Page 10 of Demetri
I do not give up so easily. Grabbing her hand in mine; I place her palm on my chest. "You feel that?" Glory rolls her eyes, but nods. I then put her other hand over her heart. "You feel it?" Her heart pounds against her palm. Her eyes lift to mine, and she nods, as more tears spill from her beautiful eyes. "You are alive. You are a strong woman. Whatever happened — whatever you have been through did not defeat you because you are still here. If you cannot do it on your own, I will help you." Lifting my hand, I cup her cheek. "I am asking you once more; trust me."
Searching her eyes, I wait for her to process her thoughts. After a few shuddered breaths, Glory pulls away and makes her way to the kitchen, grabs a couple of wine glasses from the cabinet, and a bottle of red wine from the small wine rack sitting on the countertop. Walking back into the living room, she lowers herself to the sofa, sets the glasses on the coffee table in front of her and pops the cork on the bottle. "I need a drink. Care to join me?" She pours the wine, filling each glass halfway. She looks up at me. "You look like a whiskey man, but this is all I have to offer. Take it or leave it." Taking a seat beside her, I pick up my offered glass, give it a few swirls then take a sip. Sitting back, I watch as Glory downs her wine, then refills her glass. She does this one more time as I wait.
"Most people think I'm nothing but a slut." Her eyes cut to mine. Her shoulders shrug. "I enjoy men, with no strings attached. If that gives me the title then, well…" She sighs. "I just don't see the point of involving feelings. If we both have an itch to scratch, then what harm will come of it? Not that I was always like this." Glory sips her wine. "I used to want to fall in love. The Prince Charming on a white horse fantasy just like many other women do. But I've been used too many times by men. Eventually, the fairytale dream became lackluster. The men all lost their shine. So, I started using them before they could use me. They got what they were after, and so did I. No relationships. No commitments. No one to answer to." Her eyes land on mine again. "Just sex."
I feel my jaw tick. "I don't want just sex."
"I know," she sits back on the sofa and tucks her legs. "I don't want what you want — a relationship that is. I'm not capable of giving myself to one man. Men can't be trusted. All they do is take and take until you have nothing left to give. They beat you. They rape you. They leave you for dead. I have nothing left to give to you or any other man. Nothing." The look on my woman's face tells me she is shocked at her admission. Glory covers her mouth as she starts to tremble.
A fire rages inside of me. I want to rise off the sofa and tear down the walls, but I keep my anger contained, for Glory's sake. My grip tightens around the base of the wine glass, and I have to place it on the coffee table in front of us before it shatters in my hand. Doing my best to keep a soft tone, I ask one question. "Who raped you,Krasivaya? Who dare put their hands on you? Tell me this so that I can make him suffer. The pain I will inflict on him will make him wish the devil himself would take him because I am far worse." My nostrils flare as my breathing increases.
A manic laugh escapes her. "You're too late. He's already dead."
"Name, Glory." Lifting her head, Glory looks at me, and her shoulders sag.
"Ronan De Burca."
I've never had to rein in my temper and keep myself under such control in my life, but I close my eyes for a brief moment and collect myself once more. He beat the hell out of her when he was looking for Grace and his daughter. Beat her so bad she had to be hospitalized, but not once did she mention sexual assault. "I won't ask you to relive those moments if you don't wish to tell me all the details," I assure her.
She wrings her hands together. "I didn't know what else to do. He had already beaten me by that point. I had no more fight left in me to fend him off."
Gently tugging on her wrist, I pull Glory onto my lap and hold her there for a moment. "Who else knows?"
She buries her face into my chest. "No one."
"Jesus," I sigh. She's been keeping this to herself all this time. Holding her in my arms, I stand. Crossing the room, I carry her to her bedroom and lay her down on her bed.
"Demetri, I can't have sex with you."
I settle in behind her and pull her body as close to mine as I can get. "No sex. I want to hold you — protect you. That is all."
