Chapter 10

10

JAVIER

“ E veryone has been dealt with,” Bruno says when he returns to the penthouse two hours after Emilia shot Perez. “And everything has been cleaned up.”

I nod, drawing my attention from my fiancée who is pacing the library on a phone call with her assistant. I eye Bruno. “Ensure all entry points into the hotel are covered by multiple men. Also, all surrounding streets need coverage too.” The Alonso Cartel will be swift with their retribution. I can’t take any chances today. If this wedding wasn’t crucial to ease bad blood, I’d postpone it until I could be absolutely certain of everyone’s safety.

Bruno gives me his assurances he’ll handle everything and leaves me to do what I’ve asked.

I walk into the library, taking the time while Emilia wraps up her call to admire her curves. Curves I first fell for when I was fifteen. She was as much a handful then as she is today. I looked forward to every family gathering after that day we first met, simply because it meant more time with her.

I’ve watched over her every day since we were nineteen. I will never forget the night I found her at a party with my friend back then. He forced himself on her and she’d had too much to drink to take care of herself. I ensured he never laid a finger on her again and assigned security to her.

When I finally made her mine two and a half years ago, I’d planned to marry her. Perez put an end to that, and I’ve had to endure two years of watching her with other men. They’ve been the longest fucking years of my life, and while I don’t like the idea of having a known weakness, I can’t go another day without her. Without having every part of her fully.

“Sorry,” she says as she ends her call and looks at me. “I’ve just put together a massive deal and we’re ironing out all the kinks as we find them.” She walks to me, slipping her arms around my waist. “I promise no more work for the rest of the day.”

Emilia thinks I don’t want her working and that I don’t support her desire to live in New York. She’s wrong. I’ve been engrossed watching her build her business over the years. The power she’s amassed and the skill she has handling assholes in the business world turns me the fuck on.

I’m a selfish man, though; I don’t want to share her.

I know I’m going to have to learn how.

I also know the journey we’ll take while I learn is going to be rough.

Emilia talks about compromise. That’s not something I’ll be good at. It’s a good fucking thing she’ll be bound to me after our wedding today.

I settle one hand on her ass and bring the other to cup her face. “No more work for the weekend, dulzura .”

Her forehead wrinkles. “Some things might pop up that I need to take care of.”

I shake my head and tighten my hold on her. “They can wait. Your husband cannot.”

Heat flares in her eyes, right alongside the frustration I always bring out in her. “My husband will need to learn to wait.”

“Your husband will never learn to fucking wait for you,” I growl before taking over her lips with mine and showing her what she does to me.

This woman was made for my ruin, my collapse, my absolute fucking undoing.

I might not ever learn how to negotiate with her, or share her, but I will always, from this day forward, love her with everything I fucking have.