Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 93463 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 312(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93463 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 312(@300wpm)
I want to ask him, what about love? Do you love me?
I already made a fool of myself once, blurting out that I loved him in front of everyone. I did it to stop a war.
But do I?
Can I?
I don’t know. I honestly don’t know.
What if he gives me a command that turns me against my family? What if I’ve already betrayed everyone who’s ever mattered to me?
He pauses. “I’ll be the one to choose your things. What you wear. What you don’t. Understand?”
“My clothes?” I ask, caught off guard. “All right… if that matters to you.”
“It does,” he says quickly. “And you’re not to leave without permission. And you’ll be guarded at all times. Do you understand that?”
“Yes,” I murmur.
“And whatever I tell you, you’ll obey or suffer the consequences. Do you understand me?”
Wait a minute. “What will the consequences be?” I ask hesitantly.
His eyes darken.
“Whatever I decide, lass.”
Of course.
“Okay,” I say, trying to look away. But he holds my face so tightly I can’t move. I nod. “Alright.”
His face softens. I’ve agreed to his terms.
I blow out a breath. I’m tired. I’m so, so tired.
“What happens next?” I ask quietly.
“It’s time to gather my men. To assess the damage. To see if your family will retaliate.”
My family? Wait.
“What did you do to my family?” My mind spirals, imagining all kinds of bloodshed. Did he hurt someone? Did I marry a man who actually hurt my family? Did he do something behind my back that I didn’t know about?
But he doesn’t answer. He only looks at me.
Then he leans down and presses a kiss to my temple.
“My sweet,” he says gently. “I took their most prized possession.”
Chapter 14
ZOYA
Back in my seat, I close my eyes and look away because I need a minute. This is hard. I still haven’t gotten used to the emotions he stirs in me, how sharp and sudden they are, how they demand space I don't have to give.
Is this about me or his need to win?
He dared come to my home, my private, sacred space, and took me from my family. Took me from the people I love more than anything in this world… without any communication with me.
And yeah, I know he was in jail and that it was impossible for him to reach out. I get it. It makes sense. It was too risky. But knowing that doesn’t erase the ache. It doesn’t soften the sharp edge of being left behind.
I can’t help but feel like he abandoned me when I needed him most. After everything I’d survived… he vanished. Just disappeared. My heart hasn’t caught up. The impressions he left behind, they’ve been wearing on me for a while now. And now he’s sitting here, giving me this speech about being the head of the house and his rules and the way it’s going to be. It’s not exactly strange, not completely out of the ordinary, and it’s not unacceptable.
But still. It stings.
He finally meets my gaze, and I turn my face, shielding my chest with my arm like I’m trying to keep something vital from spilling out.
“Do you think giving me everything I want will make me fall for you? Make me melt?” I ask in a sharp whisper.
“I’m not just going to Ireland. I’m being taken there. After all this time. After everything.” I exhale hard. “And I did it because… because you say I’m yours.”
I pause, searching for the words. “You say that, and yet…” I shake my head, pulling back into myself like I’m retreating into a bunker.
We are on a plane that is taking us back to Ireland.
And a whole new life.
What about the holidays? What about seeing them again? My birthday?
I swipe angrily at the tears gathering in my eyes, hating how they betray me.
“You can’t hold onto your feelings like this and not tell me anything,” he says, gentle but firm. “I can’t help if I don’t know.”
And I don’t want him to know. Not really. Not all of it. So I stay stubborn, resolute. Like if I pretend hard enough, he won’t see through me. But he does.
“It had to be this way,” he says, quiet again.
“You’re The Undertaker, Seamus,” I whisper, barely audible.
His brows pinch together. “Why is that a problem?”
“Don’t you know what you’ve done?” I look away. “Do I even really want to know?”
I’ve heard the rumors. I’ve seen shadows of the truth. I’ve witnessed things with my own eyes, my own hands.
But do I really know what my brothers have done?
That’s different, I reason stubbornly. That’s my family. I never had control over them.
But this? Did I ever have control over this?
“We’ve got a long flight ahead of us, love,” he says gently. “What can I get you to eat?”
“I’m not hungry anymore,” I say, and even I hear the petulance in my tone.