Page 24 of His to Own

Where are all the other people? It’s almost closing. There’s hardly anyone here to help me.

I pick up my pace but in my kitten heels I end up tripping over a bump in the floor. I sprawl to the ground and before I can get back up, Maxim is towering above me.

“Why did you run?” he asks.

“Because you were chasing me. I was scared.”

He lowers himself beside me and pushes a piece of my hair behind my ear. “I told you before, Elena. You don’t have to fear me. I won’t hurt you.”

“Then why are you bringing me back to my father?”

His eyes narrow. “Does your father hurt you?”

I can still feel the sting of my father’s hand against my cheek. For some reason, I don’t want Maxim to know. Call it shame. I’m not sure. All I know is that I don’t want him knowing intimate details he can use against me. “I just don’t want to go home,” I whisper.

“Why?”

“My father doesn’t want me going to school. He wants to control my life. He…”

“He what?” Maxim’s soft tone is lulling me into a false sense of security. He’s dangerous. I cannot forget that.

“He wants to marry me off to someone of his choosing.”

“And that someone isn’t me, I take it.”

I shake my head. “I don’t want to go back. I want my own life.”

Maxim gives me a pitying look. “And I’m sure you deserve to have your own life. But this is the mafia, Elena. That’s the world we live in. And you’re going to become my wife because I want to make a deal with Nikolai and you’re the only way to establish trust between us. So I am going to take you back to your father. And I am going to tell him that I could have hurt you but I didn’t and it would be wise for us to be married. For everyone’s sake.”

A gasp escapes my lips as a tear falls down my face. “Why are you doing this to me?”

“I already told you. It’s nothing personal, Elena. Well… maybe it is. I like you.”

“You don’t even know me.”

“I don’t need to know everything about you to know that I like you. You’re going to be my wife. I am getting what I want. Now, let me take you back to your father.”

“My driver is waiting for me.”

“Your driver can just go home. I’m taking you back. Now, let’s go.” He stands up and holds his hand out to me. There’s a firmness in his eyes. I get the sense that Maxim is the kind of man that once he has his mind made up, that’s it. There’s no changing it.

Slowly, I place my hand in his. A jolt of electricity forms between my fingers. I gasp and Maxim smirks as he helps me to my feet. He doesn’t let go of my hand even after I’m standing.

“You are a fascinating little thing,” he comments.

“How? No one ever thinks that of me.”

“Then that’s a shame. But I find you fascinating. I think that’s all that matters, don’t you?”

I try to pull my hand away and after a beat, Maxim lets me go.

“I told you, Elena. You don’t have to fear me. Aren’t I a much better candidate for husband than Sergei?”

“You killed Sergei,” I whisper.

“Yes. To get to you.”

“Who else will you kill to get your way?”