Текст книги "Return to Grace Street"

Автор книги: Ella Dominguez

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Return to Grace Street

(Chapter 8, #2)

Return to Grace Street

(Chapter 8, #2)

Copyright © Ella Dominguez, 2014

All Right Reserved

Dedication

Hubs & Co.: My two most beloved people on this earth.

My mother for her support, confidence, and unconditional love.

Acknowledgements

A huge round of applause to my beta readers for their timeliness, honesty, and support.

Special thanks to Raegan and her Mister for detailed feedback. They made this book a better read for everyone.

A ginormous wet kiss (possibly with tongue) goes out to Mallory M. for her continued assistance and inspiration over the years. And also, for putting up with my less than tactful sense of humor. I love you!

To my loyal readers – THANK YOU! Your words keep me strong, happy and inspired.

www.GoononWrite.com – as always, for his patience and wonderful cover art.

A big thank you to the new readers for giving an unknown author a chance.

What a sociopath looks like by Sue Fitzmaurice, Author, paraphrased

Playlist

No Rest for the Wicked by Lykke Li: http://youtu.be/Hh-0y8Qe0Sw

Drowning by Banks: http://youtu.be/HzGHgQBPyV0

Flaws by Bastille: http://youtu.be/1E36WU9Wzf4

Your Surrender by Neon Trees: http://youtu.be/JcEuRT7rrP4

Undressed by Kim Cesarion: http://youtu.be/YPIbULzCcCg

Power of Love by Gabrielle Aplin: http://youtu.be/zNpeK7sDLzE

Beloved by Say Lou Lou: http://youtu.be/UOa3vAQUJSE

You Could be Happy by Snow Patrol: http://youtu.be/76Mbnuwk2d4

Embrace by Goldroom (MyKill Remix): http://youtu.be/r5Fj0ARh2l8

Eyes on Fire by Blue Foundation: http://youtu.be/24ICmB1Mka8

Wherever You Go by Sleeperstar: http://youtu.be/hdGM4JUxpKA

The Power of Love by Gabrielle April: http://youtu.be/zNpeK7sDLzE

Hurricane by Thirty Seconds to Mars: http://youtu.be/3RLwuDQSkDI

My Heart is Open by Maroon 5: http://youtu.be/JccOEJurFGc

Down with the Sickness by Disturbed: http://youtu.be/HkhfL0pnMPQ

Nicotine Dreams by Laurel: http://youtu.be/LKiHhHxcM2I

Untitled Lyrics Quoted (No copyright infringement intended)

Salvation by Gabrielle Aplin: http://youtu.be/3IEMnWhT_7c

A Long Time Ago by First Aid Kit (http://www.thisisfirstaidkit.com): http://youtu.be/8znvmgi0pXc

For the full Return to Grace Street playlist, follow Ella Dominguez on Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/user/12146676013

Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Playlist

Prologue

1: Interruption

2: Ultimatum

3: Game Plan

4: All In

5: Intermezzo

6: Terms & Conditions

7: Before Darkness

8: Q&A

9: Struggle & Regret

10: Ms. White

11: Pieces

12: A Gift

13: Accountable

14: Deliberate

15: Denial

16: Surrender

17: Refuge

18: Consistent

19: Enraptured

20: Killer Instincts

21: Uncertainty

22: Rise & Fall

23: Reality Check

24: Reunion

25: Stripped Away

26: Confronted

27: Show & Tell

28: Surreal

29: Fate Intervened

30: Destiny Revealed

31: Blackened Heart

Chapter 8: Closing Thoughts

More from Ella Dominguez

Prologue

Elsa’s full, crimson lips pressed against another man’s mouth. Victor cringed and took a drag off his cigarette. His eyes darted upward toward the gray, darkening sky in an attempt to focus on something other than the intimate scene that was playing out before him. He had seen it far too many times to count since she walked out on him, and yet it hadn’t become any easier to watch. If anything, in the past two weeks it had only become more painful each time.

