Page 21 of Possession

I shoot a text to Kai.

Me: Leave her room untouched.

Chapter Ten

Ellie

We drive in a comfortable silence.

It’s the first time I’ve let someone know my secret, that my father has practically abandoned me as a teenager. Even Jade. I told her he’s on extended business trips, always failing to mention they’re vacations he pays for women to accompany him on.

A police siren cuts through the air, and I glance through my windshield. “I think they want us to pull over.”

“Of course they fucking do,” Rafael grunts, then presses a button on the steering wheel. “Kai, I’m being pulled over. Deal with it.” He ends the call, then pulls the SUV over to the side of the road.

My heart hammers at knowing Rafael’s background and the atrocities he’s committed in the short time I’ve known him, but contrary to knowing this, I have never felt so safe and secure with someone in my entire life.

He winds down my window, and a familiar face fills it—Gerrard Davis, FBI agent and also Darryl’s brother. His broad physique blocks out the sun and makes me shrink back into the car seat. He bends down, and immediately, his inquisitive stare finds me. “Ellie, what are you doing here?”

I fidget, unsure of what to say. “She’s my nanny, isn’t that right, Little Doll?” Rafael’s broad hand grips onto my bare thigh, and he gives it a squeeze. It’s blatant, as if provoking Gerrard.

I clear my throat and sit up straighter. “I work for Rafael.”

His eyes flit from mine to Rafael’s, a smug grin encompassing Rafael’s face.

“You work for him?”

“She does. She pleases me so well too, don’t you, Little Doll?”

Gerrard’s mouth drops open, then he masks it with a sneer. “Is your father home?” He ignores Rafael’s jibes.

I shuffle from side to side, hating this subject.

“No. He abandoned her again. But she’s eighteen now, aren’t you, baby?” Rafael tucks my hair behind my ear, and I practically swoon. His eyes are full of love and protection, and his lip twitches as if hearing my thoughts. “My little doll is moving in with me.”

Gerrard releases a strangled choking noise before finally saying, “Little Doll?”

Rafael nods. “That’s right. She’s such a good doll for me to play with. All new too.” He trails the tip of his finger down my cheek, causing goose bumps to spread over me in his wake.

I squeeze my thighs together and lick my lips at the intensity behind Rafael’s eyes. “She’s perfect,” he whispers as if it’s just me and him, as if there isn’t a police officer watching our interaction.

“Perfect for you to fuck up!” Gerrard spits out, and I jump at his sharp tone. His face becomes red and his fists clench.

Rafael snaps his searing gaze up toward Gerrard’s before dragging it toward his clenched fists. “You’d know all about that, wouldn’t you?”

His question hangs in the air while Gerrard looks like he’s about to combust. Then his phone rings, breaking the tension, and he takes a step back to answer it. With his stare locked on Rafael, his shoulders tighten, and he nods before ending the call and stepping forward once again.

My heart races with what’s coming next. “You’ll be surprised to know you’re free to leave,” he snipes out.

Rafael chuckles. “Fancy that.” His lip twitches. “I’ll be seeing you, Gerrard.” Then he presses the button to wind the window up, effectively dismissing him.

“Prick,” he grumbles as he starts the engine, leaving me with a thousand questions about just how much power Rafael’s family wields and if I am indeed in too deep.

As his thick tattooed hand clutches my thigh, I can’t help but push away negative thoughts while feeling so consumed by the brooding man sitting next to me. So wanted.

Chapter Eleven

Rafael

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