Chapter 10 Chapter Nine
ARA
Thayne asked his men to lead me inside the penthouse while he left with Ursula.
Alone in the penthouse, I stewed in silence, unable to believe what my life had become.
Only hours ago, Madison had texted Nina. Was this a ploy to get Thayne's attention? I hated that everything about this bothered me.
My sisters’ fate were on the line. Thayne's father would likely seize Madison's miscarriage as an excuse to impose his will on Thayne.
Out of boredom, I started to wander the halls of the penthouse, entering rooms without locks and opening drawers.
I found myself in one room so dark that I nearly tripped on my feet.
It smelled faintly of Thayne, and I ignored how my body instantly reacted to that. The room was large, and when I stepped further inside, I was surprised that streetlights poured inside the room through the floor to ceiling windows in one corner.
What kind of room was this? I began snooping around immediately, flinging drawers open, poking my head in places I wasn't supposed.
I stopped short when I saw a picture of a woman who looked exactly like Thayne and Ursula put together.
Their mother, I thought to myself. But this wasn't the woman the press always spoke about. Was she dead? The press always mentioned Seraphina as Mrs Slade.
There was something I didn't know.
While climbing a chair in order to reach the picture hanging on the wall, I lost my balance and fell backwards.
I landed in a graceless heap on the floor, and I sobbed like a baby when I saw that I'd dislocated my ankle.
There was no bed in this room, so I sat there on the floor, unable to move.
I remained like that until sleep found me.
When I woke up, my soul nearly left my body when I turned my head to find Thayne watching me from where he leaned against the wall.
“What were you doing in here?" He asked, his face an unreadable mask.
It was already night, and I wondered just how long I'd been asleep on the floor.
“Was Madison really pregnant?" I asked him in return, trying to sit on my ass to avoid leaning my weight on my swollen ankle.
“That is no concern of yours." Thayne said in a monotone voice.
“You're a bully. You won't give me access to a mobile phone, I can't watch TV, I can't go anywhere. All you expect me to do is sit around like furniture. If you won't tell me -”
"You talk too much, Ara, do you know that?”
"Stop cutting me short! Answer me, Thayne. Was Madison really pregnant for you? If she miscarried your baby, then you'll have to marry her now, won't you?” I pressed.
"I will either marry you or not marry at all.” His answer took me unawares, and I blinked, staring at him as if that would confirm it was Thayne Slade truly speaking.
"You say that like I mean anything to you. I'm just a means to an end for you. You don't care what happens to me so long as we get married and I give you your heirs.”
"I wanted you the moment I found you in my VIP suite. I can't think straight anymore, I cannot make sense of anything else because you are everywhere in my head.” Thayne sounded like a tortured man, and his confession was a startling revelation.
“You kidnapped me, you took me away from my sisters." I said in a small voice.
Thayne ran his fingers through his hair. “I swore that I would do anything to find you, and when I did, I wasn't going to look back."
“But you hate me." I said, more to myself than him.
"What were you doing in here, Ara?” He asked, changing the topic smoothly.
“I was bored, forgive me for snooping around to entertain myself." I deadpanned, struggling to rise to my feet.
“You're not afraid of me anymore." He remarked.
“I'm sorry, but I'm not afraid of anyone." My statement seemed to cause something to spark inside him, because he began crossing the room in giant strides.
In less than a minute, he was upon me, pushing me against the wall.
“I want to fuck this smart mouth until you forget how to use it. You should fear me, Ara. I want to do very bad things to you.” His voice had taken on dark quality, and though a sensible part of me knew now would be the perfect time to run, I couldn't bring myself to.
“What's stopping you?" I whispered, my eyes unable to stay open.
I wanted to see how far I could push him.
“Nothing is stopping me." He growled.
“You don't sound very convincing." I said mockingly.
“You know what, fuck it."
I thought I'd finally pissed him off, so color me shocked when he lowered himself to his knees and lifted my thighs to hang my legs over his shoulders.
