“Miss Breckenridge of The Fellowship brotherhood, I swear to you on the life of my firstborn son that Miss MacAllister will not be harmed by me or any member of The Order.” I can’t resist dragging my knuckles down her baby-soft cheek. “Do we have a deal?”
She nods. “Deal.”
The motion of the car soon stops, and Glen opens the door. “Take Miss MacAllister to the guest quarters. Feed her if she’s hungry. Offer her a shower and change of clothes, but keep her confined there. You heard my deal with Miss Breckenridge. No harm is to come to her.”
“Yes, sir.”
I grasp Westlyn’s wrist and lead her toward my suite. “Miss Breckenridge and I will be in my quarters. Do not disturb us under any circumstances.” I have some claiming to do. And a firstborn son to conceive.
“Yes, sir.”
“Wes… I… I’m so sorry,” her friend calls out.
“It’ll be okay, Elli. Go.”
Westlyn doesn’t know me. She has no idea what I’m capable of doing, and yet she’s going to my quarters with me with her chin held high and her back straight as an arrow.
She’s under the impression that she’ll be raped and beaten enough for two women, but there are no tears. No whining. No pleading. I admire the strength she is displaying.
I open the door to my bedroom suite and hold out my hand. “Ladies first.”
“I think you mean captives first.” Damn, she has a smart-ass mouth on her for someone who was just kidnapped by her people’s worst and most dangerous enemy.
“Captive works as well.”
She enters and stands in the middle of the room, assessing her surroundings. “This is a very nice prison. My compliments to the decorator.”
This woman is blowing my mind. How can she be brave enough to say such things? “Is this all part of some kind of training you’ve undergone?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
Her reaction is flat. Emotionless. It’s as though she’s an empty body, and her mind isn’t here with me. I don’t like it, and I’m going to elicit some kind of reaction from her one way or another.
I pick her up and carry her to my bed, tossing her in the center. She lands on her back and presses her knees together. “You can close your legs all you like, but that isn’t going to keep me from getting between them.”
Her eyes widen as she watches me take off my jacket and go to work on the buttons of my shirt. It’s the first hint of fear I’ve seen from her.
I leave my pants on and crawl up her body until we’re face-to-face. “I thought you might want to finish undressing me.”
No reply.
“What’s wrong? You have nothing cheeky to say about that?” She turns her head, but I grasp her face and make her look at me. The grip of my hand on her cheeks forces her lips to protrude. “You make me want to fuck the sass right out of this pretty little mouth.”
Still no reply. Disappointing. I was hoping for a little more of her smart mouth. I like it; it’s something different since no one ever dares to provoke or challenge me.
I look into her eyes and study the flecks of color. Green. Brown. Gold. Such a lovely contrast next to her brown hair with golden streaks. I never dared to think, or hope, that my wife might be this beautiful.
Gorgeous women are always pursued, but gorgeous women with Westlyn’s footing within The Fellowship would be highly sought. “How many cocks have been inside you?” There’s a sharp hitch in her breath, as though I may have offended her. “Tell me now.”
Her eyes narrow. “So many that I can’t remember them all.”
So many that I can’t remember them all. That makes me see fucking red.
A Fellowship whore. That’s who my wife will be. I should have known, but I had hoped that there was a chance that she had remained pure.
Wrong.
“If you’ve had so many that you can’t remember them all, then one more won’t bother you. I promise you that you’ll not have a problem remembering this one.” I push my hand up the bottom of her dress. “I’m going to fuck you as often as I want and as hard as I want, and you’re not going to tell me I can’t.” I feel for the crotch of her knickers and yank it so hard that the fabric rips apart. “How many of those men have been inside you without protection?”
She stares at the ceiling, saying nothing, and blinks rapidly.
I lower my body, so there’s only an inch or so between our faces. “Answer me now, Westlyn.”
“Fuck. You.”
Is she trying to piss me off? Make this worse than it has to be? “Oh, you’re definitely about to do that, Fellowship whore.”
Her eyes narrow. “You are a monster. You’re going to be the perfect leader for The Order.”
