Page 31 of Passion and Revenge

I’m prepared for her denial, but what I’m not prepared for is the way it makes fury race through me. On the outside, my expression remains serene, but on the inside, I’m boiling.

There’s something wrong with me. I’m all twisted up over this woman who I should hate with every fiber of my being, and I want her to be as mindless as me with this cursed desire.

“I could never want a man like you,” she spits. “You’re so hell-bent on your destruction that you’ll let it destroy you. You may think you’re destroying us, but all three of us are going to burn in your flames of revenge.”

I shrug carelessly. “Maybe. But at least I’ll get to watch that bastard go up in flames first. When I burn, I’ll know I’ll be meeting Ivan in hell.”

She drops her head, and her fists clench the material of the grey wool pants she has on. The color washes her out, and I make a mental note to have one of my men get her something in a brighter color.

Shit!

Did I really just have that thought?

Sienna is my captive, and it’s time I make that clear. “And one more thing. The next time you pull a trick like that, you’ll lose your clothing privileges, and I’ll send your dear father photos. Do you know the kind of thoughts that would be in the prosecutor’s mind if he received photos of you stripped of all clothing?”

Her hazel eyes go saucer wide. “You won’t.”

“I’m a monster, remember,” I tell her. “Behave, Sienna. Or you won’t like what will happen to you.”

I turn to leave, and she leaps to her feet. “You won’t get away with this!”

I glance over my shoulder at where she’s standing, her chin thrust in the air and shoulders squared. She thinks she looks forbidding with her hands fisted and eyes flashing, but the only thing on my mind is pushing her face first against the wall and finding out if all that anger will translate into burning passion in the bedroom.

“I’m going crazy here, Alessandro. Please. You can’t leave me here. I can’t stay in here. I’m—” A sob rips from her throat. “Just please. I need something to do. Anything.”

A laugh escapes my mouth, and I turn to face her. “The quicker you begin to accept your fate, the better for you.”

There is a light knock on the glass door behind me, and I smirk. “It seems your present is here.”

“What present?”

The door clicks open, and the man in charge of watching over the building slips a box in through the small crack of the door. I pick up the box and open it.

Sienna takes a wary step backward, eyes fixed on the box in my hands.

“Come here,” I order.

“What’s that thing?” she snaps.

I take a step forward, and she takes an answering step backward. I don’t have time for her games, so in a flash, I rush toward her and grab her by the shoulder before twisting her around and pushing her against the wall.

She screams as she’s banged against the wall. “Please don’t hurt me. Please!”

I wrap her curls around my fist and use it to yank her head backward. When her neck is bared, I pull out the silver object from the box and clasp it around her neck. It locks with an audible click at the back of her neck, and then I back away.

She whirls around, her hands going to her throat.

“Beautiful,” I can’t help but whisper.

It’s a silver electronic choker that can only be unlocked by my fingerprint. With the device around her neck, she can try to run, but she won’t get very far. I considered putting a chip on her but changed my mind.

The device around her neck looks a lot like a collar, and a sense of ownership fills me at the sight of it.

I push the thought away.

Sienna is not mine.

At least not permanently.

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