Page 57 of Corrupted Memories
Sebastian is silent for a moment, his gaze never straying from me as his fingers flex against my sides. “Your brother hid you very well. I had to reach out to some… unsavory contacts to get the information I needed. It drew the attention of other players, and the Outfit needed confirmation of myloyalty.”
My heart pounds away, not fully understanding what he’s saying, but comprehending enough to know it’s about me. That Sebastian made choices that ultimately put him in danger… for me.
“So you had to get the tattoo for protection?” I ask, looking back down at it. I would never admit it aloud, but it’s honestly kind of hot on him. I don’t think I’ll ever be attracted to tattoos, but it makes him seem more dangerous than I already know him to be.
“In a way, yes. But nothing changes for us. My company is clean and it will continue to stay that way.” His hand slides up to my waist, his thumb brushing against the underside of my breast. “Nothing changes for us.”
“You’re involved with a crime syndicate and you’re telling me nothing is going to change?” Tears sting my eyes when I think about the night I left him in college. How I witnessed him shoot someone, and my perception of the man I loved was shattered. The way I watched that man’s head fling back from the impact and the smirk Sebastian and Nico shared after. Bile rises in my throat, and I pinch my eyes shut before blowing out a slow breath.
“You look pale, Gianna. I promise you, whatever you’re thinking. It’s not that bad,” he says, framing my face with his hand as his thumb strokes my cheek.
“I’m thinking that there will be days you come home with your hands stained with blood. I’m thinking that maybe you’ll piss someone off and our children will be kidnapped as collateral. I’m thinking that if we have a son he’ll be forced into this life too.” My voice raises with each sentence and his hold tightens when I try to move off him. “Ugh! Let me go!”
He flips us on the couch and he presses my wrists above my head, locked in one of his hands as the other tugs the tank top under my breasts. His mouth encases my hard nipple, sucking it harshly before pinching it between his teeth. I gasp, the pain twisting to pleasure as my core heats from his touch.
He pops off the tight bud and looks up at me. “I’m loyal to the Outfit in name only. Our life and my company will always be kept separate. In fact, in a few months we won’t even have to worry about half of it because in London my father will ensure we remain untouched.”
I pause my struggling. “London?”
Sebastian kisses down the valley of my breasts, his lips caressing the dip of my stomach before he tugs at my shorts. I lift my hips so he can slip one side down my leg and he lets the other side hang off my foot. He comes back up, kissing me deeply, and I moan into his mouth when his fingers teasethrough my slick folds. When he pushes them inside of me, I rip my head away.
“Wait, Sebastian. London?” I know he’s trying to distract me with sex, and usually I let him because god, he’s so good at it. But there’s a warning in the back of my mind saying if I don’t address this, he’s going to sweep it under the rug. From what my brother has told me, he’s spent the majority of his time there.
He drops his face into my neck, nipping at the skin as he pumps his fingers in and out. He rasps a bunch of French as he moves to kiss me again, and I catch most of it.
With you, everything is perfect. I can’t imagine my life without you.
That’s what I’m pretty sure he said, and my heart clenches in bittersweet agony. He can say things like that in such a romantic language, but he refuses to say he loves me.
“Je t’aime,”I whisper.
He shudders, and his eyes pinch shut before he blows out a breath and pulls out his fingers.
Sebastian cleans them off on his pants before looking back at me. “We’re transitioning for Nico to take over the company headquarters here inChicago, and I’m going to run the one in London.”
“Like to live there? Permanently?” I slowly get off the couch, and he lets me this time.
“Yeah, to raise our family there,” he says with a nod, a fierce conviction in his voice that pisses me off.
I scoff, crossing my arms as I stare at him with discontentment. “And you just expected me to be okay with that?”
“You used to tell me you wanted to live in London all the time,” he says with a scowl.
“My prefrontal cortex wasn’t even fully developed. I’m sure I said a lot of shit while in la la land with the boyfriend I was hopelessly in love with. I’ve had a healthy dose of reality since then.”
Sebastian rolls his eyes. “Tell me what could possibly be keeping you here in the States.”
“My brother!” I wave my hand at him incredulously because that is the most obvious answer.
“Your brother who is single and has a global security company. He could move to London just as easily, and I’m sure he’d follow you. You have no other family, no friends, and your work is online.”
While I’m sure he’s just trying to point out facts, the description of my sad life makes my heart clench. It’s disheartening that the men who supposedly careabout me think the work I’ve chosen for myself is insignificant. Sebastian could kidnap me, and I’m pretty sure my brother is the only person who would go looking for me. “This is just another thing you couldn’t be bothered to simply fucking ask me first. You just keep assuming that I’ll go along with whatever you want,” I say, trying to explain my frustration.
Sebastian sighs. “Gianna, you haven’t exactly been begging to go home. Let’s just accept what this is and where we’re heading and skip all the bullshit.”
I narrow my eyes. “You’re confusing contentment with compliance. Don’t forget I’m here because I signed a contract that said I would stay.”
He glares at me. “And if I tore that contract up right now, you’d leave?”
