Page 44 of Obsession

I shrug my shoulders. How is Adrian Russo? Dark, broody, calculating. But also…not. I feel like I’ve seen a new side of him since the kidnapping. He’s also tender-hearted and protective. My brain can’t decide which set of words to land on. One second, my new husband is in a battle of wits with me, and the next, he has me laid over his knees, bringing me more pleasure than I’ve ever imagined. And since being kidnapped, I’ve seen a sweeter side of my husband.

“So, complicated?” Zoe fills in when I take too long to answer.

“Something like that.”

“John said he was out today, so I figured it was a good time to visit.”

“Wait, how does John know that?”

Zoe shrugs. “I don’t ask questions when it comes to the…business…side of things.” She saysbusinessas if the word is dirty. Which, in this context, I guess it is.

I pour the wine into two glasses. John following my husband doesn’t bode well. I can tell from the beating that he took that Adrian is fighting against John and Sam, and if he doesn’t follow their orders…I’m not sure things will turn out well.

John’s words from my rehearsal dinner ring in my head, that if I make Adrian fall for me and help them, everything will go smoother. But I’ve been butting heads with him while he’s been cozied up to my Uncle Damien. Do I need to convince him to work with John and Sam to save his life?

“So, how is he to live with, at least?” Zoe asks.

I can feel the heat rise to my cheeks without being able to control it. Instantly, I think of his hands on my body, the sweet punishments he’s inflicted.

“Oh, so that good, huh?” Zoe teases.

“No. Yes. I don’t know.”

Zoe barks out a laugh while I use a hand to cover my face. “It’s okay if you enjoy it,” she says, taking another sip of wine. “I mean, sex is great.”

“We haven’t had sex.”

“Oh.” She grins. “And he’s already making you blush like that? Jesus. Girl, what are you waiting for?”

“I don’t know. I hate the guy! Or at least, I thought I did.”

“What changed?”

What changed? That’s a great question. What did change?

“I don’t know…he’s not that bad. He’s kind of nice to me, sometimes. I think I judged him wrong. I was just so…angry.”

“I mean, he did make you marry him. So anger seems like the right emotion.” She smiles into her glass. “But it’s also okay if you don’t feel that way anymore.”

I chew on my lip. Zoe’s not Lana, she’s notinthe family the same way. But she’s the closest girlfriend I have who understands what I’m going through. “John wants me to make him love me so he’ll do whatever Sam is asking,” I blurt.

Zoe nods, and I wonder if she already knew that? She doesn’t say if she did. “And that means betraying your family?”

I shake my head. “Sam is my family. Marcus was just…an asshole, honestly.”

“Cheers to that.” Zoe raises her glass and clinks it against mine. I forget she used to work for my brother. I don’t know all the details of what went down, but I imagined she’s part of the reason John killed him.IfJohn killed him, I mean. Not that we can confirm any of the details, but in my heart, I know he’s not alive anymore. And I’m strangely okay with that fact.

“And my mom and Damien are just using me. Sam actually cares about me.”

“He sounds like a good guy. I only know what John tells me, but he sounds good.”

“He is. He’s loyal to a fault and has always been protective of me and Lana.”

“You trust him?”

“I do.”

“So, then are you going to make Adrian fall in love with you?”

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