The sun was nearly behind the horizon, and only the shadows on the street could be seen under the streetlights. Feeling as miserable as the cold, rainy weather outside, he cued the song No Rest for the Wicked by Lykki Li, and cracked open his window to let the smoke billow out. Irritated with himself and his predicament, he flung the butt out the window. There was no one to blame except for Mr. Black for the shit storm that had become his life.

Unable to resist, his gaze snapped back to Elsa again. Even in the darkness, his hawk-like eyes found her. She flicked the light switch on in the entryway of her new home, the light bathing her svelte body. From this distance, he could just make out her braless hardened nipples under the lace fabric of her snug-fitting, white dress. Was she without panties too and still following his rules like the good girl he had taught her to be?

Christ, she was beautiful. Every inch of her body spoke to him. With a clenched jaw, his cock stiffened in his worn jeans. If only he could taste her. Sink his tongue deep into her cunt. Feel the warm, tightness of her ass around his cock again. Run the tip of his tongue along the vines of the tattoo over her ribcage.

Her red hair shimmered under the fluorescence, and he tried to remember what it felt like to have her long, sweat dampened locks hanging in his face as he pumped into her. What he wouldn’t give to hear her moaning, panting and begging him for more…

A feminine laugh rang out and sliced through his psyche. His awareness sharpened as she threw her arms over the man’s shoulders and his vision blurred with anger and jealousy. Not once had she ever laughed like that with him and rarely was he graced with her smile. And whose fault was that? Fucking, Mr. Black.

Grinding his teeth, he cursed under his breath at the adoration she was showing the man in her arms. Never did he anticipate that things would go as far as they had or expect their interlude to turn into something long term. If he had, he would’ve stepped in much earlier. One taste of Elsa and the asshole smiling back at her was hooked. Could he blame the man for sticking around? Fuck no, he couldn’t.

After the first six months of hell, stalking and watching her every move as she tried to recover from the aftermath of the devastation he had wreaked on her life, he couldn’t take anymore. Relocating, selling his house and moving away were his ways of coping with everything. He had hoped that by putting distance between him and Elsa, he could move on, and she could do the same.

What a fucking joke. No amount of distance between them seemed far enough. Not even the other end of the country.

California: A colossal waste of fucking time.

Sunny weather, toned bodies and smiling, happy people… It was all just another cruel, Goddamn joke. All that bullshit only made his reality more unbearable. Not even the sex he had to try and forget about her was worth mentioning. Sure, the women were attractive, but they all looked the same with their perfectly straight teeth and fake tits. And every last one of them had a personality so dull it couldn’t have cut through fog. It made no difference how far they spread their legs, how good they sucked his dick or the fucked up things they let him do to them – they couldn’t hold a candle to Chapter Eight.

And Chapter Nine, that was just another massive time suck. His heart wasn’t in the game anymore no matter how hard he tried.

As for Mr. Black, he was itching to come back out in a bad way. Having done his best to stay away from the ember-haired beauty who claimed she would always love him, it had been a long eighteen months holding his demons at bay. But here he was again, back in Richmond, hoping against hope that this time things would be different. That he would be different.

When he heard the news about Elsa’s plans, he knew the clock was ticking. It was now or never to try and convince her to play his game once more. But what if she said no? Then what? How far was he willing to go to get her to succumb once again? His well-thought out plan had made concessions for all sorts of scenarios, but not for the possibility that she would refuse to play the game. He couldn’t go there. Not just yet. The benefit of the doubt would be given to her this time around; even if it was merely a pretense. Only if push came to shove would he consider doing the unthinkable – forced submission.

Knowing Elsa’s strong will, it would be a fight like no other if it came to that and they would both most likely end up hurt, emotionally and physically. Shaking his head, he pushed the thought out of his mind. Everything in his power would be done to not allow it to come to that.

He drove away from her house, her name slipping past his lips unconsciously. He recoiled from the sound of his desperate voice in his ears. He needed her to play the game again. Just once more… Only then would he sever ties with her and allow her to live the life she deserved and to have the love she said she needed to give and receive.

Back in the privacy of his home, he found his journal, turned the page and scribbled into it.

