Page 23 of Valentine's with the Cartel

Rafael chuckled and flipped me back over onto my back in a fluid motion before crawling up the length of my body with a predatory gleam in his eye that made my spent cock throb weakly against my stomach despite everything.

"We're just getting started here, omega mine," he rasped as he settled himself between my splayed thighs with a wicked grin. "And by the time I'm done with you, you'll be ruined even more than you already are. Isn't that what you want?"

Chapter 14

Rafael

A few weeks after our wedding and the subsequent massage session with its mind-blowing intensity, I found myself sitting across from my new husband and his aunt Mara at an intimate table in a posh restaurant downtown. The atmosphere was tense, to say the least.

Mara had requested this dinner as a chance for us all to become acquainted with each other now that the marriage was official. However, based on the icy glare she kept shooting me over the rim of her wine glass, I suspected she simply wanted an excuse to grill Anan about his habits and routines in the hopes of catching him out in some misdeed. What she would gain from doing that, I had no idea.

"So tell me, dear nephew," Mara began as though nothing threatening was happening, but I could hear the underlying steel in her voice that signaled this was anything but a casual query. "How are you finding life married to Rafael? I know he has very particular needs and desires..." She trailed off, one sculpted brow arched as she looked at me.

She didn't know anything about me—the bitchy liar, I thought. Meanwhile, without showing it, I merely pretended we were friends.

Beside me, Anan shifted in his seat, the color rising in his cheeks as he ducked his head. I wanted to reach out and squeeze his hand in reassurance but knew that it would only make matters worse.

"He's been very generous with his time and consideration," Anan mumbled after a pause, clearly struggling for the right words. "I've never known someone so attentive or caring before." The pride and genuine affection in his tone made my chest swell with emotion even as Mara scoffed. She really thought so little of him.

"Yes, well, I'm sure that's all very touching," she said with an exaggerated eye roll. "But a man of Rafael's caliber has very specific... demands, shall we say." Her gaze flicked to me before returning to Anan. "Tell me, nephew, have his nocturnal habits begun to interfere with your own sleep cycles and recovery? It would not surprise me given the… intensity of his desires."

Anan paled visibly at that, squirming even more in his seat as he cast a desperate glance my way. I wished I could help without causing a scene.

I could see the mortification warring with confusion in his eyes, clearly unsure how much to reveal about our private activities to his aunt. There was nothing to be revealed, I thought.

"He hasn't mentioned anything like that to me," Anan hedged before adding, "Not that it's any of your business what goes on between us behind closed doors." The defiance in his voice surprised even him as he stood up to his aunt in a way I had never seen him do before.

Mara snorted at the challenge. "You forget yourself, young man," she snapped, leaning forward to jab a manicured fingerat Anan's chest. "I'm still your aunt. His behavior is very much my concern if it impacts your well-being and health. I care about you, after all."

"And that's where you're wrong," I cut in, reaching across the table to catch Mara's wrist in an unbreakable grip as she was about to slap Anan. "Anan is a grown man now—married to me—and his personal life is none of your concern unless he invites it." Her eyes flashed with rage at my interference but I held her gaze, refusing to back down.

"The boy needs to learn discipline and control," Mara argued hotly even as she struggled to pull free of my grasp. "He has a terrible habit of indulging his whims without any thought for the consequences or propriety. It's time he was taken in hand-"

"I've had quite enough of this conversation," I interrupted, releasing her wrist.

Mara leaned back in her chair, schooling her features into a mask of calm serenity once more as she smoothed a non-existent wrinkle from her pristine dress. She was not used to being spoken to in such a manner, but she knew better than to push further when faced with an alpha like me.

"Very well," she conceded, her smile brittle yet determined. "If you insist on changing the topic, then let us discuss something far more pleasant—a trip down memory lane, perhaps?"

What the hell was she planning? I wondered.

Anan glanced between us, sensing the abrupt shift in tension while not voicing it. He was smart. Better not to make a move unless he was certain.

"My dear nephew," Mara continued, turning her attention fully onto Anan as if I wasn't there anymore. I wondered for how much longer she could keep pretending that. "Do you remember those lovely summers we spent together at our family estatewhen you were just a child?" She reached out to pat his hand, a gesture that made my hackles rise despite knowing she was putting on a show for her benefit.

"What a charming little boy you were," she reminisced, her eyes taking on a distant glow as if lost in a fond memory. "Always running around barefoot and full of energy, exploring every inch of the property while I watched over you with loving concern."

I groaned at that.

Anan nodded slowly, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he seemed to relax under her renewed affections. Hmm… what? Was he really falling for her lies and manipulations? I thought he knew better.

"Yes, I remember," he murmured more to himself than to her. "Those were happy times."

It was clear that he was too wrapped up in nostalgia to notice the subtle manipulation happening right before his eyes. I knew he could be nostalgic sometimes, but didn't think it was going to cloud his judgment like it was now.

Mara was painting herself as the doting aunt who had dedicated her life to raising him and nurturing him, leaving out the part where she neglected him until he ended up in my hands. Being with me was when he finally felt happy for the first time in his life.

"But do you also recall how often you would wake up in the middle of the night, crying and disoriented?" Mara asked, her expression turning serious as she fixed Anan with a concerned gaze. "The doctors couldn't find anything wrong with you, so they suspected it might be some sort of psychological trauma. I was so worried."

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