Page 127 of An Inconvenient Marriage
My father rolled his chair backward and pushed to his feet. As he rounded the desk and strode toward me, I couldn’t help but think how his outer appearance didn’t accurately resemble who he was.
With his gray hair neatly combed back and his beard trimmed close to his skin, tailor-made suits and always wearing a pair of Tom Fords, he was the very essence of someone who took pride in who they were.
But I’d seen the monster behind the mask.
And it was finally time to slay him.
So when he reached me a few moments later, I didn’t lower my gaze or cower back. Lifting my chin, I looked him straight in the eyes. “I’m here. Let Everlee go.”
My father’s brows furrowed, and he shot a questioning look to Jack behind me.
“You said to get her here without using violence or drawing attention. Using her friend as bait seemed like the best plan.”
His words were barely out when I spun around. Balling my hands into tight fists, I smacked them down on Jack’s chest. Hard. “You asshole. Lowlife piece of—”
Then I pulled back and prepared to do it again. I didn’t even get halfway when strong fingers grabbed my arm and swung me around. A backhand landed on my cheek not even a second later. I stumbled a few steps to the side before I straightened myself.
“You need to be taught a fucking lesson,” my father sneered.
My skin burned; my eyes stung. But I refused to show fear. Taking a deep breath through my nose, I leveled him with a stare. “I don’t belong to you. I never have and I never will.”
A loud, obnoxious laugh reverberated through the room. “Oh, that’s precious.” Closing the distance between us, my father stood in front of me.
He made a move to grip my chin, but I swatted his hand away before he could touch me.
That earned me another smack across the face. I was still reeling from it when my father used one hand to grab my hair and dig the fingers of the other into my cheeks.
“My blood running through your veins makes you my property, little girl. I fucking gave you life, I can take it away, too.”
“Then do it,” I gritted out through clenched teeth.
Another bout of laughter rumbled through his chest, and this time Jack joined in.
“Don’t worry, I plan to.” He leaned in so close, our noses almost touched. “Did you know there are men who’ll pay a pretty penny for something to hunt?”
He let go of me so forcefully, I fell backward and landed on my butt. My father immediately bent over and braced his hands on his knees.
“By the time they’re done with you, you’ll be nothing but a bag of miserable bones.”
A gasp shot up my throat, but I quickly swallowed it back down. If he was trying to get me to react, I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of winning.
Tilting my chin up, I kept my gaze on him and slowly got to my feet. “I’ve spent my entire life wondering what I could have possibly done to make you hate me so much. But you know what, I don’t care anymore. You’ve done your worst and still you didn’t break me.” I took a step forward. “You never will.”
I spun around as he muttered, “We’ll see.”
There was shuffling behind me, but I paid no attention to it. My only focus was getting to the door and then as far away from this place as possible.
With every step I took, my heart hammered against my ribs. My skin prickled and stretched, just waiting for Jack or my father to grab me and pull me back. But they never did. And when my fingers curled around the cold metal of the handle, an immense wave of relief washed over me.
Until I heard Zach’s voice.
“I’ve taken what’s yours. The one thing that’s of any use to you. Natalie. I took her and now I’ll break her. By the time I’m done, there’ll be nothing left for you to use.”
My heart shattered into a million pieces. Two thick tears spilled over my lids and ran down my cheeks.
Images of my time with Zach flashed in front of me like a movie. Spain. Our first dance. First kiss. That magical moment under the stars. His words, his promises. All of it. It kept coming on a loop.
With a sharp shake of my head, I squeezed my eyes shut.
