Page 2 of Tempt Me
But can I give up my whole sense of being to achieve that?
Definitely not. So something has to give. For now, I will give my parents what they want because it suits my purposes. It suits me to have them back off while I think, process, and plot my way out.
“Fine.”
“Oh, Rue,” Mom says. “You are doing the right thing. We are so proud of you.”
The slight praise brings a smile to my lips. Nodding, I feel the band of pressure around my head ease up slightly. They will drop this for now until Mom shows up with wedding magazines and planners.
“Good girl,” Dad says, stroking my hair. “As a reward for taking this responsibility, you are now the Head of the city of Coe Bay.”
Eyes wide, I glance up at him. “What?”
He smiles benignly. “This is what we are talking about, Rue. We respond to your obedience. On your wedding day, you will receive another promotion. That’s how this works, okay?”
With my heart pounding, I nod. Lost for words, I murmur, “Okay.”
A thought occurs to me, and I frown. “What about Cedric?”
“Cedric has been complacent of late. We have been waiting for this moment to cancel him.”
“Oh.” Swallowing my smile as I think about the current Head of the city being removed from power so I can take over, I become more interested in this exchange. There is no reason why I can’t go ahead with the marriage and simplycancelAntonio when the time is right.
“We will leave you to think about things,” Mom says, knowing exactly where my mind has gone. Like I said, we are two of a kind.
“Before we go, I must inform you that your protection is going to be increased,” Dad says. “There are many enemies in our world, and you need to be kept safe at all costs.”
I shrug because it’s no big deal. “Okay.”
“Isaac Winston has moved down from Grove City. He is now in charge of your protection.”
Not recognizing the name, I nod and wave them off as they leave. Walking over to the other side of the sitting room on the first floor of this enormous villa on the cliffs overlooking the Bay, I move out onto the terrace. Unfolding my arms and placing my hands on the railing, staring down into the courtyard covered in vines and deep-colored flowers, I narrow my eyes at the giant man crossing the terracotta tiles, dressed in a black leather, three-quarter length coat that is so inappropriate for the summer heat, I giggle. But then I squint harder.
“You,” I breathe when he looks up, drawn to me standing here in my floaty white dress and flat sandals.
The soft breeze lifts my dress, and I see his luminous blue gaze drop several inches before it slides slowly back up to meet my eyes.
“Well, hello, apple man,” I murmur, wondering what fate this is that brought this dark-haired god to my doorstep. He has been haunting me for months. On assignment in Grove City, I attended a sex club one night where this guy stopped to watch me engaging in some sexual behavior in one of the public rooms. He didn’t touch, didn’t speak, didn’t approach, just pulled out an apple and started eating it as he watched me orgasm intensely due to his gaze on me.
“Isaac,” Dad says as he strides up to the man, who is six-five easy. “Welcome to Castello Villa.”
They shake hands as my heart leaps into my throat. “Isaac. Ohhh, fuck.”
My pussy twitches and goes damp when the implications of this new security detail hit me head-on.
In the space of ten minutes, I’ve been ordered to enter into an arranged marriage with some drooling idiot and been assigned the man I’ve been lusting after for months as head of my security.
“What else, oh Sisters of Fate, do you have planned for me?”
The question hangs there as I watch my dad lead Isaac into the villa, a slight sweat sheening my upper lip as I contemplate all the wicked ways I can entertain myself over the coming months with my new bodyguard.
Chapter2
Isaac
Rue.
The woman I’ve been consumed with over the last few months is finally within my grasp, but at the same time, she couldn’t be further away.
