Page 34 of Beauty and the Daddy
Belle blushes, and that's when I notice every man around is staring at her, at the ring.
Declan lingers longest. His gaze slides over her like he's testing me, a smile playing on his lips that's anything but polite.
And fuck me, I see red.
"Gentlemen, this is Belle Donovan," I say, moving to her side to make my mark.
My hand finds the small of her back, and she doesn't tense. "My fiancée."
We can hear a pin drop before the murmured congratulations start pouring in.
Sal looks at me like I've lost my brain. Marco and Vincent nod respectfully at Belle.
Nico grins, making some joke about me finally being tamed that I'll make him pay for later.
Declan, meanwhile, looks like the games have just begun.
He lets his gaze linger on Belle's body a beat too long, his smile more like a predator sizing up prey.
"Welcome to the family, Belle," he says, taking her hand, and I notice the way he caresses it before letting go. "You're exactly what my brother needs."
I step closer to Belle, a silent warning to my brother.
Mine.
When Declan walks away, Belle leans close, her breath warm against my ear. "Your brother seems… friendly."
"Stay away from him," I murmur back.
She looks up at me, surprised by the edge in my voice. "I thought he was family."
"That doesn't mean he's safe."
She looks bewildered, but the very next second, I see her face turn to steel.
Like she doesn't know what to do with this world, but she's fucking going to figure it out anyway.
"Let's just get this over with," she says.
There's something in the way she holds herself right now, in the steel that flashes in her eyes, that makes me think maybe she could survive here.
With me.
It's a dangerous thought.
She walks ahead and leaves me standing. Heads straight to the bar. Pours herself a drink.
I should be focusing on business, on plans, on the weight of the council breathing down my neck.
Instead, I'm watching Belle own this room as she talks to Sal.
I catch myself imagining a life with her that isn't just for show.
What would it have been like to meet her under different circumstances?
If I wasn't the Beast of New York and she wasn't the collateral for a debt I was owed?
Would she have looked at me the way she did that night, like she could give me her all?
