Page 7 of Pain and Pleasure

"Esmeralda, we need to talk."

I don't want to talk. I want someone to hold me, for fucking once.

I turn around and look at him, not bothering to hide the tears forming in my eyes. His face looks confused. Of course he doesn't know why I'm upset, but he would if he genuinely cared. If he had even an ounce of empathy in his perfect body. But once again, I am a fool for hoping so.

"You're not in danger right now when it comes to my father. He's not prepared for any move you make. If I had to guess, he's weak right now. So do what you will. Just leave me out of it. I'm not a messenger for you two, for this war."

A tear falls and I swipe it away with a frustrated, shaky hand.

"I'm tired and I want to be alone now."

I turn back around, but he calls out for me again.

"We need to talk about us too, Emmie."

I hate that I love when he calls me that. When he calls me anything.

"There's nothing we need to talk about, Dante. Because there is no us. There never was."

I walk out of his office and towards my room, swiping a bottle of bourbon and a glass on my way up the stairs.

4

Esmeralda

I'm alreadyon my second glass of bourbon when I sink into the bubble bath.

I found a drawer of rich smelling soaps in the bathroom and chose the most calming one that I could find. The traditional lavender scent I've loved since I was little. My body is warm from both the liquor and the water, and I melt into the tub.

I've had the day from hell, but I'm slowly letting my brain become numb, blocking out all of today's hideous events. I bring the glass to my lips, about to sink beneath the surface of the water, but I hear the bathroom door open and jump. Some of the bourbon falls from the glass and onto my shoulder.

Dante walks in and all the hard work that I've done to block out the horror of today goes out the window. He approaches the tub and kneels beside it, his cheek resting in one of his palms. He looks so serene like this, like some sort of dark angel.

I'm glad he can relax so easily. I down the rest of my bourbon and start to rise, but his hand reaches out and pushes me back into the water, his large hand resting on my sternum. One of his fingers touches my nipple and a jolt goes through me, and we both notice it. It's hard to not notice this strange pull between us, even if we're both trying everything to ignore it.

We sit like that for a while. With me in the tub, wide eyed and a little drunk, while he kneels over, his hand touching my breast underneath the suds in the water. It warms me from head to toe.

Dante eyes the empty glass in my hand, his expression dark. I can't help but grow wet by the sight and touch of him, it's purely chemical and I am too weak to stop it. I'm so weak when it comes to him, and I hate it.

"Feeling stressed?"

His voice is low, dangerous and desirable. I can't help but miss moments like this with him. They're the most desirable moments I've had in my entire womanhood. I set the glass down on the stone shelf to the left of the tub, careful not to knock over the lit candle.

"Yes, and I was doing just fine and fixing that before you showed up."

His eyes darken to almost black and his lips look so full right now that something inside of me wants to make me lean forward and bite them. He smells so fucking good that it overpowers my lavender soap.

"And now? Now you're distracted? I can still remedy your stress, you know. I think I can do it a lot better." He caresses my nipple between his rough fingertips and my legs clamp together in response.

"A lot better than bourbon and bubbles ever could."

His hand travels from my breast to my navel, my mind racing the entire time. He's just about to touch the wet flesh of my sex when my hand jerks out and grabs his wrist, pulling him away from me.

"Dante, stop." I say with a hoarse voice.

My eyes close and I grit my teeth, absorbing every ounce of power to not sink into his touch and let the pleasure he gives me so well finally take over. If I let him fuck me now, my stupid heart will be vulnerable to him once again and I can't afford that now. He pulls away immediately, his hand leaving the water as he sits back on his heels.

I open my eyes when he speaks, and stare into his turbulent, amber orbs.

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