Avrora
Panic writhes through me as I realize how much danger I'm truly in, but I still can't think past the terror. All I want to do is get out of here and away from him.
"I'm not yours." I try to imbue my voice with the strength I summoned before, but it's evident I'm scared.
"Say whatever you want. Truth is truth. Now change out of that dress and come downstairs for something to eat."
I shake my head. "No. I don't want anything from you. I want to go home."
"This is your home now."
"Fuck you!" I shove at his granite chest, hurting my wrists.
He laughs, mocking me again. "Fuck me? Is that a request, Valkyrie?"
The pet names-princess, baby girl, and Valkyrie-just enrage me.
"You fucking bastard. You know it's not a damn request. Let me go."
"I said no, and this is the last time I'm going to tell you to take off the dress."
"Fuck. You."
I don't even get to entertain my next thought. Anatoli shoves me hard against the wall, grabs the top of my dress, and tears it right off me like a bodice-ripping pirate. The delicate material shreds under his savagery, and I scream, barely registering that I'm topless. The dress had a built-in bra, and now my breasts have fallen out, bouncing into his chest as he presses against me.
The beast of a man then tears off my panties and throws them to the side, assaulting my dignity.
With my bare pussy on show and nothing left to cover me, I panic further. More disbelief hits me because he's the first man to see me naked, and I don't even know him.
I don't know what he's capable of or if I've only accelerated his seedy plans for me.
Grabbing my wrists with one large hand, he pins them over my head and holds me down so I can't move. He then does a full sweep of my naked body, his eyes roaming over my breasts.
"Do you honestly think I enjoy this?" He asks, his grip around my wrist so firm, so strong, they hurt as I try to twist, to get away from him. "Enjoy seeing you squirm in my hold like this? Enjoy making you cry?"
"Please let me go," I croaked, choking back tears. "Let me go, Anatoli."
"And then what? Risk you running back to him? You wish he would come rescue you, don't you? You love him."
"I love nobody. I will never love neither of you," I lie.
"And that's where we have a problem, Avrora. You should love me. Me and only me. I'm your fucking husband now and you're my fiery little sexy-as-fuck Valkyrie." His warm breath tickles my skin as he inches in toward me again, moving to my ear. He licks over the lobe and tugs on the edge, making something weird stir deep in my core. It feels far more intimate than it should, and my nipples harden. He notices, and I sense a smile on his face even though I can't see him properly. "Do not think I didn't notice the way you looked at me earlier."
"I don't know what you're talking about," I pant, embarrassment filling my cheeks because I know exactly what he means.
"I never figured you for a liar, so let's not kid ourselves. You wouldn't have looked at me like you wanted to fuck me if my brother were getting the job done."
His crass words send a bolt of electricity through me, and my eyes snap wide. He shuffles, meeting my gaze, and leans in so I can feel his arousal pressing into my belly.
"Feel my dick, Valkyrie." He smiles, pushing his cock harder into my skin. On feeling his size and rock-hardness, moisture gathers in my pussy.
Shit. I'm wet and growing wetter than when I touch myself in the private confines of my room.
My mind goes deeper down the rabbit hole when he traces a finger down the length of my stomach and lingers at the start of my mound.
"What are you going to do to me?" I whisper.
"I don't think you're ready for that yet." A deep chuckle rumbles in his chest. "But here's what I have in mind: me, fucking you hard against this wall. You, screaming my name. Begging for more."
Wildfire flicks over my entire body, and I know not even I can deny the thrill of this. Whatever this is that's happening between us.
Tilting his chin, he gives me a shit-eating grin. The kind I imagine a shark would display before it devoured its prey.
"At least I'm not a liar," Anatoli says. "You don't have to wonder if I want to fuck you. You can feel it, and I'll tell you like I just did."
"You're a vile, crude asshole."
"Yes, but you like that, even though you shouldn't."
"You're completely deluded if you think that." As heat and embarrassment continues to consume me, I'm not sure who I'm trying to convince. Him. Or me.
He looks at me as if he can see straight through my words to what is probably nothing but lies. "Let's get a few things straight, shall we?" He brushes his nose briefly along mine, his warm breath doing things to my body I can no longer ignore. "This is your new life now, and there's nothing you can do about it."
I stare back at him, feeling the weight of my world crumbling all around me. I know there's nothing I can do to fix it, but I need to know why this is happening.
I need to know what Dad did.
"What power do you have over my father to do this to us?"
"Enough to bury him." He uses the same icy tone as before. A steel weight drops in my soul, pulling me under. "I have enough for the Knights' Council to force him to his knees and execute him. And everyone in his family. Starting with you. One word from me, and that's it-death."
My heart stops like someone switched off all the power. When it starts beating again, it's pounding faster and faster and faster, and my brain is paralyzed with terror.
Dad, what the hell did you do?
Execution?
For all of us?
Him first? No. I can't lose my father.
I can't.
Not that way. Or anyway.
"No. Please. Don't let them kill him." I'm begging with my heart and soul because this is so much worse than I thought. "Please. I'm sure he's sorry for whatever he did. He's not a bad person. I swear it. He's not bad. He's my father."
I'm pleading with everything in me, but his icy glare tells me I'd have more luck talking to a wall.
"That means nothing to me." Hatred radiates from Anatoli's eyes, telling me exactly how he feels about my father. I've never seen hate like that on anyone. It's crippling and frightening, and making me realize that Dad must have done something terrible to him. That's the only thing that makes sense, and explains why Dad said his hands were tied.
"What did he do to you?" My voice is barely there, but the question seems to stall him.
There's a moment of silence when he looks like he's contemplating an answer, then the hardness returns to his face.
"You don't have to worry about that now."
"But I should know."
The mocking smirk comes back and he leans in again, his chest brushing over my nipples-a reminder that I'm naked.
"Believe me, princess, it's best you don't know. So do not ask me again." He moves back and his eyes drop to my lips then float down to my heaving breasts. Lust-more intense than at the wedding-ignites when he looks back up at me. It's too much. Too intense. Too overpowering. "All you have to worry about is pleasing me. You will do as you are told and when you are told. Fuck with me, and I won't hesitate to punish your father, or you. You understand?"
I nod slowly, looking away from him.
Quickly, he catches my face and guides it back to his. "Look at me and tell me you understand."
"I understand."
"Good girl. Now you can get yourself ready for our wedding."
My God. No. "Our wedding?" I can barely get the words out.
"Yes, Valkyrie. In five weeks, you'll be my wife."