Page 9 of Sovereign Oaths

Javi’s abrupt bark stunned me into silence, a rare occurrence for me.

“Are you staying for the mission or him?”he asked in a low growl.

I closed my eyes and sat on the edge of the bed. He thought there was only one right answer, but it was more complicated than that.

“Em.”

That one syllable broke me. So much pain came through. It was a slap in the face.

What was I thinking?

I didn’t love Alessio. I could fantasize about a life with him, but it would only ever be a daydream. Being with him was impossible. I’d be putting myself and him in danger, and I could never do that if I actually cared about him.

Fuck.

I needed to get away. I needed to step back and get my head on straight.

Remembering who I was and what mattered to me was getting harder, and my feelings for the guys clouded my judgment just as much as my need to finish this mission. My dark wish for things with Alessio to be real was a daydream, completely impossible.

I needed a vacation from my own mind.

“Em?”

The slight plea snapped me back to reality. I was better than this. Coach would shake me and have me running drills until I passed out for spiraling so far out of control.

I knew what I had to do.

“Can you get a plane here?”

A beat of silence passed. “Yes.”

“Send a car to my location, and text the specifics as soon as you have them.”

“On it.”

We hung up. I changed into fresh jeans and a top and shoved my pajamas inside my bag. I was pulling on sandals when Alessio opened the door and froze with only a towel on.

He didn’t speak, just took me in as his shoulders slowly dropped and his mouth tightened.

Frozen in a standoff, neither of us rushed to address my change of clothes. Javi needed time to put things in motion, or I’d be stuck sitting on the road outside of the gate in the wee hours of the morning for who knew how long.

But Alessio wasn’t the type to just let me go. He expected me to obey him immediately, climb into bed like a good girl, and let the big strong man handle things.He underestimated Millie and needed a reminder of exactly who his girlfriend was. She wasn’t a pawn for him to move around at will.

No, she was an heiress with pull of her own. Someone worth fighting for. He had to prove himself.

Reminding myself of the same, I finally came to my senses.

Catching me had been far too easy. It was fine to be available for dates in Miami and even romantic when he whisked me away to Cuba. This was too much.

I couldn’t put up with his shit, no matter what role I played. I wasn’t a doormat. He had to feel like he was losing me.

“I called my father.” I finally broke the silence.

His eyes dropped to the thick cream carpet. “Millie, I promise––”

“You’ve made enough of those lately, and look how few of them you’ve kept.”

He jerked his head as if I slapped him. “I love you.”

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