ready. I’m almost overwhelmed by the number of dresses I have to choose from and the number of beauty products he bought me before I arrived, but I go through the motions of primping to the utmost degree. After days of being locked up in this room, I’m almost excited to step foot out of the house and to converse with people who aren’t a raving lunatic and his dutiful housekeeper, but it’s all the unknowns that eat away at that excitement.
Elijah has to know I’m going to try something to escape tonight, and I almost wonder if this is a test, if he’s setting me up to fail. But it doesn’t matter what his intentions are for tonight. All that matters is that I’m going to be leaving with my family, never to see Elijah Russo again.
“You look breathtaking,” he says from behind me, making me jolt in surprise. He’s so light on his feet I swear he’s part cat, not that I would ever say that to him. Something tells me comparing a big bad Mafia leader to a cuddly kitty cat probably isn’t the best life choice. He stands in the doorway behind me, a tailored suit making him look every bit as handsome as it does terrifying. It’s the big bad wolf in sheep’s clothing you have to worry about. His eyes lock on mine in the mirror, making no move toward me as he waits for my reaction to his words.
“Thank you,” I murmur, reaching for the necklace I have set out on the vanity in front of me.
Before I’m able to unclasp it, large, tattooed hands envelop mine and take the delicate jewelry from me. His heat against my bare back makes it impossible to breathe, and for the first time since I picked my outfit, I wonder if the mid-length, backless crimson dress I chose was the best choice. Perhaps I should have chosen something more conservative, like jeans and a sweater.
His coarse fingers brush across my neck as he winds the gold chain around my throat, never breaking contact with my eyes in the mirror in front of us. An involuntary shiver makes its way across my skin at his gentle touch, so at odds with the man he is.
Elijah doesn’t pull away once the clasp is fastened, instead his fingers run down my bare arms. I question my decision to wear my hair up in a messy updo when his breath whispers across my bare neck. His eyes flame with desire, taking my breath away.
“Before we leave, I wanted to run over the ground rules,” he rumbles.
“Okay,” I whisper, not trusting my voice to be steady with his proximity.
“I organized this night for you because, contrary to what you believe, I do not want to tear you from your life or your family. Being locked up in the house is a temporary measure until I’m sure you’re not going to run, and then you will be given some of the freedom you’re accustomed to. Tonight is the first step in me allowing you some of those liberties. If you try to tip your siblings off to our circumstances, I will whisk you out of there so quickly you won’t be able to finish your sentence. If you try to run, I will chase you, and I promise youwillbe locked in this room indefinitely. And if any of your attempts happen to be successful, I will not hesitate to make good on the promise I made you the first morning. Do you remember?”
I close my eyes to push down the bile rising in my throat. “Yes, I remember.”
“Eyes on me, Snowflake.”
My eyes snap open and I meet his in the mirror again. For someone who claims to have had their feelings repressed their entire life, his eyes are so expressive I can see what he’s feeling before any other part of him shows signs of that emotion.
