Page 41 of Fiercely Protective

I reluctantly took the glass from his hand and took a sip before coughing violently.

“This is repulsive.”

He chuckled. “You will get used to it. Take another sip, the first one always burns the most.”

I did as he suggested and while the liquor seemed to sear a path of fire down my throat, I didn’t cough this time.

“Do you believe as Rogue does that I am truly in danger? Or was that just the reason he gave to scare me enough that I wouldn’t fight the marriage he forced on me?”

He leaned back in the chair and seemed more relaxed than I had ever seen him before. “Forced? You don’t look like a woman that was forced to do something.”

I took another sip of the whiskey in the glass; it seemed to give me a bit of liquid courage. “Just because I’m not covered in bruises doesn’t mean that I wasn’t coerced. He told me that if I left, people who wanted to hurt him could take me and use me against him.”

“They could try, but you are under Rogue’s protection now. It would be a fool hearty move to lay a hand on Rogue Delaney’s woman.”

I took a larger sip from my glass; the whiskey was beginning to make me feel warm all over. “His protection or his control?”

He took the glass from my hand. “I’ll order some food. If you keep drinking on an empty stomach, you’re going to get drunk, and I don’t want to listen to Rogue bitch because I got his new bride wasted on her wedding day.”

A sudden pain squeezed my heart. “You know it doesn’t feel like a wedding day. I didn’t get a fancy dress, or the gifts from people I barely know. I didn’t get to smash cake into my groom’s face. There was no music, no speeches, no first dance.”

He chuckled sardonically. “That sounds very dramatic, but I wouldn’t mind seeing the cake smashing thing.”

I blew out an exaggerated breath. “What will I tell my friend, Allison? She is never going to believe this.”

“I would suggest a well-crafted lie.”

I laughed a little. “Who goes to a job interview, ends up being held captive by the boss, and then married the next day? Hell, I can’t believe it myself. It’s like a weird dream that I can’t wake up from.”

“Chinese?”

I draped an arm over my eyes as I leaned back against the leather sofa. “What?”

“Chinese, do you eat Chinese food?”

“Oh, yeah. It doesn’t matter.” I groaned as I heard the whininess in my voice.

His frown deepened. “Stop. You are beginning to sound pathetic, and it is not appealing or attractive. It’s fucking annoying.”

I got up from the sofa a little quicker than intended and almost lost my balance. “I feel pathetic.”

“Far from it, little one. You are now married to one of the richest men in the country. The whole world will be at your fingertips. Instead of whining and complaining about it, why don’t you embrace it? Do you know how many women would love to be in your shoes?”

“Perhaps I can trade places with one of them.”

“It doesn’t work like that, sweetheart, not in this world. You were chosen. Go change into something comfortable while we wait for the food to be delivered. Then you can take a much-needed nap before it is time to get ready for the gala tonight.”

I huffed out a shallow breath. “Oh yeah, I forgot about that. Will you be going?”

“Unfortunately, yes, at least until I leave for the club.”

I didn’t ask what he meant by that. I walked into the bedroom Rogue had first given me before he insisted that I share his bed. The closet was filled with all the things hehad purchased for me. I rummaged through the closet, easily finding evening attire, dresses for every occasion, and some casual outfits, but nothing suitable for lounging on the couch and binging Netflix. I just wanted my favorite old t-shirt and comfortable leggings, the ones with a hole in the right knee from my apartment. But I settled for a pair of jeans and a soft white cotton T-shirt.

By the time I finally made it back into the living room, Blaze was already setting out a variety of Chinese food to eat.

“That was quick. I hope you didn’t order all of this for me.”

He was reading something on his phone, his expression darker than it had been earlier.

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