Page 16 of Taming a Ruthless Heart

“You dirty bitch!”He dug his fingers into the flesh of my cheeks, yanking me close.The stench of his breath made me queasy.I bit the inside of my mouth to keep from retching.“Think I don’t know about Dave?Where’s your knight in shining armor now?”

I squeezed my eyes shut, tears slipping down my cheeks as he fumbled with the fly of his slacks and pulled out his limp cock.He hissed in frustration as he fisted himself.But he couldn’t get an erection.

He never could.

“Useless cunt,” he growled, striking me hard across the face with the back of his hand.The impact rang in my ears, my cheek burning from the impact.“You’re not even worth a pity fuck.”

The humiliation was unbearable, the pain sharp and relentless.I had never been treated like this before.I had always been my father’s princess, my mother’s little girl.But in that moment, I became nothing.Igor spat at me, his saliva hitting my face with a sickening wetness.I turned away, choking back sobs as he laughed, spiteful and cruel.

“I’ve got better pussy at the whorehouse I run.”

With that, he left me there, naked and chained like an animal, shaking in terror.Days passed—maybe just hours.Time lost meaning in that dark, hellish dungeon.At some point, a housemaid brought me water and food and helped me relieve myself.

Igor had tied me up and left me there to break me, as if his promises to kill everyone I knew hadn’t already accomplished that.He eventually allowed me to go back upstairs.For the next five years, I was locked up in some room most of the time.

Occasionally, he would have parties in the dungeon.For those, he would drag me down, cover my head with a foul-smelling hood, and chain me again.He never told his guests that I was his wife.I heard them having sex and doing drugs.Igor encouraged them to humiliate me.He told them to urinate on my head, that I was one of his whores in need of a lesson.They took pleasure in tormenting me over and over again.

Out in the real world, when he paraded me like the trophy wife everyone thought I was, he played the part of a devoted, proud husband, especially when Dave or anyone he knew was around.

I endured each evil second of it.For my father.For my loved ones.

When Rose was born, everything changed.My only focus became keeping her safe.

Iwipe away the tears that have fallen silently onto my lap.These memories always reopen wounds that never healed.I did everything I could to survive.I sacrificed my freedom, my dignity, and my body to keep everyone alive.But now, looking out at the dark waters, I wonder if it was worth it.Did I make the right choices?Did I protect Rose, or have I condemned her to the same tragic destiny I tried to escape two days ago?

Was it only that?It feels like a lifetime since Dave intercepted Igor’s men.

God, Dave!

I close my eyes, trying to shut out the thoughts of him, but it’s impossible.He’s always in the back of my mind.He used to be my safe harbor, the only person who could make everything feel right for me.But now I don’t know what to think.He’s changed.The life of a Mafia leader has hardened him, turned him into something darker, colder.I don’t see that loving young man who stole my heart when I look at him now.I’m not sure if that man even exists anymore.

I guess the Dave of today, head of the Syndicate, wouldn’t believe me if I told him the truth about my marriage.He would probably think I’ve become a power-hungry woman and ended up getting caught up in the game.

My cheeks burn when Igor’s taunts echo in my mind.He used to show me the text messages he sent to Dave—messages meant to torment him, to remind Dave that he could never have me.Igor loved playing those cruel games, knowing that it would tear at both Dave’s heart and mine.

I sigh, the sound heavy in the quiet room as I get rid of the clothes I put on after Rose’s bath.I slip an oversized jersey on and climb into the massive bed, the cool sheets welcoming me in their softness.My body relaxes for the first time in what feels like forever, and I close my eyes.

For the first time in five years, I feel… safe.It has to be because of Dave.At the end of the day, no matter what’s changed between us, he’s still the one who makes me feel like I’m not completely alone in this world.

Sleep takes me quickly, pulling me under like a tide, and before I know it, I’m dreaming of my first time.Dave was the sweetest lover I could have asked for.He made sure I was comfortable under the circumstances.After that, we used to have such wild, kinky sex.Dave was always demanding, always in control, and I loved every second of it.Even now, my body remembers the way he could unravel me with just a stern look.

His hands glide over my skin, rough and warm, his touch both familiar and electrifying.He’s always had this effect on me—this ability to make my body come alive with just the slightest brush of his fingers.

“Sandy,” he murmurs, his voice thick with desire.“Sandy…”

I’m straddling him, my hips moving in slow, deliberate circles, my body responding to his in a way that feels both natural and inevitable.

“Dave,” I moan softly, a rush of heat traveling through me.

God, how I’ve missed this—missed us.

“Fuck, Sandy,” he gasps, his hands gripping my hips as I ride him, the pleasure cresting inside me like a wave about to crash.“You’re so beautiful.”

I tilt my head back, my body trembling as the first orgasm takes hold of me, my muscles tightening, my heart racing.

But something isn’t right.

“Sandy,” Dave repeats, his voice distant now, almost… strange.

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