“Thayne, what are you - "
Unceremoniously, he ripped the silk evening dress I'd picked from the wardrobe in the bedroom and buried his face in my center.
“Oh my God," I cried.
He slipped his finger in the band of my underwear and with a loud rip, tore it from my body.
The pain mixed with the pleasure of his tongue now inside my pussy.
He fucked me with his tongue until my juices were dripping down my thighs.
“Thayne, I'm going to come." I screamed, my fingers digging into his hair as he sucked on my clit.
Just like earlier in the car, Thayne stopped pleasuring me and dropped my legs.
“You only come when you admit that you're mine." He told me.
“Why are you doing this?" I whimpered, not caring that I sounded like a desperate little slut.
“When I fuck you, you will beg for me to stop, and I won't." His lips were swollen and glistening from lapping at my center.
"Was it like this with Madison? Did you fuck her until she was begging?” I immediately regretted the question as soon as the words tumbled from my lips.
"Why do you think she won't stop finding ways to come back to me?” He asked in return, rising to his feet.
"I have ordered a brand new phone for you. I'll have one of my men deliver it to your room.” He continued.
"I don't want your gift."
“I'm giving you a chance to communicate with your sisters. Do not make me take it back." He threatened.
Thayne was as brutal with his coldness as he was beautiful. He only did things like this when it suited him.
“You're cruel."
“You shouldn't have stepped into my orbit then. You came with your own two legs and wandered into my suite. Did you think the one taste of you I had was enough? I want more, Ara, and I won't settle for less. I'm willing to wait until you submit your body to me. Only then will I give you pleasure.” With this, he left the room, and I was once again left looking bewildered.
As promised, one of Thayne's men—one which I'd never seen before—delivered my new phone up to my room.
As soon as I turned it on, I realized Thayne's number had already been programmed into the phone.
I rolled my eyes. Of course.
Now, I would have access to my Instagram account. I needed to know see those videos and pictures of me in the ruined dress for myself.
I logged into my Instagram, but before I could even check for the things I really wanted to, I got distracted by a post I'd been tagged to.
The blogger had written ‘Thayne’s Ex Suffers Miscarriage After Manhandling Her’ as the headline.
I blinked. After manhandling her? Madison had fallen to the floor because she'd intentionally done that. Everything about the miscarriage was suspicious, and Thayne wouldn't even give me the full details.
There were comments and reposts calling me a witch, slumgirl or a wanna billionaire wife.
Suddenly I regretted pushing Thayne to give me access to a mobile device.
When I finally found the video of Ursula spilling her wine on me, I hated myself for logging into Instagram.
All the comments were derogatory, slandering my name and going as far as posting my pictures to tag me a boyfriend snatcher.
A text from Thayne popped up on the screen of my new phone.
Your Husband-to-be: You're not allowed to text or call anyone, reply comments or post anything on social media without asking for my permission.
Of course. I would have to let him know first before I did anything with this phone.
I wanted to hate him more than I already did, but that was impossible because I was insanely attracted to him.
What was I supposed to do when all of New York thought I was the reason Madison had lost her baby?
I was convinced there had never been a baby in the first place.
I tried to go to sleep, but I couldn't. I couldn't forget the way Thayne's tongue had felt on my center, the way he'd sucked on my clit.
Under the covers, I began to touch myself. I parted my already slick folds and slipped one finger inside my pussy.
I began to slide that finger in and out, trying to imitate the way Thayne had fingered me earlier in the back seat.
With my other hand, I squeezed my breast and began to knead it. I pinched my nipple and rolled it to the point of pain.
I was just about to come when my phone vibrated with what I knew was a text from Thayne.
I groaned in frustration and reached for it. He wouldn't even let me take care of myself.
My eyes widened at the text he'd sent.
‘Naughty girl. Who told you that you could give yourself pleasure?’
Holy shit! Thayne had cameras planted in the bedroom!