Intensity and anger burned in Marta’s eyes. Her hand shot out to grab me, her fingers wrapping around my arm and holding me so tightly that it almost hurt.

“Tell me now,” she said, her voice a sharp whisper. “Has that tirón pendejo hurt you? Tell me, and don’t hold back.”

We’d just stepped into her bedroom, and Marta hadn’t waited a moment after the door was shut to accost me. Her mood had been so cheery up until that moment; her sudden change in attitude took me by surprise.

“Marta… it’s OK.” I placed my hand on hers, removing her grip from my arm.

“That man, he’s a brute,” she said, letting her hand drop back to her side. “I can spot pieces of mierda like that from a mile away.” She let out a frustrated sigh before turning away from me, picking up her bag and setting it on the bed and pulling it open with three quick jerks of the zipper.

I was conflicted. On the one hand, I understood why Marta was acting this way. For all she knew, I’d been kidnapped and held prisoner on some faraway island, held as a toy to be played with by some sadistic billionaire.

On the other, well, while there were lots of ways I’d describe Logan, a “piece of mierda” wasn’t one of them.

“It’s not that bad,” I said. “Logan’s been OK so far.”

Marta let out another sigh. “That’s one of the ways men like him will act, you know? Charming and suave at first, sure, but it’s all a way to hide what’s underneath.” She pulled out a few pieces of clothing, bringing them over to the nearby dresser and plopping them into an open drawer. Then she yanked open the curtains on the window just to her left, revealing a sweeping view of the garden, the rest of the estate, and the rising peak of the middle of the island. “All the same, it’s hard to argue with a view like this.”

I smiled, happy to see that her defensive attitude had cracked a bit.

“It’s not that bad at all,” I said, coming over to her side. “I mean, there’s this. Not to mention the beach.” I gave Marta a playful elbowing. “I hope you brought your bikini.”

Marta laughed, shaking her head. “With this body? Not a chance.” The serious look on her face returned, as if the idea of her in a bikini brought to mind the idea of me in a bikini. “Tell me, has he touched you? Has he tried to seduce you?”

“Marta!” I turned away from her right away, not wanting to let her see me blush. My heart beat a little faster with nervousness. There wasn’t a chance in hell I’d be able to tell her the truth—not only had Logan and I slept together, but I’d also done it willingly, eagerly. At the same time, the thought of lying to Marta was enough to make me sick to my stomach.

But I had to.

“That’s how these kinds of men are,” she said. “They have money and power and think it means that they can take whatever they want, including the innocence of a young girl.”

My gut tightened at the word. Only Dad used the word “innocence” to refer to my virginity. Hearing it out of Marta’s mouth didn’t make me feel good at all.

“It’s not like that,” I said. “Logan… he’s been good to me. Now, I’m not saying he’s a good person—I don’t know him nearly well enough to come to that kind of conclusion. But he hasn’t made me do anything that I didn’t want to do.”

I was pleased with my words. They weren’t entirely honest since I was sidestepping the question of whether or not Logan and I had slept together. My words were the truth, however. Nothing that had happened between Logan and me was anything that I hadn’t eagerly consented to.

“Good,” Marta replied. “And now that I’m here, I’m going to make sure he doesn’t get what he wants.” She raised her finger. “Make no mistake, there’s not a chance in hell that this prick isn’t scheming noon and night to take what he wants from you. Trust me—I’m certain that your innocence and how he can take it for himself is more important to him right now than some stupid company. Men like him are all the same.

I appreciated Marta’s concern for my well-being. All the same, at times it seemed like it was my father speaking through her, his wants coming out of her mouth. I still trusted Marta more than anyone else, but with each moment that passed I was more certain that I needed to keep the truth to myself.

“I can’t pretend to know what’s been on Logan’s mind,” I said. “But for the most part, he’s been leaving me alone, spends most of his time in his office, really. I’m starting to get the impression that he’s a workaholic more than anything else.

