The Marriage Debt: Chapter 11

A year ago

I sew the new button to Easton’s suit and cut the string, patting down the jacket while holding it up to make sure it looks okay.

Seems like my “silly juvenile” interest, as my father called it, in fashion and cutting up clothes and making my own new ones paid off in the end. I didn’t expect to make a living from it, but I won’t look a gift horse in the mouth either. Easton Van Buren, one of our family friends, took me in when I was on the run and had nowhere to go, so I’m eternally grateful. He kept me safe from both Luca’s and my family for years. I have a roof over my head, food in my mouth, and I’m happy to say I can be of use to someone.

With a smile, I carry the new suit to Easton’s closet and put it where it belongs so he doesn’t have to go look for it for his next meeting. He’s got too much on his mind anyway to be troubled by these trivial things. And it’s my pleasure to take those trivial things off his plate.

I hum a gentle song as I leave the room, closing the door behind me, but when I turn around, I squeal at the two big eyes staring back at me.

“Nick,” I say, poking him in the side. “Don’t creep up on me like that.”

He laughs. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.”

My heart is still racing, but not because of the scare. There’s something in the way he looks at me that makes it impossible for me to look away.

“Uh, were you looking for something?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “Just doing my rounds, you know.”

Right. He’s a guard after all.

I nod a few times, unsure of how to answer. It’s always awkward like this when we talk. Like neither of us knows what to say.

I clutch my arm. “Well, I’ve still got some work to do for the charity.”

When I attempt to walk past him, he moves to the same side, and we both end up hopping back and forth, trying to decide which way I’m going to pass. I laugh, and he does too, and I stop to say, “Okay, so who’s going where?”

He plants himself against the wall. “Ladies first.”

Even though he’s always been a gentleman, it still makes me blush.

I don’t know why.

I never used to be like this around Easton’s main guard, but ever since I’ve been busy with his wife Charlotte’s charity, something about our dynamic has changed. Every time I go there, Nick is there too, and I don’t know if it’s because Easton told him to guard Charlotte or if it’s because of … me.

I swallow and walk past him, rubbing my lips together to stop the warmth from spreading. “See you later,” I say.

“I hope so.”

I almost stumble across the hallway.

He hopes so?

When I glance at him over my shoulder, he winks.

Oh, God.

I walk away until I’m behind a wall and then stop to clutch my own body with my eyes closed, holding my breath.

Nope, do not go there. You are not ready for any of that. You don’t even like Nick.

I open my eyes again and sigh out loud.

I really have to stop making him think he has a chance, but it’s tough because I hate disappointing people. And I also hate it when guys try to make me fawn.

Because if there is one thing I learned, it’s that men can’t be trusted.

Men use. They betray. They hurt.

And when they’re done with you, they discard you like you never meant anything.

And I refuse to deal with that kind of heartbreak.

So I walk away with my head held high, determined not to let myself be swayed by anything or anyone, no matter how handsome or kind they are to me.

I’d rather not have anyone at all than have someone shatter my heart.

Luca

Present

It was easy enough to track the fucker down. There aren’t that many guys named Nick working for a dude named Easton Van Buren. Especially not when that same employer is one of the most notorious hotel-restaurant chain owners here in the Netherlands.

Our parents regularly had business dinners at his restaurants, and he’s a family friend. Or was, before I knew he harbored Jill.

Out of all the places she could go, that asshole was nowhere near safe.

I expected a guy like him who’s used to working with mobsters to make smarter decisions.

He’ll deal with my wrath later.

First, I’ll have to deal with his employee, Jill’s fucking ex-boyfriend Nick. Just the thought of him touching her … kissing her, makes me trigger happy to the point where I’m about ready to get out of this car with my knife in one hand and my gun in the other and slice his heart out.

I had my men track Nick’s movements for an hour after they spotted him at one of Easton’s restaurants. He’s all by himself now, strutting around some local bakeries with a small bag in his hands.

“Off to do some groceries during lunchtime, eh?” I mumble to myself as I stare at him through the car window. I snap my fingers at my driver. “Stop there. He’ll go into the park. We’ll ambush him there.”

My driver nods, and the two men I brought check their guns for bullets and add a silencer.

Good. I don’t want to make noise if I can avoid it.

Our family thrives by being invisible to the public, and it’s best kept that way.

But fuck me, shit like this makes it difficult to maintain my self-control.

When Nick opens up his bag and pulls out a sandwich, he walks into the park up ahead, just like I thought he would.

“Let’s go,” I say. We throw the doors open, and we all jump out. I quickly run into the bushes and push through them to reach him from behind while my men follow my trail. Nick doesn’t seem to notice we’re tracking him as he’s too busy chomping down on his sandwich to notice his surroundings.

