“Three years?” He has a curious tone in his voice, but for some reason, it sounds cocky too.
He grabs my hips and flips me upright, making me sit sideways in his lap while grabbing a fistful of hair at the nape of my head until he can control my movements. I stop struggling as I hear the possessive, wanting tone in that deep, smooth voice of his.
“Kitten, I’ve never left your side. Not once,” he states, causing my brows to furrow. I can see the outline of his sharp cheekbones under the overhead light.
I gasp, my mind racing as I remember over the years feeling like someone was always following me, his scent lingering in my apartment, and my missing underwear every time I woke up. I thought I was losing my mind.
“What have you done?” My voice shakes, fear and rage taking hold of me, but deep down, something else I’d rather not name.
He leans down and skims his nose along my neck as he tips my head farther back, his mouth pausing over my fluttering pulse with the softest brush of his lips before he pulls away.
“What I had to do. You think I’d leave you? You’ve been mine since the first time we met. I’ve always been right next to you, watching from my camera and holding you at night. Right where you belong, in my arms.”
He’s a fucking psycho.
Wait a damn second.
“Cameras?” I gulp, shock hitting me hard as I struggle out of his lap and back down the aisle, away from him.
“I had to make sure you were safe, Kitten, and I protect what’s mine.” He follows me step for step, making me realize I’m stuck and have nowhere to go where he won’t be.
“I-I can’t breathe,” I stutter out, gasping for air as my back hits a side of the plane wall, sinking to the floor as my head gets dizzy.
Is this real, or am I dreaming? I don’t understand what is happening.
CHAPTER 12
ROMEO
Okay, this isn’t as awful as I thought it would turn out. She’s handling this a lot better than I pictured; I for sure thought she’d cut off my balls or something. Still, she’s having a panic attack, and I don’t want that for her; she needs to breathe.
“Iris, breathe. It’s going to be okay.” I try to reason with her as I get down on one knee to smooth her hair away from her mouth as her lips part with short exhales, but she smacks my hand away. “Sofia, come here, girl.” I whistle softly and hear our dog jump off one of the cream-colored couches and pad over to our corner between another couch and the bar.
“Sofia?” Iris mutters out between deep inhales, her voice surprised as our dog butts her nose against her favorite human and lies down at her feet for comfort.
“I wouldn’t leave our dog behind. She needs you just as much as you need her.” I reach out for Iris’s hand, relieved when she doesn’t push me away, and place her palm over my heart, letting her feel my steady breathing and calm heartbeat. “Just breathe with me.” I take a slow inhale, hold it, and exhale, my tight shoulders relaxing a fraction as she does the same.
“Our dog?” she questions after a few minutes, running her other hand over Sofia’s short fur coat, finally calming down with each rise and fall of her chest.
I told myself I’d ease her into everything at a slow pace, but Iris isn’t weak; I know she can handle it. She’s strong, but she’s going to hate me for a while before loving me. I’m a patient man; I can wait for her. So, I decide to go with the truth.
"I understand that upon your release from the hospital, you expressed a desire to be alone. You are so stubborn, so I thought a dog companion would help you navigate this new world you were shoved into, not by choice,” I admit as I place her hand over my chest and squeeze as she stares right at me with cloudy green eyes.
I watch her swallow hard before she gazes away from me, refusing to look at me as tears gather in her eyes.
“I don’t understand any of this, Romeo. Why? Why me?” she rasps out, digging her nails into my chest through my open-collared shirt, letting me feel the bite on my skin.
“I knew. That first time I gazed into your eyes, I knew that you were meant to be mine. I’d set the fucking world on fire for you, Iris.” My voice comes out rough, sliding my thumb back and forth over her scar on her palm. She whips her hand away and stands up, making me look up at her from my crouched position.
“Maybe then, but now… Look at my fucking eyes, Romeo. You can’t see anything in my gaze because behind it is only darkness.” Her voice strains, as if she wants to shout, but doesn’t have the energy as she moves around me and sinks into the couch cushion with her head in her hands.
“You’re wrong.” Anger replaces the gentleness I was showing her, and my tone becomes harsh. “I’m always looking, and I see you,” I say passionately, standing up straight and taking two steps to loom in front of her.
“Just leave me alone. I can’t d-deal with this right now.” Her voice is muffled between her knees as she takes deep breaths.
“I’ll give you time, but only so much. You are mine, Iris, and you’ll find out what that means very soon.” She shivers at my words, her head snapping up to glare at me.
“I am no one’s. Especially not yours.” She swiftly stands up, her head level with my chest, and I am so distracted by how tiny she is compared to me that I don’t notice the wetness on my cheek at first.