There you were tonight with those defiant, brown eyes shining for another man. When that sweet laugh of yours rang out, I couldn’t help but wonder how long it’s been since you’ve cried or thought about me. A day? A week? Longer? Do I still linger in your thoughts? Do you remember what it feels like to be under my command? You held that man as if he was your destiny, but very soon I’ll remind you of your true fate. You’ll feel the intensity of my kiss, the strength of my embrace, and the sting of my bite. Not today, not tomorrow, but before I allow you to take another man’s name, you’ll be reminded of the seriousness of my rules and the bond between us that can never be broken. Not even by ‘I do.’

1: Interruption

The face looking back at Elsa in the mirror was a sad, tattered version of her former self. While touching up her cherry-colored lipstick, she practiced her many different smiles; the happy, ear-to-ear smile, the bashful half-smile, and the oh, that joke is funny, toothy smile. Not a single one was genuine, but no one would know the difference. Nor would they know that behind her bright, brown eyes hid the pain of her past failed relationships. The pain of her scarred heart was hidden well behind that insincere smile, and she liked it that way. No one needed to know that a sincere smile hadn’t made an appearance for more than a year and a half, and that her laugh lines had long since faded. Not even Nate.

She swallowed hard and tried to suppress the nagging feeling of discontent that had been present for months. In less than an hour, she would be announcing her engagement to a man she didn’t really love in front of her mother, the few friends she had managed to keep, and a plethora of people she didn’t know.

Nate scooted in behind her, pushed her hair aside and kissed the nape of her neck, his warm lips doing nothing to her libido except reminding her of how passionless her life had become.

His cool, blue eyes watched her questioningly. “Are you nervous?”

It was remorse, not nervousness, coursing through her veins. It all felt rushed; the timing wrong; the reasoning not right. She had said yes when she should’ve said not yet, maybe someday, maybe never. But it was too late to back out.

She nodded and averted her gaze to the dripping faucet.

Turning her body to face him, she pressed her face against his chest. With her arms wrapped around his thick waist, she inhaled his inexpensive, yet soothing, cologne. His body stiffened in response like it always did, his arms limply hanging by his sides before pulling out of her reach.

Cold and detached; just like all the rest. How she always managed to end up with that type of man, she would never know. Why she allowed herself to fall for them, she could only curse herself for.

Looking up into his impassive eyes, she forced her I adore you smile. Even if he wasn’t loving and affectionate in the traditional sense, he was kind, hardworking, and loyal. And he was present. Not all of the time, but enough to keep her from being lonely and dwelling on things and people that were better left in the dark recesses of her mind.

Leaning against the bathroom counter, she fidgeted with the hem of her skirt and mentally kicked herself for having agreed to make a big deal out of their engagement. It was Nate who was the social whore; not her, and the thought of being around a large group of strangers was less than appealing.

“Maybe we can postpone the party for another weekend,” she whispered, hoping he would take pity on her.

Nate’s strong hands gripped her shoulders and he gave her the kind of gentle, impersonal shake a parent gives a child when they’re acting unreasonably. “Don’t be ridiculous. Everyone is waiting.”

“Can’t we just stay in and hold each other tonight?” she pleaded, touching the lapel of his suit jacket.

“Are you serious?” he blinked in astonishment. “That request is a little cheesy, even for you.”

When he rolled his eyes, she withered under his dismissive glare and accepted her fate.

*

An hour into their evening, Elsa’s nerves were thoroughly frayed. She was fresh out of false sincerity, and her last fake smile had been dealt out fifteen minutes earlier to a group of people she had never met before in her life. While her mother endlessly mingled and beamed about her daughter’s upcoming nuptials at the other end of the large restaurant, Nate was somewhere telling tall tales about his good old days as a Navy pilot. It was just as well since all she wanted to do was hide out at the cash bar, far away from the others.

With a half-empty glass of wine in her hand, she closed her eyes and tried to remember a time when she was happy. A time before her life had forever changed and her heart stripped of all its sentiment. A time before her light had nearly been doused. Before… him.

