Page 26 of Bound By Longing

“Does it matter why I did it?”

“It does.” Her voice is so soft. So angelic. It’s what drew me to her in the first place.

“I told you not to leave. That you’d get hurt out there, and I was right. Is that reason enough?”

She frowns, creating a cute little crease between her eyebrows. “So, you only saved me to prove your point?”

“As I told you before, Mila. I’m not a good man. I saved you because I saw you were in danger. I didn’t want those men to hurt you. I want you for myself.”

She backs away from me—as much as she can in the small space of the car. “Why can’t you just say you saved me because it was the right thing to do?”

“Because that’s not why I did it.” I open my door and get out.

After a moment, Mila follows me inside. “Help me get home, Damien. Please. Let me use your phone. I can call for help.”

I walk over to her, standing so close I can smell her faint floral shampoo. Her eyes widen comically. “I don’t think I want you to go.”

Her lips part. Fuck, I could kiss her right now, and I don’t think she’d stop me. “I can’t be your prisoner.”

“I know. But I’m not ready to let you go just yet.” I grab a piece of her hair and hold it momentarily before letting it go and stepping back.

“Why not?” she demands.

I flash her a smile. “Because I’m having too much fun.”

Chapter

Six

MILA

Irest my head back against the bathtub and shut my eyes. Exhaustion courses through after the night I’ve had. Meeting Damien, getting kidnapped by Lev, and then saved by Damien.

And now, taking a bath in his very nice bathroom to wash away the pain of what Vladimir and Lev did to me.

Damien doesn’t want to let me go, even though he promised. That tells me exactly what kind of man he is—one I cannot trust. If he were a respectable man, he’d return me to Vik’s home, where I’d be safe with her and Sofiya.

But instead, he’s keeping me here because he finds me amusing like I’m some sort of toy he can play with. The part that scares me the most is that whenever he looks at me, I’m drawn into him. I want him to look at me even though I know Vik and Sofiya would be disappointed in me for thinking that way.

I used to dream of my fairytale life with my fairytale prince. I’m not as naïve as I once was. I know fairytales don’t exist. I know Damien is not my prince charming.

And yet, I can’t stop thinking about how he looks at me. How his eyes darken even more and bring me in closer to him. A part of me wants to sink into him, to get to know him more and see who he is under his exterior.

But a man like Damien won’t open up to me. I'm sure he wants to use me for his own ends, whatever those ends might be. I have to be smart enough not to be used.

The problem is I was never the most resourceful of my sisters. My head was always too up in the clouds. I need to bring myself back to reality, which is hard to do because I’m taking a bath in Damein’s bathroom. I just needed to put behind what Vladimir and Lev did to me. That’s the only reason I’m taking a bath. Truly. No other reason …

I sit up when there’s a knock on the door.

“Are you all right in there?” It’s a woman’s voice.

“Um … I’m fine.” I frown. “Who are you?”

“I’m Collete, Damien’s housekeeper. I’ve come to make sure you have enough towels and you’re comfortable.”

I glance at the stack of towels on the counter. “I’m good. Thank you, Collete.”

It’s quiet for a moment before she says, “Good,” then walks away. I didn’t even know Damien had a housekeeper. That’s what I need to remind myself—I don’t know anything about Damien. He’s a stranger to me.

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