ACCIDENTALLY MARRIED TO THE BILLIONAIRE SINGLE DAD (Gabrielle and Damon) novel Chapter 113

CHAPTER 113

GABRIELLE’S POV

I was a mess of nerves when Damon was done with me, my clit still throbbing from his spanks minutes later.

After a few more minutes of collecting myself, I slipped my underwear back on and fixed my hair as best as I could before moving to the front passenger seat.

My phone buzzed.

An email notification glowed on the screen, and when I opened it, my stomach tightened. It was from the hospital.

Consultation appointment confirmed.

And it was for the next day.

I stared at the screen longer than necessary, my thumb hovering over it as if the words might rearrange themselves into something less final.

For a brief moment, I considered telling Damon about my plans and asking his thoughts on the matter.

But I pushed the thought down immediately.

We were only married for a year.

Of course, he wouldn’t want children. That was way too permanent for a temporary relationship.

And after today—after hearing about his childhood, and after the distance in his eyes—I wasn’t naïve enough to pretend otherwise.

So I locked my phone, slid it into my purse, and decided to go to the consultation without telling him.

Damon didn’t return to the car until twenty minutes later and when he did, there were no words between us.

The car remained silent during the entire drive back to the resort.

He parked in front of the building and cut the engine but neither of us moved to get out.

After a few more seconds, he finally broke the silence. “Go inside. Don’t leave the premises and if you have to, use security.”

I turned to him sharply. “Why? Rhys doesn’t want to hurt me.”

“He might not want to hurt you, but by going to his territory you exposed yourself to his rivals,” he said calmly. “I’m doing everything I can to get out of a similar situation. I don’t appreciate you making things more complicated for me.”

My chest tightened.

All I could feel was regret.

My hands shook in my lap no matter how much I tried to still them.

I looked away so he wouldn’t see the tears gathering in my eyes. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I really am.”

He started the ignition again. “It’s fine. I’ll be back in an hour. Be wearing an even shorter dress by the time I return.”

I nodded, still staring out the window. “Okay.”

I moved to get out of the car, but before I could, his hand closed around my chin and gently pulled me back.

“Look at me.”

I did.

CHAPTER 113

+25 Bonus

His eyes had softened. “I didn’t mean to make you cry,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

If only he knew he didn’t make me cry.

I just cried about everything. I felt everything too deeply, carried it too openly and I knew how confusing that must be to someone who had learned to survive by feeling nothing at all.

I swallowed and shook my head slightly. “It’s not you.”

He studied my face, his thumb brushing once beneath my eye, and catching the tear before it could fall.

“You don’t understand the kind of people around men like Rhys,” he said, his voice low. “They don’t care who you are to him, only about leverage. And you-” his jaw tightened “-you’re not leverage. You’re mine.”

The word sent a strange warmth through my chest, even through the guilt.

He leaned back, gripping the steering wheel again.

The distance in his gaze slid back into place, but not completely. “Go inside and wait for me.”

I hesitated for a second, then I reached for the door. Before stepping out, I looked back at him. “Are you still mad at me?”

His jaw flexed. “I can never be for long.”

I gave him a smile and stepped out of the car with my heart in my throat, watching him pull away.

20

I spent the rest of the morning working on something I’d decided to do in my spare time—which I had in abundance, by the way -but wasn’t ready to show anyone.

Not even Damon.

Especially not Damon.

Fiorella came to my room after a while, and we idly talked about nothing in particular before I told her I had gone to see Rhys.

A deep scowl formed on her face. “Meeting him by accident is one thing. But choosing to meet him? Why would you put yourself through that?”

I held back a laugh. “For someone whose bed he was caught in you seem not to like him that much.”

She rolled her eyes. “Why would I? The man not only snuck into my room, he actually got into my bed like some sick freak. Do you know how many times I’ve had to block his number?”

I snorted softly. “He did seem lovely. Why don’t you like him?”

“Do I really have to list my reasons?” She asked, folding her arms across her chest. “He’s way too cocky and in his delusion- riddled mind, he thinks he’s charming. He’s very invasive and always hovering around to piss me off.”

“I didn’t realize that,” I admitted.

Fiorella sat on the edge of my bed, lowering her voice. “We never got along so I decided to keep my distance from him. But instead of doing the same, he tries to irritate me every chance he gets. Even Damon finds him annoying.”

I hesitated. “You think Damon’s right about him.”

Her expression softened slightly. “I think Damon knows things he doesn’t want to relive. And Rhys?” She shook her head. Rhys is a reminder.”

That settled heavily in my chest.

CHAPTER 113

+25 Bonus

“I didn’t mean to make him remember,” I said quietly. “I just wanted clarity.”

Fiorella shrugged. “I can understand that.”

I studied her for a long moment before speaking again.

“That day you told me to check Damon’s closet,” I started, watching her expression change. “I saw a box. And I know what he does with the things in the box. How did you know that?”

Fiorella’s shoulders stiffened almost imperceptibly and then, she looked away, her gaze drifting to the window.

My stomach tightened as the realization finally dawned on me. “Were you doing it to him?”

She didn’t answer immediately.

Her jaw tightened, and for a second I thought she might deny it. Then she sighed–slow and resigned–and finally looked back at me.

“Yes,” she said quietly. “I was.”

My breath caught. “You-”

“Not like you’re thinking,” she interrupted, cutting me off before I could jump to conclusions. “And not for pleasure. Don’t twist it into something it wasn’t.”

I stayed silent, letting her continue.

“Damon saved me from an arranged marriage to a very abusive old man when I was nineteen and he was twenty–one,” she started, her gaze avoiding mine.

My heart sank.

Why would anyone want to marry off their nineteen–year–old daughter to an abusive man?

In that moment, I realized how little I knew about Fiorella and how much I talked about myself. I was a very selfish and narcissistic friend.

I didn’t know how to feel about the fact that she’d willingly hurt Damon, but I let her continue anyway.

She finally lifted her eyes to mine. “I ran away from my family and started living with him after he took over his father’s businesses. I was the only person he trusted so he made me do it to him.”

The room felt heavier, like the walls were closing in.

“Over time, it just became something we did until that night I met you for the first time,” she said. “He couldn’t go on with it. And that was the last time I ever saw that box.”

What she didn’t know was that it wasn’t the last time Damon had used the content of that box but I kept that to myself.

Silence settled between us, thick and suffocating.

I couldn’t process everything she’d just said, not all at once. My chest felt tight, my thoughts tangled and heavy.

I couldn’t even be mad as that was in the past and way before I ever met him. I didn’t like the idea of someone hurting him, even if he asked for it.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify