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Scotch. Malt. Straight. I hate that I know all these details about him. I wish I could be hit with amnesia so I can just forget him, his favorite drink, his wardrobe choices, and his entire malicious personality.
Girl
“Nah. Eli is unfeeling and has no trace of any human emotions in him. My Remi is different. He’s lovable, a gentleman, and every woman’s dream man. He just needs a little push to see the love of his life. Aka me.”
Listen here child. Remy is in college miss jailbait and his ego doesnt need this
“The real question is.” His smooth, deep voice touches my warm skin like a whip. “What have you done to owe me the displeasure, Ava?”
Damn
Good thing I’m out of that haze now and couldn’t care less about whatever demonic plans he entertains.
Sure
“Even when you were looking at me the entire time you were acting like a prostitute?”
ELI
“Is this the part where I get on my knees and beg?” “I’m afraid that won’t cut it.” “How about if I send flowers and a box of chocolates?” “Unoriginal. Try harder.” “If I cry into my pillow?” “Only if I get to witness it personally.” “So I have a shot. Fantastic.”
Lmao
“I heard you made a fool out of yourself today. Again.”
Damn dude
“I’ll talk to Aunt Elsa myself. You stay out of it.” “Only if you stop being such a disgrace. You’re becoming an embarrassment to your family. I’m certain your ex-prime minister grandfather will disapprove of your scandalous lifestyle if it’s printed in gossip magazines.”
man fuck off
By the time we spill outside, it’s somewhere after one in the morning. I shouldn’t be driving, but our friend Raj’s house is, like, ten minutes away, and the roads are empty at this time, so I should be fine.
Oh god
I turn the steering wheel as hard as I can while hitting the brakes. My car swerves as I spin round and round and then a sickening crash resounds in my ears. The last thing I see are the eyes that follow me everywhere. Dark. Cold. Destructive.
Oh no!!
For some reason, he looks older than when I saw him earlier. Slight stubble covers his harsh jawline, and his hair is longer, disheveled, and finger-raked. He appears to be a bit tired as well, his lips absent of some of their color, as if he’s suffering from a cold. Wait. Can hair grow in the span of a few hours? A day? Two?
Well No
“Breathe, Ava. Fuck, come on, beautiful. Breathe.” I actually stop panicking for a second because what…? What’s going on? He called me ‘beautiful’ and he’s touching me. Matter of fact, he’s been touching me since I woke up.
Oh....
“How are you feeling, Mrs. King?” the doctor asks, and I search my surroundings for Aunt Elsa—Eli’s mum. Or maybe Aunt Astrid—Eli’s aunt. Or Eli’s grandmother. Those are the only Mrs. Kings I know. I find none of them and redirect my gaze at the white-haired doctor, who’s watching me with that fake sympathy. “Mrs. King?” he repeats. “Who is he talking to?” I whisper to no one in particular. “Is Aunt Elsa around?” “He’s talking to you, Ava,” Eli says with a cruel tilt to his lips. “We got married two years ago, remember?”
Ahhhhh
“I’m not married to that prick and I sure as hell am not Mrs. anything. I’m only twenty-one, for God’s sake.” The sudden tension in the room slaps me across the face and I freeze upon catching the note of horror in my parents' expression. “W-what?” I sound terrified to my ears. “What’s wrong?” Eli’s gaze that could rival Antarctica’s frozen landscapes falls on me. “You turned twenty-three a few months ago and we’ve been married for over two years, Ava.”
Oh shit
Dad taught me that people fear you when they can’t figure you out. They respect you, fawn over the merest hint of your attention, and grovel at the weight of your authority.
So this is Aidans fault?
The good news is that she hasn’t and will not find out about how this happened.
Im so confused
I’m neither a limp-dicked thick fucker burning for her attention nor a worshipper at her sparkly-pink glitter altar. She’s neither my benefactor nor my owner. She is, however, my wife. My fucking property.
These men really dont understand you cant own people
“Should I make it Papa’s business?” “Only if you wish to complicate things further. Keep your mouth shut, get on with your nasty habits, and leave this to me.” “You said the same thing the last time, but now she’s ended up in the hospital. Again. How many more times can you hide this before everyone knows that she—” I slam my hand over her mouth. “Shut the fuck up, Ariella. Don’t speak of it again, or I swear to fuck, if you prove to be a liability, I’ll keep you in the dark about any future plans.”