It seemed like a lifetime ago that everything bad in her life happened. Perhaps it was. Time had come to be an abstract thing that was neither here nor there. It simply carried on, day after meaningless day; the one constant in her life that lacked reality or significance.

To a certain degree, Nate had changed all of that for her. He had brought her a small amount of happiness on some level; made her feel somewhat whole again; helped her to feel pretty again. She was grateful for that. She rolled the stem of her wine glass between her fingers while wondering about her rationale for accepting his proposal. Deep down, she knew the reason. It had been out of gratitude and sense of indebtedness she felt toward him. He had made her forget about how she had fallen in love with a man who would never love her in return, even if he had only made her forget for a moment.

Frustrated with where her thoughts were going, Elsa quickly drank down the remainder of her Blackstone. On the day that was supposed to be a festive celebration of her future, why the hell was she dwelling on the past when there was nothing she could do to change it?

“Your fiancé must be feeling brave to be drinking on a weekday.”

The deep, familiar, eerily calm voice sent chills down her spine, making her nearly drop the empty glass tumbler in her hand.

“She does like her wine,” Nate answered with a light laugh.

Her barstool was abruptly spun around, bringing her face-to-face with the man who wanted to share his life with her and the one who had completely wrecked her life.

“Elsa, this is Victor Laurenzo. He works for the FBI.”

Her mouth hung open as she stared into the most cruelly deceiving green eyes to ever look back at her.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he reached his hand out to her.

Unable to move, all she could do was stare back at him, wordless, while his eyes roamed over her face. He was sporting his usual just-got-fucked hair and was dressed to the nines in an expensive, black tailored suit and pink striped tie. When she inhaled his familiar scent, memories of their time together flooded her brain. As one corner of his mouth twitched into a faint smile, she forced herself to take his hand into hers, shaking it woodenly.

“Congratulations on your engagement,” he held onto her hand tightly.

The well-mannered and gracious response that came out of his mouth was anything but heartfelt and the contempt in his tone was glaringly apparent. At least it was to her.

She quickly snatched her hand away from him and tucked herself into Nate for protection, hoping he would hold her for a change. When he stood rigidly unmoving next to her, she clutched him tighter, trying to relay her need. Only then did he place an arm around her shoulders. When she glanced in Victor’s direction, he was watching their interaction with great interest. Irritated and flustered at seeing him and having felt his touch after so long, she forced herself to focus on something other than the man who had beaten her, rejected her love, and ripped her heart out.

Nate and Victor’s voices droned on around her as they made polite conversation about work, and for an instant, she got the feeling that they knew each other. It wasn’t entirely impossible since they were both Richmond natives, but Nate had never mentioned knowing Victor before. While she avoided looking in his direction, her mind was abuzz with nervous energy and alarm. She used to fear the day when Mr. Black would show up again. She knew it was inevitable, but after he had moved away, there was hope that maybe, just maybe, he was truly out of her life for good.

Dread began to creep up on her when she could feel his eyes on her, probing her, inspecting and scrutinizing her every move. Angry thoughts began to assail her as she stood in the wake of his gaze. When had he gotten back into town? Was this a business trip or strictly to make an appearance to remind her how he fucked her over in the worst possible way?

She bristled at the sound of his voice and held on tighter to Nate.

Who the hell did he think he was by showing up to her engagement party? Why the fuck couldn’t he just leave her alone? After what he put her through… What he did to her… How dare he show his face.

Unable to resist, she glanced in his direction and gave him her best get-the-fuck-out-of-here look. When his mouth twisted into a devious grin, it was all she could do not to scream obscenities at him for having interrupted her life just for the sake of his own sick pleasure.

As if sensing her intentions, his brows arched upward. “Have we met before?”

Nate’s eyes converged on her, making her shift uncomfortably in his arms. The coy question and smirk on Victor’s face made her cheeks flush with fury.

Clearly pleased with her discomfort, he continued staring at her, daring her to respond.

“I don’t think so…” she stammered and freed herself from Nate’s feeble grip so that he couldn’t feel her trembling.

