Page 9 of Surrendered Hearts
“None. I want her brought here. Now.”
He nods. “I’ll take care of that.”
“She’ll put up a fight. Don’t allow it.”
He agrees and exits the suite while I move into action. This fucking asshole will regret the moment he decided to threaten my woman.
“She won’t budge,”Bruno says when he calls me from outside Emilia’s room ten minutes later. “I’ve explained shit to her, I’ve argued with her, and I’ve considered kicking the door down. You want me to get a room key and force her out?”
“Fuck,” I mutter. “I’ve got a key. I’ll come down.”
I grab the key to her room that I insisted upon when I booked all the rooms for our families and head down to the next floor.
Bruno arches his brows at me, an amused expression on his face. “I’d forgotten how headstrong she can be.”
Bruno’s been with me for five years and was witness to Emilia’s willingness to challenge me while we were together. She’s the only woman I’ve put up with this level of defiance from and he knows it. He also knows how fucking hard I fell for her. That was established the night I left her; the night he later found me drunker than I’ve ever been.
Using the key, I let myself into her room.
“Oh my God, you can’t be fucking serious!” she yells as I enter.
Fuck me, she’s dressed in nothing but a red thong and a strapless red corset made of lace and sheer mesh. I catch a glimpse of her naked ass and the lace-up back of the corset before she spins to face me. If my dick wasn’t already hard from her visit to my suite, it sure as hell is now.
Christ.
“I’m deadly fucking serious,” I almost bark while trying like fuck to get myself and my cock under control. “Get your ass dressed, packed, and ready to move to my room. You’ve got five minutes.”
She places her hands to her hips, and hell if that stance doesn’t send more of my blood south. “Even if I was going to bow down to your orders, it’d take me longer than five minutes to pack. Surely you know that about women.”
“I have another meeting, Emilia. Your time is running out.”
“And what? You’ll throw all my stuff into a bag yourself and carry me up to your suite if you have to?”
“Yes.” She was kidding; I’m fucking not.
Her eyes widen. “You will not. I won’t stand for it.”
“You now have four minutes.”
She drops her hands to her side and shakes her head. “Has anyone ever told you how overbearing you are?”
“I think you know the answer to that, but I’ll humor you.” I take a step toward her. “If anyone spoke to me the way you do, they’d end up with a bullet through their skull or a beating that would let them know never to do it again.” I continue toward her, every fiber of my being radiating the frustration she’s generated. “Do you want to persist with this conversation?”
The thing I’ve always loved about this woman is her grit. She doesn’t hesitate to draw on it now. Her eyes might be flashing with doubt over my intentions, but she doesn’t give into that doubt. And fuck, I don’t want her to. Hell, I don’t want to even fucking cause it, but a man will go to whatever lengths he needs to in order to keep the woman he loves safe.
“Yes, I want to persist with this conversation,” she snaps. “I also want to know if the man I’m going to call my husband in less than forty-eight hours is a man I should be afraid of. Are you considering putting a bullet through my skull, Javier?”
I reach her. “Of course I’m not fucking considering putting a bullet through your skull,” I say as I lift her and throw her over my shoulder. “But you fucking tempt me.”
She struggles in my hold, trying to escape it. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“I changed my mind. You don’t have five minutes, and I’m not packing your bag. Bruno can pack it while I take you up to my suite.”
“I have no fucking clothes on!”
“Not my problem,dulzura.”
She stills for a moment at my term of endearment. I hadn’t planned on using it; it slipped out before I could stop it. The last thing I want is Emilia knowing my true feelings for her. I can’t afford that. Not when she’s the one weakness I have for my enemies to prey on. Allowing myself to fully love her will only increase our vulnerability to outside threats. Keeping her at a distance will help me keep her safe.