Wtf is happening!!!
He smells like forbidden temptation and impending disaster. Divine but so utterly wrong.
Yum
“I’m high maintenance.” “Just the way I like it.” “I have extremely expensive tastes.” “Good thing I come from old money and I’m rich enough to outshine a few countries’ GDP.” “I’ll drive you crazy.” “Nothing new there.” “I don’t like you.” “That’s because you love me.” “In your damn dreams. I’m way out of your league.” “I can rope you back in if I choose to.”
Oh boy
He releases an exasperated sigh. “I needed a wife for my image and you needed a husband to safely leave your parents' orbit and hide your self-destructive nature, reckless behavior, and alarming mental breakdowns. Does that answer your question?”
Huh...
I glare at Eli. “Is this like a punishment?” “Believe me, you’ll feel it when I punish you, Mrs. King.”
Promises?
I catch a glimpse of the sitting area’s decor and pause upon seeing pink paintings, sofas, and even a pink-and-white rug.
So like a bottle of pepto threw up
Because I realize with crushing clarity that I’m mourning a part of me that I thought meant something. Something I wanted to only give up for love and yet I handed it over to the devil on a silver platter. What the hell have I done?
Oh so shes a virgin too??
“Fuck.” I climb the stairs two at a time and stop in front of her door. Images from the last time I heard the cello slip into my head, and all of them end with a haunting smile, a scream, and a fuckload of blood. One, two, three… It’s under control. Four, five, six… She doesn’t remember. Seven, eight, nine… At ten, I open the door and stop at the entrance.
Omg... What happened?!
“Stop putting ludicrous ideas in her head and inflating an ego that would burst to smithereens the moment she talks to Eli.” Lan appears to be bored. “He’s my cousin, but he’s an emotionless prick who collects little girls' broken hearts in a jar and then sacrifices them to his demons. Don’t be a heart in a jar, Ava.”
Lan being right sucks
Pain bursts on my skin as he sinks his teeth into my lower lip and bites hard. A metallic taste explodes on my tongue as his hand slides up my nape, fists my hair in a rough grip, and he tugs me back. I’m panting as blood coats my tongue, my lip throbs, and my scalp burns. But the pressure only lasts for a second before he releases me and wipes my blood from his lips like a gothic vampire. “Why…?” I whisper. “That’s what happens when you touch what you shouldn’t, Ava. You get hurt.”
Jesus Eli
“Because I couldn’t care less about you or your glittery, entirely idealistic feelings. Turn around and remove your distasteful presence from my sight, and I’ll pretend I didn’t hear your embarrassing confessions.”
What a dick
“You’ve been doing so well.” I smile. “Not as well as you, obviously.” He points at my hand. “That ring is a blindness hazard.” “And yet you can still see. Looks like I need to up my game.” Eli’s deep, dark voice rushes beneath my skin like a shot of adrenaline.
Ahhh
My intuition is proved right when he brushes his lips to my ear and whispers in dark words, “You’re so fucked, Mrs. King.”
Hehehe oops
Show them what you’re made of, Mrs. King.
Scream
You look stunning. My wife is many infuriating things, but she’s undeniably beautiful.
“You’ll pay for what you’ve done, you sewer rat. Don’t think you’ll ever get away with it when I haven’t.” “Pardon?”
Huh
“You think I’m beautiful?” Her voice is low, a bit haunted, lethargic, and nothing like Ava’s snarky, energetic one. But I nod anyway. “Say it again.” She sucks in a sharp breath and slides a cold hand on my chest, her movements awkward and stiff. “Tell me you find me beautiful.” “I find you so extremely beautiful, it hurts to look at you sometimes.” “More beautiful than your ex-girlfriends?” “I’ve never had a girlfriend and even if I had, they wouldn’t hold a candle to you.”
Ugh
“Are you real?” “One hundred percent.” “What if you stop being real?” “I won’t.” She strokes my lips. “I think you’re beautiful, too.” And then, in a massive upturn, she grabs both my cheeks, stands on her tiptoes, and seals her lips to mine.
