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“He will wake and come back to me. He will not leave me here alone, I know it.” I can hear her precious defiance in the tone of her voice. Stella Stratford will walk into hell and fight the devil to get what she wants. My wife has strength and a will that will not be defied, even by me. Her angry tone calls to my soul, insisting I return to her. The urge to go to her is so strong that I feel myself pulling against the barrier keeping me a prisoner here and away from her.
“Stella, perhaps it’s best if he doesn’t. We have no way of knowing in what condition his mind will be once he awakens. He’s had three heart attacks and been in a coma for a week, daughter. You may end up with an invalid on your hands.” The voice reasoning with my wife sounds miserable but resolute at the prospect.
Have I really had three heart attacks? Holy fuck! Am I in a coma, is that why I can’t seem to rise from this miserable darkness, but can hear every word spoken?The one that has me trapped with my past and my demons? The one trying it’s hardest to break me.
Will I be a burden to Stella instead of the formidable man at her side? The one determined to rule an empire and create a lasting legacy that causes fear in the hearts of our enemies. Will I never get a true taste of my stunningly, wicked wife? Never have the chance to bury my cock deep inside of her and produce a spawn that is half her and half me. A new line of Stratfords to rule this world? Who will protect Stella from the threats coming at her from every direction?
“Jaxon Stratford is not weak nor a coward. He will not leave me here alone to face the Stratford & Penticton empires without him. He will return to me or I will go into fucking hell and pull him back from the devil's hands. He is mine and I refuse to lose him now.”
Her words cause heat and fire to lick up my body. The desire to see those arctic eyes filled with fury fill me up. She wants me by her side to rule our empire. She is demanding my return to her and the living world.Who am I to deny my ice queen?
I fight harder against the nothingness, knowing that I must return to her and when I do, she will submit to me in all ways.Mine for all eternity.I will never let her go and if she tries to leave me, we will both end up in hell together.
21
Stella
“Hope... is the companion of power, and the mother of success; for who so hopes has within him the gift of miracles.” Samuel Smiles
I’mfilledwitharestless energy and an anguished heart that I do not understand. It’s been over a week since Jaxon was shot in the chest, missing his heart by mere millimeters. A shot that he received in order to save my life. I had to watch helplessly, an emotion I do not fucking enjoy, as my husband of almost two weeks suffered three heart attacks in my presence. Ones that, by all accounts, should have ended his life. Yet he persisted and fought to stay alive. He is a warrior, and no one can keep him down, not even death with its clawing hands.
My eyes once again return to his pale face, his normally golden skin has an ashen tinge to it now. My eyes linger on the long white tube that is affixed to his mouth. He looks broken and weak before me. The total opposite of his cocky, frustrating, and determined self. I watch with trepidation as his chest rises and falls with the machine’s forced breaths.
Is my mother right?Will he never wake up, or if he does, will he be an invalid? How will I cope with that on top of everything else? Do I want to be trapped with a man that can’t take care of himself?In sickness and in health…remember you made that promise when you married him, my mind whispers. I let out a harsh breath that feels like it’s strangling me, and my hand shakes in my lap.
No, fuck that!I refuse to believe that Jaxon Stratford, the man that forced me down an aisle to grow his empire, would be reduced to such a pitiful existence. Not even the devil can keep Jaxon Stratford against his will. He will cheat death each and every time.You are mine…His words once again vibrate through my mind. He will come for me, his prize, his possession. I have to remain strong; I have to fight for him, just like he fought for me.
What if he ends up with a broken mind, unable to think and function clearly? What if he is incapacitated of body, then what? Are you prepared to take on a man that will depend on you for everything? What about your plans?My mind questions. The thoughts race through my mind, but I keep returning to the same thought. I will do what must, to ensure that both our empires grow and survive. I will not allow anyone to take that away from us, not even Jaxon Stratford himself. He will still be my husband, no matter what. I will ensure he lives out his days with me at his side. He risked his life for me, and that is a debt that I will pay until my very last breath leaves my body.
I stare at my mother, sitting in the chair against the wall in rumpled elegance. The woman has refused to leave other than bathe and change daily. She has been by my side here, holding vigil for Jaxon ever since he was shot. Even going as far as to disobey my father and incurring his malignant wrath when he demanded her presence back at the Penticton estate. Her beautiful hair shines in the natural light from the window, her complexion pale and drawn, and her beautiful eyes filled with pain, no doubt at the situation I find myself in.