If only she had the courage to say what was really on her mind…

She turned to flee, but had a sudden change of heart. She wasn’t the same girl that she was before Mr. Black’s harsh treatment of her, and there was no way in hell she was going to allow him one single moment of smug satisfaction. Peering over her shoulder, she eyed him warily but threw caution to the wind.

“I had a run in with someone named Mr. Black once. He was a real son-of-a-bitch. You very much remind me of him.” Nate’s eyes widened, and his face brightened with embarrassment, but she continued, undeterred. “The resemblance between the two of you is uncanny. Are you related to him?”

***

The tendons in the back of Victor’s neck tightened, but he held his composure. Just as he opened his mouth in rebuttal to Elsa’s bold remark, she cut him off.

“Never mind. He was no one of importance.”

Her words struck a blow. She strode away, her curvy hips sashaying in time with the angry clicks of her heels on the hardwood floor, mocking and reminding him of how she had turned her back on him once before. The creak of his jaw from clenching it so tightly was loud in his own ears and blood surged through his veins at her audacity.

“I apologize for her attitude. She’s been in a real mood tonight,” Nathan stuttered. “It must be her nerves.”

Why the fuck was he apologizing for Elsa? She hadn’t done anything but be her insolent self. As he stood toe-to-toe and eye-to-eye with Nathan, he sized him up. For a moment, he considered suggesting a three-some with a cute stranger or hooker just to see if the man could remain faithful in the shadow of his upcoming marriage.

Fuck that.

The thought of having anything sexual to do with the man for whom his hatred had grown exponentially over the last month was nauseating. Especially knowing he would most likely go running back to Elsa and still end up marrying her.

He had watched her carefully for nearly an hour and her exchanges with everyone, paying close attention to the phony elation plastered on her face. It was so fucking obvious that every bit of her joyfulness was just a show. He found it astounding that no one else could see right through her charade.

His worst fear had been that she was truly enamored with Nathan. However, seeing her with him up close and how awkward they were together physically, his mind was put at ease. She didn’t love him; she was simply settling. He knew Elsa to be strong-willed; not someone who would accept anything less than exactly what she wanted. Hell, she left his ass when he denied her love, so why the hell was she now willing to marry this guy who couldn’t even show her affection in public?

As always, her actions mystified him. He had no idea where her head was at in this whole situation, other than to say he could tell he had upset her by making an appearance. That much was abundantly clear. Though, in reality, he expected nothing less after the way things ended between them. Ideally, he would’ve hoped she fell at his feet and begged him to fuck her senseless and take her back, but that was just his ego talking, and he knew it.

“Being in the Navy taught me two things…”

Nathan’s voice reminded Victor of a scratchy, broken record, repeating the same shit over and over. Jesus Christ. All this man ever did was talk about himself. His eyes scanned the length of Nathan – all six feet, two inches of him. This was the narcissistic asshole that Elsa was sharing a bed with? The worthless, waste of space who was fucking her and whom she had agreed to spend the rest of her life with?

He blinked long and hard. The mental image of Nathan’s face between her legs flashed behind his lids causing him to clench his fists until his knuckles blanched. Suddenly, he was faced with an overwhelming urge to stab something blunt into his airway just to get him to shut the fuck up.

For a split second, he wondered if this is how his sociopathic father felt while contemplating murdering someone.

His eyes narrowed at the piece of shit standing in front of him as he talked incessantly about nothing except himself. Victor’s eyes roamed over his body yet again, taking in every inch of him. What the hell did she see in him? So what if he had been some big shot pilot in the Navy? So the fuck what if he was attractive and well-built? All that should’ve happened was that she had a brief fling with him and moved on.

What a hot, Goddamn mess. How the hell did he let things get so out of his control? His only intention had been to give Elsa some comfort, not for her to end up marrying this pussy who felt the need to apologize for her rash yet enticingly punish-worthy behavior. There was no way in hell this man could be satisfying her on any level.

With Elsa now out of sight, every ounce of sociability and tolerance vanished, and he just wanted to get the fuck out of there to plan his next move. He had made his point and let her know that he was still in her life. Now he just needed to remind her that unless she agreed to his new proposition, he always would be.