Ok these two break my heart
I couldn’t care less, because when she releases me, a soft smile brightens her face. “Good night.” And then her eyes flutter closed. As I watch her peaceful expression, I almost forget that I’m married to what’s societally known as a madwoman. Worse, she doesn’t even know it. And I’ll make sure it remains this way.
Ok but why
Petition to transform the entire male population into men written by women. Please and thank you.
Agree
“I want to mark you, Mrs. King.” He fists my hair and lifts me so my back is flush against his chest as his dark, lust-filled words roll into my ears. “I want to hurt you, bruise you, and own you so thoroughly, you’ll be ruined for all other men. I want to feel your pain, see my welts on your porcelain skin. I want to choke your throat, bite your lips and nipples, and leave my presence across your whole body before I pound into your tight cunt so ruthlessly, you’ll beg me to stop.”
I mean she asked
“At least remove the lipstick,” Eli says as soon as he slips into the back seat beside me. I pout. “But it’s part of the outfit.” “Remove it, Ava.” “Nuh-uh.” I blow him a kiss in an attempt to lighten the mood. “Relax, darling, it’s only lipstick—” The words aren’t completely out of my mouth when his hand wraps around my throat, killing any protest. His face is so close, I can taste the mint off his breath. “Don’t fuck with me, Ava. I do not appreciate sharing my things with others, am I clear?”
Woof
“Meet my wife, Matthew,” Eli says. “Ava King.” “How do you do?” Mathew grabs my hand, but before he can bow down and kiss it like a gentleman, Eli swiftly pulls it away. “I told you to meet her, not to touch her,” he says with calm collectiveness.
Lmao jesus
“Don’t you think you went overboard—” My words are cut off when his angry words roll off me. “Is he the fucker you cheated on me with?”
Oh fuck
“Tell me you’re just tense and this isn’t what I think it is.” “You…you said we had sex,” I pant. “I never said that.” Oh God. Oh God. This is actually the first time I’ve had sex. Against a door.
Knew it
Eli starts to pull out, but I sink my nails into his arm, digging them violently into his jacket. “Don’t you dare fucking stop. You took my virginity, so you better make this worth it.” “Fuck.” He plunges in again, panting in my ear like an animal.
Damn!
open the door to Remi’s office and stand in a dramatic pose. “Surprise, Rems!” My jaw nearly hits the floor when I find Remi kissing a girl against the wall. And it’s not just any girl. It’s my headache of a sister. Ari. Upon hearing me, he immediately wrenches himself away from her, but the little shit wraps her arms around his neck. “Go away, Ava.” “Ariella Jasmine Nash!”
Ahhh haahhaha
“Remi!” Ava shouts, but I can hear the suppressed laughter in her voice. “Are you blind, too?” “No, I ain’t seen nothing. I ain’t seen nothing. Matter of fact, I’m blind in my left eye and forty-three percent blind in my right eye. I don’t see much of nothing. Matter of fact, I can’t even see you, sir.”
Hhhaahhaha
“No, which is why I gave you the fucking choice, Ava. You think I don’t want to pump you full of my cum, put a dozen children in you, and tie you to me for life? Because I very much do. But we both know you are not ready for that, so I gave you the option. I didn’t force you to take the pill, I only put it on the table in case you want it.”
Oh.... Yes please
A kid—or a few—would make her mine for good. Though there are two pesky inconveniences. One, I genuinely dislike kids. They’re messy and illogical—my least favorite characteristics. Two, I’d be forced to share their mother with them. I’m ready to overlook both. Barely.
Valid
“I don’t remember his face.” Her eyes brighten with an unnatural shine as she holds on to the desk with both hands. “Then what did you see in the memory?” “Just that he was, um, half-naked and I wrapped my arms around his neck and said my husband wouldn’t like this.” She watches me closely, her face pale as if she’s a prisoner waiting for a sentence. I resist a smile. It was me.
This asshole
“Oh, also, you should sack Tyler from reception at King Enterprises and make Hailey senior.” “Let me guess, she praised your looks and he didn’t?” “Yeah, she’s nice and professional.” Her lips push out in a pout. “Besides, he was ogling my tits.” “Consider him sacked.”
Lmao
The temperature shoots up instantly and I swallow. “I…I was going to heat you some dinner.” He walks toward me, eating up the distance in two strides, and wraps his hand around my throat. “Be my dinner.”
Grr woof bark