Marta gave an affirmative nod. “That’s good to hear. Let him stay in that office of his worrying about emails and spreadsheets and whatever else. Every moment he’s busy with work is a moment he’s not pawing at you like some horny dog.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at her description.

“Oh! And he lets me have so much more freedom here. He’s not like Dad, monitoring my every move and not letting me even watch TV.” My eyes lit up. “Have you heard of Netflix?”

Marta chuckled. “Dios mio, Emily, sometimes I forget how much that asshole of a father has kept you sheltered. Of course, I’ve heard of Netflix. You know those silly little Korean soaps have been my guilty pleasure for years.”

“I still can’t wrap my head around how I can watch anything I want. And it’s not just TV! There’s this huge library downstairs with just about every book you could ask for.”

Marta smiled. “That makes me so happy to hear. I swear, your father would keep you illiterate if he could. You ask me, it’s a total crime the way he keeps that brilliant, creative mind of yours locked away from sharing what you can do with the world. Makes me sick to my stomach.”

“Speaking of which, let me show you what I’m really excited about. Come on.”

I gestured for her to follow me out of her bedroom, the two of us making our way over toward my room.

“Oh, chica, don’t tell me you found some secret S&M dungeon or something. This place is big enough that he could have three of them.”

I laughed as I opened my bedroom door. “Don’t worry—he doesn’t have one of those, at least as far as I know.

We entered my room and Marta stepped over to the window, taking in my view of the beach and ocean.

“This is quite the vista,” she said, putting her hands on her hips and looking out. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy with the view of the garden. But this is something else.”

As she spoke, I stepped over to my new laptop and opened it.

“Check it out,” I said. “Logan got me this.”

Marta turned her attention away from the view toward my computer.

“That asshole bought you this?” she asked. Marta came over to the computer and picked it up, looking it over.

“He got it for me to work on my book. Marianne let it slip that I had a novel I’ve been writing, so he got me this so I don’t have to write it by hand.”

Marta set down the computer, turning to me with a hard expression on her face.

“This is not good, Emily,” she said.

“Huh? Not good how?”

“You remember what I said, how a man like him would do anything to take your innocence?” she swept her hand toward the MacBook. “Giving gifts like this is a classic way for a man to butter up a woman. Don’t get me wrong, chica, I know that you’re sheltered and a little on the naïve side of things. But you need to learn how the real world works.”

“Marta… I don’t know if this is like that.”

“Oh, but it is. It’s a good thing I’m here now. I can watch out for you.”

There was something off about Marta, something sharp and even a little bitter.

“Are you OK?” I asked. “I’m happy you’re here, but all the same you seem a little irritated.”

Marta sighed, as if my words had caught her off guard.

“No, you’re right. I don’t mean to come down on you so hard. It’s just that I’ve been worried sick about you for the last week knowing that you were here with some strange man doing God knows what with you. And it doesn’t help that I’m a little worn out from the trip.”

I stepped over to Marta, opening my arms and pulling her into a hug.

“I get it. And like I said, I’m so happy that you’re here.”

Marta returned the hug, patting me on the back. “Same here, Emily. Now, if you don’t mind, I need a little rest.”

“Sure. Take a nap, and when it’s time for dinner, I’ll let you know.”

Marta smiled, squeezing my hand one more time before leaving. Once she was gone, the door shut, I turned my attention back to the view.

Something was off with Marta, and the more I thought about it, the more I found myself wondering if there was more to it than just fatigue and worry. She’d sounded like Dad at times, worrying about my “innocence” and convinced that I was some helpless woman on the verge of falling prey to whatever man wanted me.

All the same, Marta was right about me being sheltered. I took my eyes from the view and regarded the laptop. I’d been so wrapped up in the gift at the time that I hadn’t stopped to consider if there had been more to it other than something given to me out of the kindness of Logan’s heart. What if it had merely been a way of buttering me up, trying to get me to trust him more so that I’d easily give myself to him again?

