OWEN
She doesn’t have to marry him.
I need to make sure Emma understands that she doesn’t need to marry anyone unless it is her choice.
I told her, but she didn’t look convinced. I’m guessing there’s way more pressure on her than I can even understand.
I’m glad I haven’t let Vinnie know that I have Emma yet, especially if that’s why he wanted her kidnapped. But I don’t know how much longer I can keep her a secret.
Word on the street is someone else has her.
Wilson Anderson.
Hudson has been helping that rumor to fly, but I’ve been trying to combat that with another theory. I’ve been trying to spread the gossip that Emma has gone, probably back to Ireland to be with her family, rendering the job pointless.
I don’t know how well I’m doing, but I’m trying.
I hate being seen as a shitty mercenary.
That has never happened to me before.
I’m known for being trustworthy and getting shit done, but this is different. I can’t let Emma be freed into the arms of men who just want to force her into terrible things.
I can’t let that happen… I just can’t.
I thought Shadowboxing outside the cabin would help me blow off some of this excess energy, but it’s just reminding me of the injuries I sustained in my fight with Hudson…
And that of course reminds me of the phone call I overheard between him and Rickie.
It’s been weeks now, since I first pulled Emma away from her life, and I keep getting further and further away from knowing what to do.
I just have to keep her safe, and while that isn’t the easiest thing in the world to do, that’s all I can focus on.
At least until I can come up with some other plan.
“Hey, Owen…” Emma’s voice calls out to me from the door. “What are you up to?”
She’s using that sickly sweet voice of hers, which I see right through. She wants to look like less of a threat, to make me think I don’t need to worry about her.
Well little does she know, I’ll always be worrying about her.
“I’m bored, Owen. What are you doing? Martial arts training? You know I’m good at sparring, and I could use the exercise… if you’re up for it.”
Hmm, intriguing.
I ignore my initial instinct to tell her to go back inside and nod instead.
“Sure, why not.” I pick up my phone and press a button on the tracking app that shuts off the electric feature linked to her monitor. “Come on out. Let’s see what you have, Emma.”
She carefully steps out the door to check if she won’t get zapped. It’s a bit comical the way she’s moving and a chuckle forms in my chest. When she sees it’s all clear, she sighs loudly then grabs a hair tie from around her wrist and pulls her hair back into a ponytail, showing me that she means business.
Fine.
If this is what she needs to do to pass some time on, then I’m here for it.
Emma has surprised me a lot, so I’m looking forward to seeing if she can do so again.
We start off light. I don’t want to push her too hard too quick, but she’s good. She has a punch on her.
“So, you really have done some training, huh?”
She chuckles. “Told you. My dad insisted I get strong.”
“Well, that’s good for you. He did well.”
I step it up a little, throwing some soft punches her way, but with her lithe body, she manages to avoid me.
“So, when are you going to tell me?” she asks as we continue to spar.
“What do you mean?”
“When are you going to tell me what your plan is with me? What do you want from me? What are you doing with me? When will you release me?”
I purse my lips together, giving her nothing.
The less she knows, the better.
“Urgh, why are you always like this?” She rolls her eyes. “So quiet? You never want to talk about anything serious.”
She hits a little harder. Not that it’s enough to even knock me back a millimeter. But I can tell anger is rolling through her.
“I just want to focus on the workout.”
“Oh, can’t you handle it, Owen?” she sneers. “Can’t you hack talking and fighting? Is that what happens when you get old? You can’t multi task any longer.”
“Enough with the age jabs,” I growl back, but my gritted teeth do nothing for her.
“Oh, it’s just trash talk.” She raises her brows, trying to look innocent.
“Can’t you handle that either?” Her next thump shocks.
Shit, she winded me a little because I was distracted by her.
“That’s enough,” I snap while I try to regain myself.
But she fucking keeps on coming.
There’s a rage filled look in her eyes, which darkens her pupils.
She looks like she’s lost herself to anger.
I push her back with a block, but that only inflames her rage further.
I wasn’t expecting a headbutt from her, so I didn’t do a damn thing to block it.
Crack.
Fuck, that was my bone.
Before I can even grasp my nose, blood spills everywhere. “What the fuck are you playing at?” Now I’m the one in a temper.
I don’t think even the blood has stopped her. I reach out and grab Emma, gripping her ponytail roughly so she can’t move.
I tug her hair until she’s down on her knees, staring up at me with fear in her eyes.
Good, she’s fucked me up. I want her to feel that way.
“Stay there,” I cry out gravely as I fix my nose with a crack.
Yeah, I’m used to this shit.
This isn’t my first time.
My nose has been through a lot over the years.
“You can not just fuck around like that, Emma. You don’t know what you’re toying with.”
