Page 13 of Velvet Chains

She was on her knees now, clutching the sheets tightly to her chest. Her eyebrows were furrowed and her lips firm.

I couldn’t help but admire her even though she was annoyed. She looked so adorable when she was upset; her curls were tangled but fell over her shoulder, her face red with anger. She was staring daggers into me, but I didn’t care, she was going to do what I said.

“You can’t keep me here against my will. I let you go to the wedding with me as agreed. I want to go back home now!” She hit her fist against the bed attempting to throw a tantrum. I stepped closer then, making sure to do so slowly. I wanted to be as intimidating as possible, but I didn’t want to scare her too much.

I stood in front of her, towering above her. I stared at her for a few seconds, saying nothing. She held my gaze without looking away, and not a lot of people could hold my gaze. She kept surprising me.

When I realized that she wasn’t going to submit, I started speaking.

"I can, and I will. For both our sakes. The media attention can be useful, but it also makes things more dangerous. You're staying with me until this is resolved."

Isabelle opened her mouth to argue but I held up my hand, stopping her. I knew that she was going to try to argue, and I wasn’t going to let her.

She needed to understand the seriousness of the situation.

This wasn’t just about her, it wasn’t just about the elections. I had enemies, and now that her face was everywhere, she would be in danger. I knew that it was only a matter of time before they came after her.

She couldn’t leave, especially not right now. It wasn’t safe out there. She would be safer here with me. But I felt that even if I explained it to her, she would still argue. There was no point explaining it to her, she wouldn’t understand.

"This isn't just about you. If you leave, you put us both at risk. We need to present a united front." We had to stay together, now more than ever. I needed her to understand me, understand why it was dangerous for her to be away from me. It was to keep her safe, though I loved having her around,

She continued to match my gaze, defiant as ever and refusing to back down. The tension in the room was so intense that I could feel it. It was tangible. I felt that if I reached out, I could touch it. As I stared into her eyes, it was like I could feel all her emotions. It was a combination of frustration, fear, anger, and an undeniable attraction.

Regardless of how she felt, she was still going to do what I wanted, that’s all I cared about. She was silent for the longest time until she finally spoke.

“I hate you,” she said, still maintaining eye contact. I was looking into her eyes and I could see that she didn’t mean it.

“I see,” I hummed in agreement, with a small, satisfied smile spreading on my face. In that moment I had flashbacks of the night before, of how she had clung to me. As I was thinking about it, I felt my cock stir a little. I had never wanted a woman as much as I wanted her. It was constant, every time I saw her, I wanted her. “Last night could have fooled me,” I finally said, still smiling.

Isabelle lifted her hand immediately to slap me, but I stopped her, grabbing her arm by her wrist before her hand made contact with my face. My reflexes had saved me many times before, and this was no exception.

I let my smile get even wider. Fuck, I loved a woman who could fight. She wouldn’t win, but the attempt was cute. It was always such a turn on taking a stubborn woman. I do consider myself a brat tamer, and I knew that I was going to have lots of fun with her.

“Cute,” I said, pulling her close to me. She was so close that I could smell her, so close that if I leaned forward a little bit, I could taste her.

Now I could see her more clearly, every inch of her face. She held her breath as she looked at me, wondering what I wanted to do next. I wanted to do so many things to her, but I knew that there was no time for that right now.

“Get dressed, Isabelle.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

ISABELLE

The house was a mini paradise. If not for the situation I was in, I would have loved to stay there. It was kind of sad that I couldn’t properly appreciate it because of the circumstances.

I was now at the dining table, sitting across from Vincenzo in what was arguably the most beautiful dining room that I had seen. If there had been an image attached to the definition of lavish, it would have been this room.

The ceilings stood high and proud, towering over everything and everyone. The room was elegantly furnished with antique wooden furniture that had the most intricate carvings. Each piece of furniture probably cost thousands of dollars. They were that beautiful.

The only thing ruining the beautiful dining experience was the tension between Vincenzo and I as we sat across from each other at the long, polished dining table. The air was so thick with it that it was almost hard to breathe.

I stared down at the intricately designed breakfast served in front of me. I had no appetite. It was probably the most beautiful and mouthwatering breakfast spread I had ever seen, but right then they just looked like pretty colors on a plate. I was neither in the mood nor the state of mind to touch anything that was laid out before me.

What was I going to do? How had my life changed so much in just a handful of days? I tried to think back to how it had begun. If only I had kept my mouth shut at the airport, I wouldn’t be in this situation.

One minute I was a normal girl and the next, I was in the newspapers with one of the most handsome and dangerous men I had ever seen.

There was no denying that I was attracted to him, he was dangerous in a way that excited me. I was so angry at him, but at the same time I just wanted to fuck him. Around him, I felt helpless and dependent, and that wasn’t me.

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