#1 Chapter 73
“Fuck.”
His thumb sweeps across my bottom lip right before he crushes his mouth against mine.
He’s watching you right now.
But right now I don’t care. I’m in Tony’s arms, and when I look at him I can’t help but feel that everything’s going to be all right.
“I think you better tell me where the fuck you were.”
He drags me to the table and we sit down together, his eyes never leaving my face. Fuck, I can’t breathe when he looks at me like that.
Tony makes an impatient growl at the back of his throat. “You better start talking, or I just might make good on my fucking promise.”
“Just hear me out. Okay?”
Tears well up in my eyes, consumed with the vision of me behind bars. I swallow them down, trying to free that knot in my throat. Gentle fingers touch my cheek.
“It’s him, isn’t it?”
Tony’s eyes widen as it dawns over him. Fists clenched, he stands up from the seat and stares into the crowds of people. “Where is that piece of shit? I’ll kill him right now.” He looks around the mall. “Is he here, watching us?” His fist slams into the table separating us. “Talk to me, Goddamn it!”
“He’s here. I lured him here for you.”
I don’t expect him to be happy, but I expect him to be pleased, at least. His eyes are red-hot as they scorch through my skin. “What the hell were you thinking?”
“Tony, you don’t understand. I can’t-we can’t-”
He yanks me back down on my seat, his snarling face right up against mine. People around us are starting to stare, and a man behind Tony gives me a concerned look. He digs his fingers into my hair.
“Tell me what happened.”
“I met him at a motel. He said I’d go to jail if I didn’t. I just wanted him to believe he had me under his control, so we could finally get rid of him.” My voice cracks as I finally break in half, folding in on myself.
Tony’s eyes smolder as his lips tremble, white with rage. “You went to a motel with him. Alone.”
I know what he’s thinking.
“I don’t know what the fuck you were thinking-”
“He says I’m going to jail, Tony. I shot him. I needed to do something.”
I stand up again, hating how furious he is with me. He grabs my waist again and a flash of anger sears up my throat, which dissolves when he gives me that look.
“Then why not fucking tell me about it? Why the hell would you go off on your own?”
“I’ve already done enough to you.”
It hurts me that he can’t see that I was only trying to save him from whatever hell Rafael has planned for him.
“I can take care of myself, Elena.” His eyes smolder. “How dare you make this decision without me? We’re married, and that means you involve me in every fucking decision.”
Tony looks somehow shadowed, even in the bright lights inside the mall. His black, flyaway hair hangs over his face, the stubble on his cheeks overgrown, but his eyes are cold. A chill emanates from them, and I wonder if I’ve crossed some boundary with him-if I’ve gone past the point of no forgiveness. He takes my face in his hands as my breaths quicken to short gasps that hardly give me any air.
“I don’t know for sure if it’s yours. And if it isn’t, and if I’m in jail, then he gets custody-then he raises my kid.”
“Elena, that’s a lot of ‘ifs.’ And it’s not going to happen.”
“You c-can’t be sure.”
“That baby inside you is mine and when I find him, I’ll make the bastard pay for everything he’s done to us.”
“But, Tony-”
“I don’t give a fuck what he told you. You should never have left the apartment. It was stupid to put yourself in so much danger.”
It stings to hear the truth lash across my face like that, even worse to see the pain fracturing his eyes.
“Don’t you trust me to keep you safe?”
Of course I do.
“I just wanted to take care of him myself.”
How can I tell him that I’m trying to be a better person? I don’t want to have to rely on anyone. That’s what I did before, with Dad. That’s all.
“No. Your job is to stay home and keep your legs open for your husband, to take his cock whenever he needs you to. Protecting you is my job.”
His hand suddenly grabs my ass as he leans in, crushing his lips to mine as his fingers burrow in my hair. My heart pounds as his tongue shoves inside my mouth, tasting me. Heat burns my face as I imagine the people in the mall, staring at the spectacle we’re making. Nothing compares to the horror I feel-Rafael is watching. He’s going to know something is up.
He ends the kiss, breathing hard as he rests his forehead against mine. “I can’t fucking stand it-can’t take it that he fucking had you in a motel room.”
Bile rises up my throat. “Tony, nothing happened.”
His hands shake at his sides as he looks away from me, overcome with emotion. He can’t look at me.
It’s as though he can’t stand the sight of me.
My voice is small. “I’m sorry.”From NôvelDrama.Org.
He explodes. “That fucker is the only one who’s going to be sorry. He fucked my wife!”
The bottom drops out of my stomach. That’s what he thinks? “I didn’t let him. Tony, I swear!”
“FUCK!”
My heart hammers against my chest as he stands up, yanking me with him. I’ve never seen him so upset. The grip on my hand is almost painful as he marches me through the crowd, his chest pulsing like a bull’s. His arms are flushed with blood. “I’m going to inflict as much pain on that bastard as possible.”
I dig in my heels, stopping him. The face that looks at me isn’t one I recognize. It’s ugly, full of hate and a twisted malice.