"Fuck you, she never wanted it," I rasped, chest heaving with anger. "Fuck you," I ground out again, with another swift kick.
The man curled up in a ball, clutching his stomach.
"Nooo!" he wailed, "Nooo, please, I beg you!"
I was just about to smash his head, raising my foot to stomp on that stupid fucking brain, when suddenly a girl's voice rang out. And not just any voice, but the voice of my girl, my woman, the female I adored above all else.
"Troy," Ellie pleaded, voice melodic, soothing to my soul. "It doesn't matter. Or it does," she corrected, "but let it go okay? Because Miles brought us together."
I turned to see her standing in the room, the beautiful brunette at the Billionaires Club and blinked stupidly, not believing my eyes. What the hell? My girl had come back? How was this possible, was I walking in a dream?
So I shook my head, eyes blazing all over her body.
"Honey," I ground out. "I hope you're not joking because this fucker kidnapped you and your friend, put you up for sale against your will. That's not how the Club operates and no one gets away with it," I spat. "Much less this motherfucker."
She turned to look at him as well, his prone form curled up in a protective ball, like a hedgehog waiting for another strike. And there was something so pathetic about it that I felt my anger ebb, felt myself grow calmer.
"I know," the beautiful brunette said softly. "I know Troy," she said, putting a small hand on my arm. "But let it go okay? He's already hurting enough," she said, "Just let him get fired, he'll never cross you again."
And I grunted, taking her elbow. Because the truth is, I didn't want Ellie to see the damage I'd done already. The lesser man was face down, so she couldn't see the broken nose, the bruised eyes, the fact that I'd already kicked out a couple teeth. The physical damage was bad yes, but even worse was what was coming. Because Miles would never do business with the Club again, and to a greedy lowlife like this, that had to hurt the worst.
So I guided Ellie from the room, leading her into another one, with chairs and table, set up for conferences.
Sitting down, I took a deep breath and took in the gorgeous brunette. Fuck, she was a breath of fresh air for my beaten soul. Soft, beautiful, her face so innocent and angelic, framed by wavy strands of brown. And that body, oh fuck that body was Venus de Milo come to life. I'd succeeded in putting a couple pounds on her frame during our week of love, and she wore it well. It was hard not to jump her, not to let go of all my inhibitions and become an animal ruled purely by instinct, driving in deep, watching her sigh and gasp as my cock took what was mine.
But that was the problem. Ellie wasn't mine, not anymore.
"Why are you here?" I ground out roughly. "And who the fuck let you in?"
She colored then.
"Troy," she said softly. "I told the front desk that I had an emergency, so they let me in," she confessed. "I kind of made something up."
I grunted. There was no way the front desk should have admitted her. Or at least, they should have made her wait by reception until I came to find her, not wander about the halls of the Club unescorted. What the fuck?
But Ellie shook her head.
"Troy, it doesn't matter," she said firmly, reading my mind. "How I got in doesn't matter, it's clear the rules need some enforcing, but not now," she said. "Because we need to talk about us."
And my breath literally stopped then, my heart felt like it was going to hammer right out of my chest. Us? What the fuck was she talking about? But I wasn't going to let on how shaken I was, how rocked to my soul. So I went in smoothly.
"Baby there's no "us,"" I said silkily. "I bought you, remember? In fact, the money should have hit your account already," I said. The words were like acid on my tongue, bitter and foul-tasting, but it was true. The funds had been released from escrow, and Ellie was a rich woman now.
But the brunette shook her head stubbornly.
"We started out with nothing but the physical," she said slowly, brown eyes never leaving mine. "But it became something more. Because, Troy Black, you love me," she finished. "You love me so much that you didn't take my virginity, even though it was bought and paid for, it belonged to you."
And my heart stopped for a minute before lurching to life once more, going a million miles an hour. Because the words were absolutely true. I'd fallen head over heels in love with the brunette, and every minute away from Ellie had been sheer agony, walking on hot coals, my soul dragged over the ashes. But I wasn't willing to draw the brunette into a life she'd never asked for.
"Honey, you don't know what you're talking about," I rasped harshly. "I bought you, you got that right. And now that I'm done, we're done. There's no us," I ground out. Oh fuck, again bile rose to the back of my throat, every word choking me. But I managed to say it straight, my expression giving nothing away.
Fortunately, my girl was tenacious.
"No Troy Black, I know you," she said, her voice firm and confident. "I know you. You love me so much that you let me go, seeing if I would come back. Because I was abducted against my will, that's true, kidnapped straight out so you wanted to give me another shot at life. But don't you see?" she said persuasively, the look on her face fierce yet loving, a woman to be respected. "You love me so much you let me go … and I came back. And no matter how we started, what matters in the end is that we love each other, that we're together, that we don't go through life like strangers because of some mix-up."
I choked hoarsely in my throat.
"Baby," I rasped. "This is some fucked-up logic. All I know is that I bought you, signed, sealed and delivered. What else is there?"
And the girl shut her eyes, taking a deep breath as if to calm herself, to stop herself from lashing out at me. But she found her Zen and those caramel pools opened again, so warm I could drown in them.
"Troy," she said gently. "Tell me you don't love me," she challenged.
I stopped there. Because every word of this conversation had been painful. Every word had been acid in my mouth, choking me, so vicious, so vile that each sentence had been daggers. Could I do it? Could I lie off my ass to drive her away for good?
"I- … ," I began, determined to go through with it. Fuck, I had to say it. Fuck fuck fuck.
"I- … ," I started again.
But everything came crashing down then. Because Ellie looked straight into my eyes, piercing my heart, my soul, and the truth was what mattered. I caved in, I gave in to what I needed most, this woman, this female, my world, my love.
"I love you Ellie Danes," I rasped, voice hoarse, blue eyes blazing. "And I'm never gonna let you go now."
Because my mouth was on hers in an instant, claiming her lips in a kiss, so deep, so penetrating that our hearts locked together like two pieces of a puzzle, a perfect fit, this woman was my other half. And her soft sigh, the way she melted against me, told me that everything was going to be okay. After the wild walk we'd taken, we'd found each other, braving the dark forest to come out on the other side, still together, hand in hand.
"I love you Ellie Danes," I ground out against her mouth again for good measure, my arms tightening like steel bands around her back. "You're mine. Forever," I punctuated the sentence, feeling the truth in every word.
Because yeah, we'd started out badly. The brunette had been forced into the lair, taken against her will. But through it all, she'd grown, she'd developed, matured, learning to brave the world on her own. And I'd changed too. I'd become a better man, my hard nature softening when I was with her, gentler, kinder, her sweetness taking off the edge. Yes, the brunette had been abducted, and to make up for it, I'd let her go, choosing to see if the bird would come back to the nest. And Ellie Danes had come back. My beautiful girl had tasted her freedom, flown high in the skies, and found the courage, the gumption to return to the lair and find her reward, take what she'd earned, and what I was willing to give with my whole heart. Because I belonged to Ellie too. I, Troy Black, belonged to this woman, her goodness and generosity balms to my soul, and although I'd been the highest bidder, in the end it was Ellie who won the auction, with my soul, my heart, my everything given to the girl in gold.
EPILOGUE
Troy
She lay with her head pillowed on one arm, curled on one side, breathing softly in sleep. Oh fuck, Ellie was so gorgeous, brown hair strewn about her shoulders, soft body relaxed in the warmth of the bed. And as if she could sense my eyes on her, the way my blue gaze blazed over those generous curves, her leg shifted a bit, knee drawing up, baring that beautiful slit to me, the brown pucker of her ass.