Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 105679 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 528(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105679 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 528(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
Just like I had done to her.
I swung my legs over the edge of the bed, testing my balance. The room spun slightly, but I steadied myself against the nightstand. Annoyance at my own weakness bubbled through me, but I couldn’t deny the thrill that coursed through my veins.
My wife had teeth and claws.
She wasn’t the docile, broken creature I had believed her to be.
Serafina was far more dangerous than I’d given her credit for. She was a player in this deadly game we’d begun and fuck me, she played it very well.
Her intelligence was intriguing.
Her defiance was addictive.
The clock on the wall showed it was just past midnight. Hours had passed since the incident in the kitchen.
I rolled my shoulders, feeling the muscles unclench as I made my way to the door. Each step was deliberate as I regained control.
I needed to see her, to confront the woman who had nearly ended my life.
No one has ever come close to doing that.
No one has ever dared.
I made my way to her room, and when I tested the handle, her door was unlocked.
A challenge, perhaps.
Oh, I liked challenges. Especially ones that involved my wife, and the fire in her eyes.
I pushed her open without hesitation.
Serafina sat propped against her pillows, a book in her hands, her dark hair cascading over her shoulders, the lamplight casting a golden glow across her features.
She didn’t look up as I entered, and didn’t acknowledge my presence at all.
So calm. So composed. So elegant.
But for how long?
How long until she broke again, the fire of her hatred and rage bursting through?
I stalked closer, waiting for her to acknowledge me, to show some sign of fear or triumph. But she remained perfectly still, unbothered as she turned a page of her book with deliberate slowness.
I almost laughed.
My wife was so cute.
I settled into the armchair across from her bed, the same one I’d occupied during my midnight visits. This time, I wasn’t hidden in darkness.
This time, she knew I was watching.
The silence stretched between us, heavy with unspoken threats. She turned a page, then another, her expression serene, as if she hadn’t just nearly murdered her husband hours before.
Her calm composure was both maddening and intoxicating.
C’mon, Princess. Show me those teeth and claws.
Hours passed.
The moonlight shifted across the floor as I observed her, noting the steady rhythm of her breathing, the occasional flutter of her lashes.
She was reading a romance book. How fitting.
The longer we languished in silence, I found myself becoming even more intrigued, a dangerous fascination with this woman who had the audacity to try to kill me and then sit calmly, reading as if nothing had happened.
Finally…fina-fucking-lly, she reached the last page.
Serafina closed the book with a soft thud before setting it aside on the nightstand.
Her hazel eyes lifted to mine, clear and defiant.
My cock twitched.
“Hello, husband,” she said, her feminine voice steady, without a trace of guilt or fear.
“Hello, wife,” I replied, matching her tone.
The silence stretched between us, charged with unspoken threats and newfound understanding.
“You tried to kill me,” I stated, watching her face for any flicker of emotion.
She smiled—a small, cold thing that didn’t reach her eyes. “And I see you survived.”
“Did you think I wouldn’t?”
She shrugged, the movement graceful and unconcerned. “I considered it,” she admitted, tilting her head slightly. “But then I realized it would have been... inconvenient. Because that kind of death is a little too merciful for you.”
I laughed, the sound rough in my damaged throat. “Oh, so you were showing me mercy?”
She shook her head. “No, I was just reminding you that I’m not your victim. I’m not your pawn. And I am most certainly not your possession.”
I quirked an eyebrow at her confident words.
She was no longer the frightened bride who hid, and tried to make herself invisible behind a closed door.
“You let me believe that I would die the night you released your beasts at me.” Her voice was deceptively soft as she spoke, but I didn’t miss the sharpness in her eyes, as we were both reminded of what I had done to her. “And I was just simply returning the favor. Isn’t that what marriage is all about? Balance? Oh, what is that word…” She tsked, smiling a little. “Oh yes, equality.”
Ah, so she wanted to prove that she was an equal partner in this marriage.
Well, at least she wanted to be my partner.
The thought crossed my mind, almost like a fevered dream, but then I remembered her hand on my brother’s chest. Touching him.
She fucking cooked for him.
And then she poisoned me.
“You’re not loyal to me,” I said, stating the obvious.
We were married, yes.
But her loyalty was…questionable.
“Why would I be?” She asked, not bothering to deny it as she sat up straighter, her chin lifting. “You’re not my choice. You never were. I wanted to marry Matteo. I was supposed to marry Matteo.”