She says nothing, but she swallows hard, nodding.
“Remove your shoe laces,” I demand, because she’s made my head spin.
This isn’t the exercise we came out here to do, but this is what’s happening now. No doubt about it.
I have to take advantage of this dark look in her eyes. I need to know what it means and where it’ll lead us.
“I won’t,” she bites back, spitting out her words with sheer venom.
Does she know that she’s driving me wild with that attitude?
The more she resists me, the harder I get. “Ow, fuck.”
My hold is painful.
She knows this is going to be a punishment.
“It’ll keep on hurting if you don’t do as I say. Get those shoe laces off.”
She grumbles petulantly as she pulls the laces out of her trainers, but that makes my smile wider.
Fuck she really does drive me wild.
Once I have the laces in my hand, I push Emma up by the nearest tree.
With military precision, I tie a tight knot on one hand, then pull her up to a branch and put the laces through to the other side to finish the knot. She’s exposed to me, hanging there, her feet are flat on the ground but barely.
“What a sight.”
I run my eyes appreciatively over her before shredding the clothing from her.
Bit by bit, I rip the material, pressing it hard against her skin as I tear it. Every pinch, every rip, it darkens that hooded look in her eyes.
“You really are a naughty girl,” I drawl. “I don’t know how else to keep you in check but to fucking make you bleed.” She gasps, her eyes widen with lust.
Her naked, flushed body makes me rock hard.
I can never control myself around her.
“Maybe if you weren’t such an asshole, I wouldn’t need to lash out at you.” Her eyes focus on my nose as she speaks. “Do you ever think that you might be the problem.”
I smirk as I yank her underwear so hard it tears. Cotton wasn’t ever going to protect her from me, was it? I think that’s why she chose it.
“I don’t know why you always think your rules are the right ones,” she continues, still sassing me even with none of the power in her hands. “Just because you’re an old man.”
Ah here we go again. The ‘old man’ jibes.
She loves getting a reaction from me with that one.
Well, let’s see if she loves this.
I screw her panties up in my hand and smirk at her. “I think it’s time you shut up, don’t you?”
Before she can even give me an answer, I push the ball of cotton into her mouth, watching her face change as she tastes herself.
I know she tastes delicious, so this is definitely a treat for her.
“You are fucking crazy.” I run my fingers through her hair, pulling out the ponytail. “That’s why I need to keep on punishing you.”
I love the way she bucks and writhes as I caress her body.
I am so ready to devour her, but I need to see her lose her mind first.
There’s nothing sexier than watching this woman go crazy.
“You have no fucking idea what you do to me,” I growl. “You are such a sexy little minx.”
She grumbles something back, but I can’t hear her with the material in her mouth.
“I might even go as far as to call you a sexy little slut.”
The derogatory word makes her weak at the fucking knees.
“Whore,” I whisper in her ear before nipping at her skin.
God damn it, does she have to be so delicious? How will I ever give her up?
“You’re a dirty girl, and I’m about to make you a whole lot dirtier.”
Seeing her naked skin flushed in the bright sunlight, still covered in bites and welts. Knowing I’m the one who stained her skin, who claimed her as my own, is painfully hot.
I bite down on my bottom lip hard, but can’t let the groan of delight out.
I step back and watch her eyes fly downwards to my rock hard cock, which I’ve pulled out. Her pupils darken as I run my hand all over myself.
“I know you want to run your hands all over me, every inch of my skin… But Emma, you’re not allowed to touch me.”
She struggles against her binds, but those knots are tied with military precision.
She isn’t going anywhere.
I pump my fist hard and fast, trying not to lose my shit just at the mere fucking sight of her.
Not the easiest thing to do when she looks like that. God damn it, she’s a dream come true.
“My own little slut,” I murmur. “My own little plaything, that’s what you are, Emma.”
But I know I need to taste her, to feel her, to fuck her.
The need throbs and vibrates all the way through me. I don’t even know if my feet are touching the floor anymore. I’m close to the top of the mountain, about to tumble over the fucking edge at any given moment. Bleep, bleep.
“Fuck.”
What is that?
My God damn cell phone.
Not now.
But I spot the name on the screen and I know this is something I can’t ignore, even if I’m on the knife edge of desire. This is serious shit… the rest of the world is coming for me, whether I want it or not.
Vinnie Lucchese.
Meet me tomorrow, Owen. At the office. Or I’ll send people after you.
Fuck.
There’s no avoiding him anymore. I can’t get away with this any longer.
I don’t know how I’m going to handle it, but I don’t even want to think about this right now. Not when Emma is tempting me like that.
It’s easy to push Vinnie out my mind.
It’s easy to forget all my issues actually.
Right now all I care about is her.
I have to devour her, right away. No more distractions.