Page 14 of Wicked Oath

“Logan did this?” another man asks.

“Mhmm. Her parents were marrying her off to Logan to merge their companies. He’s done that… plus more… for two years,” Talon explains.

“Well… shit,” the third man says. They all look at me and I must be wide eyed or something, because they all give me a pitiful look.

“That is Torch, Knox, and Fang,” Talon says to me.

“Hawk?” I ask.

“Yeah…. Don’t call me that,” he remarks, and I smile. “Just like we don’t call Viper by his real name.”

“He looks like a… Dennis,” I say. “Dennis the menace.”

“Close,” Talon smirks. “Jude.”

“Hmm,” I say.

“Ready?” he asks me.

“Sure,” I say with sass in my voice. I don’t know why it came out that way, but I won’t look weak and bend for him just because he doesn’t like it. I am here and not fighting, so he should be happy. He narrows his eyes at me, but I stay staring at him, unwavering.

“Ready?” he repeats.

“Sure,” I say again. “Oh… I’m sorry… yes, Master. Whatever will please you… Master.”

Talon growls and shoves me back against the wall and grabs my chin to make me look up at him. “Lose the goddamn attitude,” he says with a threat in his tone.

“Yes, Master,” I say coolly. He grips my throat, but I don’t budge. “You’re getting a wife, not a slave. Learn to live with it or kill me. Either way, I am stuck with someone who doesn’t want me.”

“Talon,” Viper says quietly, stepping close to us. “Punish her later. If you draw attention, he won’t sign.”

“Hope it was worth it,” Talon says simply. I roll my eyes, and he grits his teeth before grabbing my arm and pulling me down the hall. I yank my arm away from him, but stay beside him as we walk. I can tell I’ve made him mad, but I don’t really care. If he wants to marry me, I’m going to make his life hell, so he will just snap and kill me one day. What is wrong with me suddenly?

We walk into an office and a man stands up. “Talon. Good to see you,” he says.

“Where do we sign?” Talon says coldly. The man is taken aback, glancing at me. “Don’t look at her. Look at me, James.”

“Sorry, I… She looks scared,” he says. “I said I would do this for you, and I don’t have an issue but… I’m not getting involved in trafficking.”

“She’s not trafficked, James,” Talon sighs.

“Then I need to hear that from her,” he says simply. Talon looks at me and it’s then that he realizes that I have the power to fuck him over right now. I could put on a show, beg for help, and have the cops here in seconds. I could have him put in jail and I could escape. I could be free to move across the county and disappear.I stare at Talon, contemplating everything that has happened over the last day.

“Define trafficked,” I say.

“Jesus fucking Christ, Delaney,” Talon sighs when James frowns at him.

“I am not trafficked,” I laugh.

“Are you making this decision of your own free will?” James asks me.

The answer is no. I am not. I have no other choice, but for whatever stupid fucking reason, I won’t admit that. “I am,” I say.

“Alright,” James says. “Just sign where I have it marked. Am I filing a prenup?”

“No,” Talon says simply as he signs his name. I, as well as everyone else in the room, look at him in shock. “No prenup, because divorce isn’t an option.”

Talon hands me the pen and I just stare at the paper. This is it. This is the moment that I make myself an even bigger target, and Talon. Why do I care about Talon? Why should I give a fuck if they kill him? I wipe a tear from my cheek and Talon takes the pen from me so he can turn me to face him.

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