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“I want to know, Carter,” I plead, fighting back heavy tears. “Why can’t you be honest.”
“Because I don’t want to hurt you, dammit. We’re here to regroup, and I have a Donahue huddle downstairs waiting for me to come and find a way to take down the mayor and this woman trying to hurt us, but I needed to be sure of something first.”
“Sure of what, exactly?”
“Sure that you love me, Isabella. And that you know I wouldn’t cheat.”
As much as the memory of that photo does ache, I know the truth.
“You wouldn’t cheat. We don’t have to keep coming back to this, Carter. It just… looks bad, that’s all.”
He nods slowly. “I understand how it looks. I’m not happy that she managed to trick me into that situation, but it happened. I love you, Bella. I love you more than I’ve ever loved any woman before. I just want to drop her as a topic for now.”
“And what about the next article?”
He looks uneasy with that question, asking instantly, “What next article?”
I can only shrug, my hands uncomfortable behind me. “I don’t know, but we do know she isn’t going to stop. There might be another one in the future. She might go for something more personal, too.”
“We will deal with it when it comes. If it comes.”
He looks relaxed at last as if I had some information on her that he didn’t want me to know. Either way, he wipes his face and looks toward the window at the setting sun. I know the Blackthornes operate like nocturnals, which means he will work something out with the Donahue family downstairs. However, this doesn’t explain my last searing question.
“Why am I tied up, exactly?”
He tips his head sideways and stalks to the bathroom, only to return with a little suitcase. I can’t imagine what could be inside of it other than clothes, and I know he’s probably upset to see me in Rich’s shirt, but it was this or my bloodstained garments.
He would probably prefer the latter, but it wasn’t ideal at the time. Besides, I’m wearing a thong. That counts as something when I’m covered up with the bed blankets, where I fell asleep pretty fast.
He undoes the suitcase, exposing a couple of toys I’ve never seen before.
My stomach falls like it’s tied with concrete bags and tossed into the harbor.
He looks up at me through dark, long lashes, and I can’t subdue my tremble.
“Dove, you’ll learn the same lesson again, but I’ll have to make it morememorable.”
I gulp hard. “Yeah? How are you going to do that exactly?”
“Spread your legs.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Isabella
I press my lips together and do as I’m told.
I know how much Carter needs this to give him back some semblance of control, but a part of me is weary.
How much more of this can the two of us take before we shatter? How much can we take before we crumble into dust and ashes?
Once the thought leaves my mind, I realize that Carter is standing at the foot of the bed, a strange twinkle in his eyes. Wordlessly, he leans forward, a small vibrator in his hands, and pauses when he’s inches away from my already wet sex. Then he uses two fingers to spread my folds apart and places the device there. I swallow, and my shoulders square together.
“I am not going to cheat on you, dove,” Carter purrs, his voice low and thick with emotion. “Nor do I have any interest in anyone who isn’t you. When are you going to see that?”
I swallow. “Carter, I—”
He steps back and holds a hand up. “I’m not done talking. I can’t control how she looks or the way that I’ve behaved in the past, but when I tell you that it’s over, I fucking mean it. Is that understood?”