I never realized the strength and determination that my mother hid behind her frailty. She is someone to admire and learn from. How to be both fragile and strong at the same time, without having to sacrifice one for the other. I wish I had more of her inside of me, that I wasn’t filled with this urgency to be successful, to prove others wrong about me. To show them that I am so much more than just a spoiled, rich woman. Who knows, I might have already found peace and happiness if I had been more like her.
A flutter of motion catches the corner of my eye. For a moment, I’m convinced that my tired eyes are seeing things. I drag my hands over my exhausted face, my back and shoulder aching with the stress of dealing with this situation and not knowing what will happen next. I have barely slept in the cot the hospital provided next to Jaxon’s hospital bed. Unable to rest easy while my husband fights for his life in the same room.
It’s not only the stress of Jaxon being in a goddamn coma that has anxiety rising inside of me and threatening to have me screaming like a lunatic. The amount of paperwork Tyson has been bringing me daily from Penticton Industries and Stratford Industries is overwhelming.How am I going to run both of those companies alone?The thought once again presses harshly down on me.You wanted this; you wanted to be the head of an empire.The thought slithers through my mind with malcontent. I know, but fuck I didn’t think it would be this difficult, this all-consuming. The desire for power seems lackluster in light of Jaxon lying in a coma next to me.
My eyes focus back on Jaxon, his body covered by the stark white sheet and blanket on the bed. The golden skin of his arms are a high contrast against the crisp material. His tattoo is just peeking over the sheet; the Stratford crest imprinted on his skin. As I watch him with a pang of regret in my chest, his right arm twitches, lifts a bit off the bed, his hand clenching into a fist, and then lands on his thigh.What the fuck?I watch as once again the limb lifts, this time higher, his hand unclenching and fingers reaching out as if grasping for something or someone. I rush to his side and grab onto his fingers with my own, clutching his hand tight and squeezing it. Hope soars through my body like a blazing light, banishing the shadows that have been oppressive weights on my shoulders.He is fighting to come back to me.
“Come back to me, Jaxon.” I lean forward and whisper to the side of his face, laying my lips on his clammy skin. His fingers clench mine tightly at my words and have me pulling back. I watch with excitement as his eyes flutter rapidly before opening a crack. “Holy Shit! Mother, go get the doctor; he’s waking up!” My voice leaves my lips in a high-pitched noise. My heart is pounding like a drum in my chest.Is he finally waking up?
“Jaxon, can you hear me?” I move my body across his. His grip tightens once again on my fingers as he starts to struggle, trying to release my hold on his fingers. His other hand reaches toward the tube in his mouth that is helping him to breathe. He moves to try to dislodge the tube, and panic seizes me as I press my hand down on his, preventing him from tearing the tube from his lips.
“Don’t, Jaxon, it’s helping you breathe! Come back to me, Jaxon!” I beg as tears race down my face. A surge of relief floods me, almost causing my trembling limbs to give out before me.Get your shit together, Stella. You are a fucking Stratford now. You cannot behave like some weak-minded female.My mind chastises me rudely for my overly emotional response to Jaxon's awakening.
“Step aside, Mrs. Stratford.” The rude fucking doctor that is about to get my fist in his face demands, pushing me aside roughly and dislodging Jaxon’s hold on my fingers. This motherfucker is going to get a rude awakening, treating me as he has for the last couple of days. I have bitten my tongue over and over because he is one of the best heart surgeons in the country, but I am at the end of my patience. He’s about to discover why they call me an ice queen and a viper.
“Mr. Stratford, I need you to remain calm. You have a breathing tube installed in your mouth. We need to remove it and check your vitals. Please stop trying to dislodge it.” I watch as he roughly swats Jaxon’s hand away from his face, and my blood pressure rises. I move without thought and grab the back of his neck, digging my nails into the skin and causing a high-pitched cry to leave Dr. Bernard’s mouth.
“You will treat my husband with respect and humility motherfucker, or I will ensure the only place you are practicing medicine is at a fucking third-world zoo.” I tighten my grip as he stiffens at my threat. “Do we understand each other?”
“Yes.”
“Yes, what?” I demand, my fury getting the best of me and my emotions riding me.
“Yes, Mrs. Stratford... ma’am.” The words leave his lips on a trembling breath. I watch as he bites down on his lower lip, trying to stop it from quivering. His eyes are prominent in his ruddy, blotchy face, fear is clearly present on his features. The way he is cowering before me fills me with instant satisfaction and glee.Maybe I am a psychopath, after all.
“I am so glad we understand each other.” I release my hold and step back, moving to Jaxon’s other side as he stares up at me with frightened slate eyes. “You are alright now, Jaxon. I am here with you.” I grasp onto his fingers and squeeze, trying to calm my own erratic heartbeat and breathing.
