Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 87996 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 440(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87996 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 440(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
“Mr. DuBois, come out with your hands up. We have you surrounded, sir.”
Mr. DuBois? Sir? I chuckled.
Even after kidnapping a New York princess, defiling her, and sending the evidence to her brother and father, I still was shown respect by the men who were hired to hunt me down like a dog.
Even when they pursued me, they recognized me as their better.
Now it was time for Luc to get the fucking message too.
I didn’t even try to hide my satisfied smile as I heard the first loud bang on my front door. I leaned back and pictured the four men on the other side of my front door carrying a large battering ram. The sound of it hitting the aged oak was surprisingly loud. The bang echoed over the calm black water.
Another one quickly followed.
That door was solid oak and reinforced.
Whoever was using the ram was going to get their workout in today. Though I didn’t understand why they just didn’t go around to the back. The glass doors would break much more easily and they were unlocked.
I guessed common sense was not an asset of the grunts Luc hired.
Finally, after several louder slams, there was a distinct cracking as my door splintered. Two more hits and the boys had finally made it through.
From the deck of my yacht, I watched as my hideaway was infiltrated by a second-rate security force.
“Clear,” the first call came out.
“Clear,” the next one yelled.
Soon someone flipped switches and turned on the lights.
Even knowing what they were going to find, or rather what they weren’t going to find, it was still entertaining as hell.
The French doors next to me slid open, and Olivia ran to the railing and screamed, “Here, I’m here! Help me!”
She looked so damn good wearing nothing but one of my shirts, the tie belt long forgotten.
I had never felt the need to take care of someone like that, let alone so intensely that it made my chest ache. It was physically uncomfortable to pull myself away from her. I had to, I couldn’t let myself get too attached. I had to see my revenge plan through.
It was too late to turn back now.
The damage was done.
Making her change into my shirt was a mistake. Having her smell like me and knowing the only thing between my body and hers was a thin layer of cotton made me possessive. I wanted to keep her, never let another person see or touch her. Which was greedy, even by my standards. A woman this beautiful was made to be shown off, not hidden away like a jewel in some vault.
She gave another call over the railing.
I swirled my wineglass, unconcerned. I sighed, hating having to hurt her again. Yet also hating that I hated it. “They can’t hear you, princess. We are too far out, but if you want to keep screaming, go for it.”
“What do you mean they can’t hear me? I can hear them just fine. They should be able to hear me.”
I held up the tablet that was playing the live feed from the cameras I had set up around the house.
She scanned the still, dark waters. “It doesn’t look too far,” she said mostly to herself.
“It’s a lot further than it looks,” I said, standing in case she tried to do something stupid.
She climbed onto the first rung of the railing, and I took a deep breath and casually walked over to her, keeping my hands in my pockets.
If I touched her again, I wasn’t sure I would be able to stop.
“I wouldn’t do that. We are two miles out, and you aren’t wearing anything but a shirt. You will get hypothermia and die before you are halfway there, assuming you don’t get caught in a riptide and drown first or get eaten by a shark.”
“You don’t care if I get eaten by a shark,” she tossed over her shoulder as she climbed another rung and swung her leg over to the other side.
I grabbed her by her hips and pulled her back over, then picked her up and brought her to the lounge chairs I had set up so she could watch the show with me. “That’s just simply not true. If you were dead, how would I get your brother back for everything he is doing to me? And besides, I’m the only one allowed to eat you.”
She struggled for a moment, and then when she realized I had no intention of letting her go, she laid back against me and relaxed as she stared at the screen.
The men moved through my house, breaking open doors and flipping over furniture.
Finally, they got to the bedroom.
I double-tapped the window, so it took the entire screen.
A moment later, Luc Manwarring walked into the room.
CHAPTER 26
MARKSEN
Olivia sucked in a startled breath and reached out her hand, touching the screen with her fingertips.