Never, ever let your guard down.

“One, two …” I mumble at my men. “Three!”

We all jump out of the bushes at the same time and lock him in, one arm around his neck, the other around his mouth. His sandwich falls from his hands onto the bench while we drag him back into the bushes with us. As my men hold him down, I point my gun at his head and pull the safety back to make him stop thrashing.

“Make a sound, and I’ll put a bullet in your brain,” I say.

His eyes widen when they lock on mine.

“Are you going to cooperate?”

He nods, after which one of my men takes his hand off Nick’s mouth.

“What the fuck do you want from me?” he growls. “Who are you?”

“Who I am doesn’t fucking matter to you,” I say. “What matters is that I know who you are … and that we both know the same girl.”

His lips part. “Jill.”

They obviously know she’s missing.

He suddenly begins to fight off my men who hold him down. “You motherfucker, you kidnapped her, didn’t you? Let her fucking go!”

I push the gun further into his skin to make sure he remembers who’s in control. “Relax, or do you want me to kill you already?”

He spits, but it lands on my coat, and I wipe it off with ease. “You’ll pay for this.”

“Good luck trying,” I reply. “You won’t ever see us again.”

The fire in his eyes reminds me of my own. “What did she ever do to you?”

I snort. “Oh, you’d like to know that, wouldn’t you?” I tap the knife against his skin. “Lucky for you, I won’t bother you with all the nasty details. I just want one thing from you … information.”

“Fuck you. I’m not a traitor,” Nick replies. “Shoot me if that’s what you want.”

I laugh. “I don’t fucking care about Easton. He’ll get what he deserves later. I want to know what you did with Jill.”

Nick swallows. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

I shove him down and point my knife at his eye. “You were her fucking boyfriend, weren’t you? Answer me!”

He frowns. “No.”

I shove the knife farther into his skin until he begins to bleed. “Don’t lie to me, or I swear to God, I’ll cut out your fucking eye.”

“She’s not, and she never was!” he barks back. “We were friends. That’s all.”

“Bullshit,” I spit back, grabbing his collar with both hands now. “Tell me the fucking truth. You fucked her, didn’t you?”

“It’s the goddamn truth,” he responds. “She wouldn’t even let me get close.”

I pause and look at him for a moment. He doesn’t look away, doesn’t flinch when he speaks, and his voice is constant and unwavering, not like someone who lies.

Is he … serious?

“So you never kissed her?”

“I’ve never even touched her,” Nick replies. “What the fuck did she tell you? Is that why you ambushed me?!”

My nostril begins to twitch.

“Why does it matter to you anyway what she did before you took her captive? Let her fucking go!”

I release his collar and shove him back to the ground, then get up to think while my men hold him so he won’t run.

Jill gave me his name for a reason, but I don’t spot any hint of a lie in this man’s words.

Only in hers.

And there is only one fucking reason.

I twist the knife against my index finger, and it punctures my own damn skin, but the pain only excites me.

Because right now, only one thing is on my mind.

Jill lied to me when I forced her to talk by making her come over and over, and I finally realize why.

To stop me from finding out she’s a virgin.

A wicked grin spreads on my face.

Amazing. Almost as devious as my own plans.

Oh, little bunny …

I’ve taught you well.

“Look, whatever problems you have, I’m sure Easton can figure out something,” Nick suddenly says. “Let her go.”

“He can’t fix my problems,” I respond with my back turned toward him. “And I’m not interested in negotiations.”

“You’re making a big fucking mistake. I’ll never stop fucking looking for her nor will Easton. You think this was worth it?”

“Yes,” I mutter, staring at the blood drops rolling down my hand. “Because I’m a sick, twisted bastard who only wants one thing.”

“Jill,” he says through gritted teeth. “She’ll never love you.”

“Funny, she said the same thing when she sucked my dick the other day.”

The fury in his eyes is like fuel to my fucked-up heart.

“You’ll pay for what you did to her!” he yells as I move through the bushes and pick up that sandwich he dropped. Onion, lettuce, and tuna. Disgusting. Just like his obvious affection for my bunny.

“What do you want us to do with him, sir?” my men ask as I walk back to them.

I tilt my head and stare him down. “Let him go.”

My men frown just as hard as Nick. “What?”

“You heard me.” I chuck the sandwich at his body. “Eat your fucking lunch. And then go tell your fucking boss neither of you will ever see your precious fucking Jill again.”

My men knock him out with a quick flick of their gun and then run off with me back to our car. The guy will wake up in a few with a roaring headache, but that’s the least of his worries … and mine.

Because I have a rendezvous to attend with a lusty, little liar.