Chapter 13
Darkness still clung to my mind when I stirred, my body sluggish and heavy. My eyelids nuttered open, and a blinding white light greeted me. The sharp scent of antiseptic filled my nostrils, making my stomach churn. I tried to move, but a dull ache radiated through my limbs, keeping me pinned.
Then I heard it–voices. Low, murmured words just out of reach. My vision sharpened, and I realized I wasn’t in my room anymore. The walls were pristine white, the air clinical and sterile. A doctor’s
office.
Panic spiked through me, but before I could sit up, a firm hand pressed against my chest, forcing me
back down. “Don’t move,” a deep, emotionless voler com
Alessandro.
My breath caught in my throat. I turned my head slowly, my gaze locking onto his cold, unreadable eyes. He was sitting beside me, legs crossed, completely composed as if my breakdown hours ago had been nothing more than an inconvenience.
The doctor beside him adjusted his glasses, checking something on a clipboard before looking down at me. “He’s stable now,” he informed Alessandro. “It was a severe anxiety attack. His body shut down
from the stress.”
a
Alessandro didn’t react. Not even a flicker of emotion crossed his perfect, chiseled features. He leaned forward slightly, his gaze sharp and assessing. “Is that all?”
The doctor hesitated. “Physically, yes. But mentally-
Alessandro cut him off with a dismissive wave of his hand. “I don’t need a lecture on his mental state. Just tell me if he’s fit enough to stand.”
The doctor sighed, clearly used to Alessandro’s indifference. “Yes, but he needs rest. Pushing him toc
hard could-
Alessandro stood abruptly, his chair scraping against the floor. “I don’t have time for weakness,” he muttered, more to himself than anyone else. Then his icy gaze settled on me. “Get up.
I swallowed hard, my body protesting as I struggled to sit up. The room spun, my vision blurring at the edges, but I forced myself to stay upright. Alessandro watched, unimpressed, hands tucked into the pockets of his dark slacks.
“You’re not dying,” he said flatly. “So stop acting like it.”
His words stung more than they should have. I gritted my teeth, willing the shakiness in my limbs t disappear. But the weight in my chest was still there–heavy, suffocating.
Chapter 13
I didn’t trust my voice to stay steady, so I said nothing.
Alessandro stepped closer, his presence looming. “You belong to me now. And I won’t tolerate this kind of weakness. Do you understand?”
I clenched my fists in my lap, my nails digging into my palms. The rage and helplessness inside me swirled like a storm, but I couldn’t let it show. Not in front of him..
“Yes,” 1 murmured.
“Good.” He turned to leave, his voice cool and final. “Get dressed. We have things to do.”
“I want to go home. Everything is overwhelming and bullshit!” I sat up and glared at him with a dagger–like stare.
His face morphed into one of anger. “You will not cuss in front of me, boy, or disrespect me like that
again.”
My rage only rose tenfold at his statement. “You can’t just treat everyone you know like fucking shit! 1 just had a panic attack because of you and all of this! You took me from my family and dared to act like you knew me when we had only met after I was forced to fucking marry you!”
Alessandro’s expression darkened, his jaw tightening as I let my fury spill out. For the first time, 1 saw something flicker in his icy gaze–not anger, but something more restrained, controlled.
“Are you finished?” he asked, his tone eerily calm.
“No!” My breath was ragged, my hands trembling as I gripped the sheets beneath me. “I don’t belong to you! I never wanted this…..
“Find me in the car“,
The door clicked shut behind him, leaving only the doctor and me in the sterile silence. I exhaled shakily, my entire body trembling.
No escape. No freedom.
Just Alessandro’s rules.
And I was trapped.
The door clicked shut behind him, leaving me alone with the doctor in the sterile silence. My chest felt tight, not just from the panic attack but from the sheer weight of everything pressing down on
- me.
I didn’t say anything, I just moved and went out to the car.
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Chapter 13
The hallway felt impossibly long as I walked toward the exit, my steps slow and unsteady. Every part. of me screamed to turn back, to find another way out, but there was no point. There was no escape from Alessandro,
Outside, the cold air hit me like a slap, shocking me back into the grim reality of my situation. The sleek black car was waiting, its tinted windows reflecting the dim hospital lights. Alessandro stood beside it, his hands tucked into his pockets, his expression unreadable as he watched me approach.
I didn’t say a word as I reached the car.
Neither did he.
Without waiting for him to open the door, I yanked it open and slid inside. The leather was cold against my skin, and the scent inside–his scent–wrapped around me like a noose.
Alessandro followed a moment later, settling into the seat beside me. The driver, wordless and efficient, started the engine, and the car pulled away from the hospital.
Silence stretched between us, heavy and suffocating.
I kept my gaze locked on the window, watching the city blur past in streaks of neon and headlights. Every fiber of my being wanted to scream, to fight, to demand some semblance of control over my own life. But I knew how that would end.
Alessandro always won.
Minutes passed before he finally spoke, his voice smooth and calculated. “You’ll learn to control that
temper of yours.”
I clenched my fists in my lap, nails biting into my skin. “And if I don’t?”
He turned his head slightly, his gaze piercing. “Then I’ll break you until you do.”
A chill crawled down my spine.
I hated him.
But worse than that–I hated that some part of me believed him.
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