Children of Vice (Children of Vice #1)(31)



He flinched, his whole body like stone, as he scowled at me for simply speaking the truth.

“Donatella C. Valentino. It has a beautiful ring to it, doesn’t it? Italian for brave and strong, which also suits me perfectly, but then again you knew that, didn’t you? It is your name, Tobias.” I verbalized his own desire, his own ambition, owning a woman who was out of his league.

Fuming, his nose flaring, he squeezed harder. “Do you truly believe that I’ll be in love with you forever? That I’ll do this with you forever?”

“Yes,” I said without a shadow of doubt. “Atoms shall be infinite. The sun will rise in the east and set in the west. Time will go on in perpetuum. And Tobias Nikolai Valentino will always love me. Whether he’ll be with me or not is completely up to him.”

“You know that isn’t true!” He sneered, baring his teeth at me.

“Just like you know that is your problem not mine, and I will wait for you to sort it out. Now release my arm before I get upset.”

The look in his eyes was so heated, so furious. If they could, they’d burn a hole in my face.

“Last warning.”

When he released me I walked out the doors simply saying, “Exactly why my name is still Donatella Aviela Callahan.”





NINE


“I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.”

~ Nelson Mandela





IVY


Coming out of the bathroom, I expected to see the maid who’d come to help me, but she was gone. Instead, Ethan stood in front of my bed, dressed only in silk black pajama bottoms, allowing me to see his bare chest, the perfect definition of…well, f*cking gorgeous. Every single inch of him was toned and smooth as if he were carved out of marble just for me to gawk at.

Walking to him, I sighed. “I thought we had said everything that needed to be said—”

“Ivy.” He placed his finger on my lip. “Stop fighting.”

That single touch paralyzed me…I couldn’t move. I didn’t want to move. My mouth parted and my body leaned in as one of his strong hands cupped my ass, the other my breast.

“Say it,” he whispered before biting the top of my ear.

I knew what he wanted me to say, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Instead, I reached out, touching his chest, which felt so cold under my fingertips and yet made me feel so hot at the same time. He kissed down my neck, his tongue hot as he licked my skin, his hand squeezing me…we just met. We shouldn’t…but goddamn it I wanted it so badly. I needed it badly.

“Please…” I swarmed in his arms, the aching between my thighs the only thing driving my mind at the point.

“Say it,” he demanded again, lifting his head up, his lips just hovering over mine. “The moment you say it…you can have everything.”

“I…” Before I could get the words out he was gone.

“Ma’am?”

“Ma’am?”

Eyes now open, I stared up at the face of an older woman, maybe in her late thirties or early forties, with brown eyes staring back down at me.

“Good morning, ma’am.” She smiled kindly, moving back as I sat up, running my hands through my hair.

It took me less than a second to remember where I was. It wasn’t hard as the room I sat in most definitely wasn’t a jail cell.

“There is mass this morning, and normally the family skips breakfast, but I was told to give you something light, to last until afterward,” she said, placing the tray on top of the bed over my legs.

I glanced down at the bowl of fruits, crackers, water, and orange juice she prepared for me.

“If you don’t like it I can have the kitchen prepare something else.”

My mind was a little stunned. This was how they started the day? Breakfast in bed? It was so vastly different from my own life that I was too stunned to do or say anything.

“Ma’am?”

“It’s fine…ugh…thanks,” I muttered, reaching for the water instead of the juice.

She nodded her head, walking to the front of the bed where she lifted two outfits. The first was a gray cap-sleeved dress with a sweetheart neckline and a wool burgundy coat. The second was a burgundy laced dress with long elbow-length sleeves and wool gray coat. Both of them screamed elegance. However, I preferred being a little more covered up…maybe that would keep me from dry humping anything within sight seeing as how I couldn’t keep my mind out of the damn gutter.

“The red one,” I said, stuffing a few crackers into my mouth.

“And your shoes?” She lifted up three different pairs already at the front of the bed. For a second I wondered what the hell I had taken that she was able to prepare all of this while I slept less than a few inches away. I was a light sleeper…or at least I thought I was.

“You can pick whatever,” I muttered, still eating. I was sure they would all match perfectly and hurt like hell when the day was over anyway.

“I’ll start your shower,” she said, moving to the bathroom.

When she disappeared inside I fell back down onto the bed to freak out as I should have when I woke up. Oh my f*cking God! I was dreaming about him. Ethan. I barely knew him and yet I wanted to screw him so damn bad.

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