Veiled Obsession(19)

“Never,” he said gruffly into my hair, and I heard him inhale sharply. “You belong to me, Haley. Forever. Don’t you forget that. I own you. You love me. Say it, baby.” His voice dared me to say no.

“I …” I croaked as he squeezed me tighter, as though attempting to force the words out of my mouth. I pushed against his muscular chest. No chance. My strength couldn’t match his. “Love … You.”

Apparently satisfied, he released me and shoved me so hard I fell to the floor beside the bed. “Good.”

He took a step toward me and I curled up into a ball, my heart pounding loudly in my ears. This was definitely a different man standing before me. A stranger.

“Now, I want you to show me how much you love me.” He grabbed my ponytail again and yanked me to my feet, tossing me on the bed.

Then he was on top of me, tugging my skirt and pantyhose down, spreading my legs while unzipping his trousers.

Pain choked me when he roughly entered me and started to grind into me, his sweat dripping onto my face, his face stone cold, his eyes dark and unreadable. In a flash, it occurred to me what was happening. He had no intention of making love to me. He was raping me, taking what he believed was his. My feelings, my emotions didn’t matter. He was making a statement, warning me that he would hurt me if I disobeyed him.

The tears that slid down my cheekbones and into my ears were hot and unhindered. The harder he slammed into me, the deeper he plunged, the more I trembled under his weight from fear and pain. In that moment, another piece of me splintered and broke.

He held my hands tightly above my head, pinning me down with his body, making it impossible for me to move. I could only pray that it would end soon.

When he finally came, he slumped on top of me and groaned deeply. Then he pulled out, and zipped up his pants. He walked out of the room without looking back.

As I lay on our bed curled up into a ball, smarting from his touch, I knew something for certain. Marrying Jude Macknight had been a dangerous mistake. But some mistakes can’t be fixed. I belonged to him. I had no choice but to pay the price.





CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

I looked forward to days when Jude went to the office, when I could steal a few hours of peace. These days, unfortunately, were becoming rare.

I stood at the bathroom window and watched his car pull up. He was back home early for the third time this week.

I watched him climb out his Jeep, looking sharp and precise as usual. Even from upstairs, I could see there was not a curl out of place and not a wrinkle on his dark suit, which stood out against the late summer leaves in the sunlight. He was always so put together, while I was falling apart. Just watching him made my stomach twist with disgust.

Why couldn’t he go away for a while? He hadn’t been on a business trip in two months. Every time he was home, my stomach was constantly in knots and I walked on eggshells. Even when he was out of sight, inside his home office, I felt his presence near me.

Since the day he’d raped me, things had only worsened between us. He hardly spoke to me at anymore and when he did, I was usually so surprised I didn’t know what to say to him. The only connection was sex. A connection I wanted to break desperately. He was now determined more than ever to get me pregnant.

Sex with him was now rougher, shorter, raw, and so frequent that my body forgot how to rid itself of the aches he left behind. Every chance he got, he pinched me, slapped me, bit me. Anything that made me cry out in agony. It disgusted me to think that hurting me turned him on.

He took what he wanted, when he wanted it, and didn’t care whether I was up for it or not. My needs, my feelings, no longer mattered. Every time he entered me, I became less his wife and more his sex slave. A toy with no feelings.

Wincing from the memory of his firm grip on my bruised thigh this morning, I unwrapped the towel from around my body and took a long, hot shower, scrubbing myself until my skin was raw. Disobeying his rule, I had locked the bathroom. What more could he do to me that he hadn’t done already?

When I was done, I pulled on a bathrobe and went down to the kitchen for breakfast. Jude was probably in his office because I didn’t bump into him.

As soon as Lin saw me walk in, she turned away from the door and busied herself at the stove. “Mrs. Macknight, I make eggs, bacon, okay?” Over the past few weeks, I noticed that Lin had started asking me what I wanted to eat instead of just cooking what Jude wanted. She was doing little things to show she cared.

I sank into one of the stools at the marble kitchen island. “You don’t have to do that, Lin. I can make my own breakfast.” To hell with what Jude thought. A part of me just didn’t care anymore. “Take the day off.”