Page 53 of A Love So Wrong
With a quick step forward, Dimitri was there, his hard chest colliding into her and his arms wrapping around her as she sobbed against him. Instinctively, her arms went around his waist as she cried, and he held her tighter to him.
His laugh vibrated through her like a gentle thunderstorm. "I knew you couldn't do this," he spoke above her head. One hand came up and brushed back some of her curls, gently pulling her face from his chest until he could stare down at her teary face with a knowing smile. "Now, tell me what you really want."
"I want Gideon," she cried, thick tears rolling down her face.
Using both hands now, he gently smoothed her long hair back, tucking it tenderly behind her ears. "Do you want him to make love to you?"
Tired and emotionally drained, Jade blinked through the haze of tears and looked back up at Dimitri's blue eyes. "Yes."
"So, why are you offering yourself up to me?"
"Because he doesn't want this," she explained weakly, her arms falling from his narrow waist. "You are making us do things, all for nothing. We didn't damage your property."
He simply smiled at that.
And with a sigh, she realized there was no talking him out of his plan, and she could not go through with this other bargain. Feeling defeated and very foolish, Jade felt her energy begin to seep out of her just as Dimitri's arm tightened around her waist, pulling her closer to his comforting warmth. Not caring anymore, she let her cheek rest against the firm rise of his chest just as he lifted his arm behind her head and checked his watch.
"Here," he said, scrounging into his pocket and pulling out a familiar black and gold folded piece of paper and handing it to her. Accepting the paper, she unfolded it as he spoke again. "Take this coupon and go down to the spa. I will call and make the arrangements for them to open early and accept you in."
Looking at the gold and black coupon in her hand, Jade blinked at it before looking back up at him with a tired laugh. The sound and the corresponding smile just errupted from her without warning. She wasn't sure if it was due to the emotional trauma, or it was the fact that she was exhausted, but the coupon looked so absurd right now.
"Where do you even keep getting these?" she laughed, eyeing his pocket he pulled it from suspiciously.
She expected him to say something smart or maybe laugh too, but she did not expect the sudden look of hunger that crossed his expression, making her laugh falter. Pushing her from him, Dimitri seemed to compose himself, standing straighter and his expression turning hard. "Go, Jade, before I change my mind and take you up on your offer," he warned.
Nodding, she took a stumbling step backward, still clutching the coupon, and turned away.
~
The room around Gideon was in shambles. Sitting on the bed breathing hard, he held his head with both hands as the video on the TV finally stopped. He had watched Jade offer herself to the devil, and he couldn't do a damn thing to stop it.
He had woken to an empty bed beside him and immediately sprung to his feet. Calling out her name, Gideon had checked the bathroom, praying she would be inside but found it empty. Cold, gut-wrenching fear formed in the pit of his stomach as he grabbed for the bedroom's double door handles and found that they would not budge. Fear quickly mutated into a frenzied rage, and Gideon had let out a bellow so deep, so filled with agony, it didn't feel like his own voice. Throwing his weight against the door, he cursed and yelled as the damn thing did not move. It was as if the door was reinforced with steel. She was gone, and he was trapped. Trapped no doubt by that smug bastard. Horrible, hair whitening thoughts poured into Gideon's tortured mind as he raged throughout the room, throwing things and ripping pictures off the wall. He would destroy the entire fucking place if he had to, he would find something to use to claw his way out of the room even if he had to start punching through the sheetrock. It was only the sudden sound coming from the TV that stopped Gideon.
Like a madman overcome by horrified silence, he stood and watched the video of Jade on the TV. Gideon watched her scared expression as she silently pleaded for the huge guy, Dominic, not to leave, and Gideon could see the realization of her actions hit her. He felt his insides tear, and he thought he might fucking puke as he watched her hang her head and offer "another arrangement" to Dimitri. He would kill her, Gideon thought with absolute clarity through the fog of his madness. If he got her back, Gideon would strangle the life from her beautiful little neck.
He had yelled to the top of his lungs and from the depth of his soul as he watched Dimitri begin to lead her to his bedroom door and sagged with drained relief as he realized she couldn't do it. The torment of the video eventually ended, and he watched her leave Dimitri's suite, presumably heading toward the spa, as he suggested.
The morning light was spilling through their room now, and Gideon had not moved for minutes, the blank screen on the TV reflecting his broken image back at him. After a few minutes, his breathing finally regulated, and he stood up just as the TV flickered to life yet again. Holding his breath, Gideon stared murderously at the blank screen, dreading what he would see. Slowly, the image cleared, and he exhaled. Shot from another security-camera angle, it showed a darkened room surrounded by candles. Lying face down on a narrow massage table in the middle of the room was Jade's familiar figure. Her loose curls were flipped over her head, creating a cascade of curls off one end of the table. A short, plump woman was working on her leg, massaging glistening oils onto Jade's skin as she worked. Sinking back down to the edge of the bed, Gideon watched in a trance at the soundless video.
Jade's words still rang in his head despite the fury that still raged within him, she had admitted to Dimitri that she wanted him to make love to her, that she had wanted him! Laying back on the bed with a deep groan, Gideon closed his eyes. That had been all he ever wanted to hear. To know that she wanted him just as much as he wanted her should feel euphoric, not like this. Knowing that she nearly gave herself to that bastard nearly tainted the sweet words. It was a type of maddening torture he feared would haunt him all his life. Why did she think he needed to be saved, goddammit?! It was his job to look out for her!
Somewhere beneath him, his phone rang. He jackknifed into the sitting position and looked at the screen. Presumably, the video was live, and if that was the case, Jade was still lying face down on the massage table as the lady worked on her. Looking around, Gideon picked up the fallen lamp on the floor and tossed aside the tangled sheets, finding his phone stuck between the mattress and the nightstand.
Looking at the unknown number, Gideon felt his shoulders tighten as he sat stiffly back down on the bed's edge and pressed the phone's green button.
"You know this is all your fault, right?" Dimitri's smooth voice grated across Gideon's nerves. He never wanted to kill a man more so than this moment. Biting his lip, Gideon forced himself to remain silent.
"Here I am giving you everything you ever wished for," Dimitri continued, unperturbed by his silence. "Forcing you two to stop acting like shy children and admit your desires for one another, and you fuck it all up? Take my advice-"
"I don’t need your fucking advice," Gideon snapped, his hand tightening around his phone.
"Fine, don't take it. And when you fuck up all my benevolent hard work again, and your beautiful sister comes running to me trying to rescue you, I promise you, Mr. Lattimore, I will not turn her down a second time," Dimitri cautioned. "I will lead her right to my bed and fuck her blind, do you understand me?" Dimitri's voice slithered and taunted like a poisonous snake, and Gideon shivered with pent up rage. He just needed five minutes with the guy. Just five fucking minutes, and Gideon would knock out every fucking tooth in the guy's skull and make him swallow them.
Unaware of his restrained rage Dimitri continued his voice dripping in exciting promise. "You think I'm twisted now. You have no idea. I'll send you sound clips of her screaming my name while you rot in jail. I'll make her the mother of my children just to piss you—
"What?" Gideon shouted into the phone. "What is your fucking advice?" Anything to shut the bastard up. Standing up from the bed, Gideon began pacing the length of the room, keeping one eye on the surveillance video of Jade.
"Say it like you mean it, boy," Dimitri hissed, anger peeking for the first time behind his words. "I suggest you start showing me a little respect. Or do I need to remind you, I'm the man giving you everything right now when I could be the one taking it all away?"