Her words penetrate my rage and seep into the rational corner of my mind, the part that tells me I’m allowing my anger to take over. If I don’t get myself under control, I could truly hurt her.
I’m a leader. I can’t allow emotions to dominate me. Ever.
This woman has the power to affect me. Affect my actions. My emotions. It’s a weakness I can’t afford.
I push away from her and sit back on my haunches, looking at her lying on the bed with her knees pressed together like an innocent virgin. “You shouldn’t have defiled your body by being with all of those men.” I move off her and go to the bench to grab my shirt. “You should have kept yourself pure for your husband.”
Pure for me.
She says nothing, but pulls the bottom of her dress downward to cover her legs and scoots to the head of the bed.
I go into my closet and fetch the long white silk gown my mother chose for her virginal daughter-in-law. Not this woman who freely gives her body to men. Not this woman who has no honor.
I toss the gown on the bed at her feet. “Put on this gown while I’m gone and expect to finish this when I return.”
Kieran Hendry asked me how many dicks I’d had inside me, and I couldn’t bring myself to give him the pleasure of knowing that his would be the first. My virginity isn’t his for the taking. It should belong to my future husband, but thanks to him, that’s never going to happen.
I’m not sure why he stopped. Maybe it’s his cruel way of prolonging my dread and fear, but he seemed angry to hear that he wouldn’t be my first. Why? Why would a brother from The Order care if I was a virgin or not?
I touch the fabric of the gown he tossed on the bed. So soft and silky. Exquisite. Expensive. Why does he have this beautiful gown? It looks like something a bride would wear on her wedding night. And why does he want me to wear it? What purpose does it serve?
I don’t understand what’s happening. I don’t understand why he was angered when I told him I’d been with other men. And I don’t understand why he’d be so offended by my virginity not being intact for my husband.
Why does he care?
I don’t want to put on the gown, but I’m afraid not to. Kieran Hendry and I made an agreement, and he could harm Ellison if I don’t do as he orders. I can’t allow harm to come to my dear friend when I have the power to prevent it.
A tear slides down my cheek as I recall my brother lying on the ground, shot and bleeding. My pain and fear at being stuck in this
compound are doubled because I have no idea if Jamie is dead or alive. And neither does Ellison. She must be losing her mind right now.
I love Jamie. He’s one of the few people on this earth who understands me. I can’t lose him. I can’t.
I lie down on the bed and recall the things that Kieran said to me.
You make me want to fuck the sass right out of this pretty little mouth.
I’m going to fuck you as often as I want and as hard as I want, and you’re not going to tell me I can’t.
Expect to finish this when I return.
He’s going to do horrid things to me when he comes back. And I agreed to let him without a fight.
This is how I’m going to lose my virginity. Raped by the new leader of The Order. Sullied in the eyes of the Fellowship brothers. Not one of them will have me as his wife after this.
Who am I kidding? Raped by The Order’s leader or not, no Fellowship man was going to claim or marry me anyway. My father ensured that outcome. He made certain that every brother knew I was off-limits. Not one would give me the time of day. Good thing I never planned on being with a Fellowship brother because I’ll never find one who’ll have me when Kieran Hendry is finished with me.
My father is dead, and the brothers still won’t so much as look in my direction. It’s as though they’re afraid Abram Breckenridge will rise from the grave and fulfill this threat to massacre any man who touches me. I almost wish the evil bastard were still alive so he could make this Kieran Hendry asshole sorry for everything he does to me.
I decided a while ago that I would never marry a Fellowship man, but I always believed it would be on my terms. Not because I’d been ruined by the new Order leader.
Life in Edinburgh with The Fellowship is the only life I’ve ever known. Where will I go after I’m considered tainted goods? What will I do with my life?
I jolt when there’s a knock at the door. Who is knocking and asking permission to enter the room where a captive is being held? “Come in?”
The door opens and a short, stocky woman with solid gray hair pushes a table filled with food into the room. “Hello, dear. I’m Mrs. Bruce. Mr. Hendry asked me to bring your dinner while you wait for his return.” She looks at the crumpled gown on the bed. “He also asked me to assist you in preparing for bed.”