It was all too much to think about. My stomach grumbled, and I decided that a little snack would take my mind off everything racing through it. I left my room, stepping over to Marta’s and peeking inside. She was already on the bed, her eyes closed as she rested. I shut the door softly before heading down the hall.

Minutes later I approached the kitchen. It wasn’t near dinner time yet, so the staff wasn’t around. I pushed open the door and stepped inside.

Logan was alone in the big kitchen, seated at the island in the middle, half of a sandwich in one hand and a tablet in the other. He brought his eyes up from whatever he was reading.

“Hey, there.”

“Hey.”

I entered the room, my footsteps echoing through the space. The kitchen was unbelievable—packed with top-of-the-line appliances, the equipment rivaling what one might replace in the back of a chic restaurant.

“Just came in for a little snack.”

He raised his sandwich a bit. “Great minds think alike.”

I paused. “Sorry if you wanted some alone time. I can leave.”

He shook his head. “Not at all. Just catching up on the news. You want me to call the staff in to make something?”

“Nah. Cooking for yourself is underrated.”

He gestured toward the fridge and pantry. “Help yourself. I’m not much of a chef, so it’s sandwiches for me.”

“That sounds kind of good, actually.”

I went over to the fridge, taking out some cold cuts and cheese, along with mayo and mustard. Once those were out, I found some bread and with all the ingredients in hand, went to work.

Logan picked his tablet back up, but I could feel his gaze flicking over to me as I assembled my sandwich. Truth be told, I kind of liked it. His stare burned in the best way possible, my pussy clenching at the idea of him looking at me.

“How’s your maid?” he asked.

I cleared my throat, keeping my eyes on my food in order to not make the sexual tension between us even worse.

“She’s not my maid. Marta was my nanny when I was younger, but now, she’s my friend.”

“Fair enough. How’s your friend?”

“She’s fine.” The words came out perhaps a bit sharper than I’d intended. But I didn’t care. I didn’t want to give him the wrong idea about anything.

He chuckled.

“What’s so funny?” I asked.

“Just wondering why you’re being so defensive with me.”

In the middle of spreading the mayo on my bread, I set down the knife and looked up at him with a harsh glare.

“Are you kidding? How about the fact that I’m your prisoner here? How about the fact that, as long as I’m here, I’m less a person and more a tool to be used in some petty squabble between you and my father?”

Logan said nothing for several moments, his eyes on me as he let the silence linger in the air. Logan appeared to have no issue with tension. More than that, he seemed skilled at using it to his advantage.

He set down his tablet and his sandwich, then got up from his seat and walked over to me, his eyes still locked on mine as he made his way around the kitchen island.

He waited until he was near to speak, close enough that I could feel the heat from his body.

“Is that what you think is going on here?” he asked. “Is that what you think I did on the plane?

He didn’t raise his voice in the slightest, he didn’t have to. Logan was so close to me that he could speak in a low tone and I could still easily hear him, the deepness of his voice resonating in my bones. I was turned on, my breaths short and shallow.

“Yes.” I couldn’t say anything more than that.

“Funny that you think that I used you, when I know you’d be more than willing to do it again.” He leaned in, close enough that I was certain he was about to kiss me. “Am I wrong?”

My heart was thudding in my chest, my pussy throbbing and soaking wet.

I opened my mouth, wanting to tell him that he wasn’t wrong, that I wanted him like mad.

He didn’t give me the chance.

He winked, then stepped away from me. Logan reached across the island and took his tablet, tucking it under his arm and leaving the kitchen.

When he was gone, I stood there stunned, my chest rising and falling.

He was right. All I wanted was for him to touch me again. And what was worse, he knew it.

Tip: You can use left, right keyboard keys to browse between chapters.Tap the middle of the screen to reveal Reading Options.

If you replace any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report