6
Glory
Iwake the next morning to the sound of my alarm blaring. Cracking my eyes open, I reach over to the table beside the bed and tap the screen of my phone cutting it off. I don't have to turn over to know I am alone. I felt Demetri's absence the moment my eyes opened. When I sit up on the edge of the bed, I stretch out my sore muscles and rub my eyes with the palms of my hands. They feel swollen and scratchy. I surprised myself yesterday when I made my confession about Ronan to Demetri. My rape was something I had planned on taking to the grave. I told myself over and over again, the only way to move on from the ordeal was to forget about it and pretend it never happened. But once the words left my mouth yesterday, I felt as though a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I realize not talking about it is one of the things that kept me from moving on ultimately with my life; a reason I never quite felt settled. My rape has been a constant dark cloud hanging over my head. Closing my eyes, I can't help being transported back to when I was at the mercy of Ronan De Burca and powerless to stop him.
Grabbing a fist full of my hair, Ronan pulls my battered body from the floor of my kitchen. "You were always getting in between my wife and me, sticking your nose where it didn't belong," Ronan sneers into my ear his tone, causing my skin to crawl. "I told my wife you were a whore and a bad influence. Now, look what's happened. She's shacked up with some piece of shit biker. It looks like my wife picked up some of your slutty behavior, Glory." Ronan slams my body down against the kitchen table, all while pinning my arms behind my back in a vise-like grip. Seconds later, I hear the clinking sound of his belt just before my jeans are yanked down to my knees. Realizing what his intentions are I begin to fight against his hold, only when I do, Ronan pulls my head back by the hair on my head and slams it back down on the table. I feel an intense pain explode through my scalp as flickers of white light dances all around me. "There is only one way to teach a whore a lesson. By the time I'm through with you, Glory, you'll think twice about sticking your nose in my business where it doesn't belong."
A cold, wet nose nudging my bare leg brings me out of the past. I look down at Bo, who is sitting at my feet. Reaching down, I rub the top of his head. "Good morning, Bo. How's my boy today." Bo leans his head into my palm, eating up the attention. When I stand from the bed, a piece of paper lying on the pillow where Demetri slept last night catches my eye. Walking over to the opposite side of the bed, I snag the paper from the pillow. I take in Demetri's handwriting and smile.
Good morning, Krasivaya.
I have business to attend to, but I will pick you up from school later. Sasha will be driving you this morning. He will be waiting outside your door at 7:00 am sharp.
Demetri.
PS. I had Sasha take Bo out for his morning walk.
I don't bother questioning why Sasha will be taking me to work today. I find myself letting go of the anger I felt yesterday when Demetri told me about my secret bodyguard. I have to give Demetri credit; when I let my bitch flag fly, he took it like a champ. Two points for Volkov. I should be freaked out the man has had someone following me, but I realized Demetri just wants to protect me. How can I be mad at that? Besides, it's not a hardship having someone haul my ass around.
On the way to the bathroom, I drop the note on the top of my dresser. When I step into the bathroom, I take in my reflection in the mirror. Though my eyes are a bit swollen, I don't look as bad as I was anticipating. Turning the faucet on, I go about washing my face and brushing my teeth. Deciding to leave my hair down today, I plug in my curling iron and let it heat as I go about applying my makeup. Thirty minutes later, my smoky eye shadow has concealed the redness around my eyes making my green irises pop, applied my signature red lipstick, and my hair styled in loose curls that hang down my back. Strolling out of the bathroom and into my closet, I choose my high waisted hunter green slacks and pair them with a cream-colored blouse and my nude heels.
Patting my leg, Bo follows me out of the bedroom and down the hall to the kitchen where I take his food from the cabinet and feed him. I watch as he scarfs it down eagerly before he takes his chunky butt over to his pillow in front of the living room window. He's lazy and will sleep all day. Peering down at my watch, I see I have just enough time to spare before work to stop for a coffee and a bagel at the coffee shop two blocks from the school. With my purse in hand, I make my way to the door. When I swing it open, I'm greeted by Sasha's large frame; waiting for me just as Demetri said he would. I pause at my door a moment and take in the man who has been looking after me for months. Sasha is at least six feet tall, has inky black hair and eyes the color of chocolate.
"Miss Keller," he greets with a slight nod, his accent strong.
"I guess I'm with you this morning," I say as I turn, lock my door, and toss my keys into my purse.
