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So, I had helped plan a beautiful wedding reception. By the time I’d left the ballroom, it was festooned with pink and white roses, and the band was setting up for the evening. Now, I was putting on the last brushes of my makeup, making myself perfectly presentable in my tea length white dress. It was lovely, covered in delicate lace and seed pearls, with a sweetheart neckline that barely hinted at my cleavage. The whole image maintained an illusion of modesty.
It was too late for that. Luca had already claimed my innocence.
The white, demure design was a mockery, a pretty lie.
I fisted my hand around my makeup brush and studied myself in the mirror. I looked flawless, a beautiful doll for my new husband to own. Tokeep.
I pressed my petal pink lips together, swallowing the sourness on my tongue. I rolled my shoulders and straightened, gathering my resolve. Just like yesterday, I could endure this. I could endure anything Luca threw at me; I wouldn’t allow him to break me. He could treat me as a possession for the rest of our lives, but I wouldn’t lose myself, my identity. What he did to me didn’t matter. He wouldn’t alter the core of who I was.
I had years of practice at hiding my emotions behind a composed mask. My passion for dance had granted me poise and elegance that I used to shield my true self. If cruel men saw only a pretty, docile girl, they wouldn’t try to crush my hidden spirit. I’d slipped up and allowed Luca to see my defiance severaltimes, a mistake I couldn’t afford to repeat. Not if I wanted to keep my soul intact.
Mostly, men left me alone because I didn’t give them reason to rebuke me. I was able to indulge in my books, ballet, and piano, and I had my sister: my best friend in the world. I wasn’t sure what kind of life my new husband planned for me, but I would do everything in my power to keep my individuality. If that meant obeying his commands, so be it. Obedience didn’t mean true submission. I would never succumb to him completely.
“Nora.” I stiffened at the command in Luca’s tone, the way he said my name with such familiarity. “Come in here.”
He was waiting for me in the bedroom. I straightened my shoulders and schooled my features to a calm mask before stepping away from the bathroom mirror. I was finished getting ready, anyway, and it was probably time to start receiving our guests.
My breath caught in my throat when I saw him standing in the center of the bedroom, right beside his—our—massive bed. He wore a tux that fit him perfectly, the powerful lines of his body enhanced by the tailored jacket. His sable hair was pushed back off his brow in an effortless sweep, and his dark stubble roughened his refined appearance ever so slightly, making him appear rakishly handsome.
He held out his hand to me, beckoning me toward him. I realized that I’d stopped in my tracks, staring. I swallowed hard and crossed the room to join him, placing my hand in his.
It was only when his fingers closed around mine that I noticed the syringe in his other hand. Alarm thrilled through me, and I immediately jerked away, but he held me fast.
“It’s just a birth control shot,” he said, his tone low and soothing.
As though that was meant to ease my panic.
Righteous anger spiked my fear. He was taking my choice away from me, taking control of my body and my future.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he rebuked, his dark brows drawing low over his rich brown eyes.
“Like what?” I tossed back before I could stop myself. “Like you’re a monster?”
His jaw ticked. “It’s too dangerous for you to get pregnant right now.” He spoke with strained calm, as though trying to explain something simple to a small child. “My father is dying, and Dante won’t be the last man to try to take what’s mine. We have to wait until I’m the boss and no one will dare to challenge me again. Then we can try for an heir.”
“Anheir?” I spluttered. “You mean a baby. A child that I will bear and will be expected to raise.”
His expression darkened to something utterly forbidding. “You will provide our child with a loving home.”
“Of course I’ll love my child, even if his father is a monster.” I wanted to be a mother. I wanted someone to love unconditionally, someone to protect and cherish.
And Luca was trying to take that right from me, at least temporarily.
“I won’t make our family even more vulnerable by risking a pregnancy right now,” he said, voice brooking no argument. “I will protect you, Nora. Don’t make that more difficult than it needs to be.”
I scoffed. He kept telling me not to bedifficult.When he was the one making insane demands of me, twisting my life into something that suit his desires.
His eyes glinted with warning. “Are you going to bend over the bed for me, or am I going to have to make you?”
Hands shaking with rage, I turned from him stiffly and braced my elbows on the mattress. My cheeks flamed when he lifted my skirt and tugged my underwear aside. It took all mywillpower not to whimper with humiliation when the needle stung my bottom. I bit my lip and refused to bury my face in the duvet in an attempt to hide from him.
I wouldn’t cower. I wouldn’t break.
He stroked my skin like he was reassuring a pet. My fingers flexed into the sheets, and I swallowed a growl.
My anger spiked when he dipped two thick fingers between my legs and brazenly rubbed my clit. I tried to bolt upright, but his free hand pressed down on my lower back, pinning me in place.
“Stop that!” I insisted, my voice vibrating with indignant rage.
