Elena

When I awake I'm sluggish, my mind is a murky pond of water, and I'm trying to see through it and to the bottom. It takes only a second for me to remember the events from the night before, and my eyes flutter open at the same time, my body jackknifes upward and into a sitting position. For a fraction of a second, dizziness overtakes me and then fades away.

Frantically, I look down at my body and find myself still clothed. Clenching my thighs together, I don't feel any soreness or pain.

He didn't touch me, at least not sexually.

Looking at the spot beside me where he laid before I fell asleep, I find that it's empty. Relief floods my veins, but that relief is short-lived when I hear a throat clear across the room.

"Good Morning, Elena." His deep husky voice makes me shiver.

Slowly looking his way, I find he's leaning against the wall, wearing nothing besides a pair of low hanging shorts. His muscular chest is on full display, an assortment of tattoo's etched into his skin. I can feel his eyes on me, feel them watching the steady rise and fall of my chest.

When I glance up to look at his face, I take in the scratches I left on his face last night. I still can't believe I did that, and I'm still expecting retribution.

There is a tray of food on the table beside him, and my stomach rumbles loudly as I eye it. I'm hungry, but not starving.

"Hungry?" he asks the obvious, clearly able to hear my rumbling belly. "I had one of the maid's bring up breakfast. You should eat while we discuss what is going to happen next."

"I'm not hungry," I lie and tug the sheet higher.

It's like no matter how many pieces of fabric separate us or how much space, I still feel as if I'm exposed, one second away from being completely naked.

Shrugging as if he doesn't care if I eat or not, he plucks a piece of fruit off the stray and pops it into his mouth, chewing very slowly. "Suit yourself. Do you want to hear what's going to happen next, or are you not interested in that either?"

He's baiting me, and as badly as I want to turn in on myself and refuse to play his game, there is nothing like not knowing what your opponent's next move is. It's clear to me that this is a game to him, and I'm the unwilling pawn.

"Tell me."

Smiling, he seems pleased that I've taken his bait. "As you read in the contract, you are mine now. You belong to me, and I can do with you as I please."

"That contract doesn't mean anything. You can't buy a person, and you forced me to sign it. It can't possibly be legal if I didn't willingly sign it."

"I know your dad kept you in the dark, and I know you're naive, but you are not stupid. You know what kind of family you come from, and you know that we don't play by society's rules. You are part of my world, and in our world, that contract is binding till death." His words are like a knife cutting any ounce of hope that I had.

I don't know why I even dare ask my next question, but if I don't, I won't know how to prepare for my next fight.

"What do you want from me then?"

"Everything. Starting with you sleeping in my bed every night. You will live here with me, and there will be no privacy. For now, you will stay in this room. If you want freedom, you have to earn it, and you can do that by following the rules and obeying me. If I tell you to do something, you do it. There will be no fighting."

"Of course," I scoff. "You kidnap me and expect me not to fight when you try and hurt me? You're right… I'm not stupid."

"I didn't kidnap you, and I haven't hurt you…" The words trail off, and his gaze narrows on me. My throat bobs as I swallow around the lump of fear there. I'm terrified and trying my best not to show it. Julian is the type of man that will take a mile if you give him an inch.

"Yet," I add.

"Correct, yet. You can keep yourself safe and earn freedoms so long as you obey me."

It's like being at home all over again. Trapped. No freedom. No joy. My stomach twists into a knot, and I think I might puke.

"A month from now, you will become my wife, and then you will be completely mine. In the time leading up to that, I want your complete submission. You will listen to me and trust me without question."

Tears sting my eyes, but I blink them away, fisting the sheets a little tighter. Tears are a weakness, and I don't want him to see how weak I am, how weak I feel. My chest tightens, and anger rips through me.

Why would my father give me to this man? Why would he let him take me without right or reason? This isn't how it was supposed to go. I was supposed to be given to a man that would keep me safe, that wouldn't hurt me. I didn't expect love or even to be equal to my future husband, but I didn't expect to become a rug beneath his feet either.

"Let's see how well you listen." He claps his hands together and walks over to the bed. "I want you to get up and take a shower."

My mind is racing. There has to be a way out of this, but I have nothing to barter, nothing but my body which he already owns.

"Please," I whisper softly, willing him to see me as a human and not an object. "There has to be something else you want. Someone else you want?"

Cocking his head to the side, he stares at me wearily before his entire face goes blank. A moment later, a mischievous grin appears on his lips, and I know I've made no headway.

"I have everything I could ever want. Money, power, status, and now I have you too. I don't want anyone else. There is nothing more in this world that I could want or need." Darkness clings to each word, and I feel my escape slowly slipping away. Spiraling out of control, I need to gain some type of ground. I can't let him win. I can't.

Scurrying off the bed, I make it all of three feet before he's on me. Like a cat, he pounces, his fingers finding, and wrapping around my throat as he shoves me back against the mattress. I land in a heap, the air ripping from my lungs on impact.

All over again, I'm trapped between him and the mattress, this time though, his hand is wrapped around my throat, his grip firm but not bruising, his eyes dark and stormy. He's calculating and fierce.

He holds all the power, and I'm nothing more than a pawn in his sick, twisted game. He has no reason to want me. A man of his stature could have any woman he wants.

"Please," I croak and grab onto his wrist, trying to pry his hand away. I'm afraid he's going to hurt me, take and take until there isn't anything else to take. "Please don't…" I'm not sure what I'm asking him not to do, all I know is that I don't want him to hurt me or rape me. I'm not sure I could come back from that type of pain.

Leaning into my face, his nose brushes over mine, it's such an intimate action that doesn't match his behavior. He watches me cautiously as I tremble. I can't allow myself to fall for his softness. I have to remember he is the one who hurt me, the one who took me away in the middle of the night.

Pulling back an inch, his steely gaze roams my face. I can feel the power he exudes as he holds me to the mattress without barely any effort.

The weight of his body, the ste*el r0d between his legs pressing into my belly, a reminder of what's to come. It's frightening. How he could easily snap my neck with nothing more than the flick of his wrist or steal my virtue while holding me against the bed.