After signing the contract, I wasted no time in taking my wife to the hotel I’d arranged for the night.

As the limo pulled up in front of our destination, Bella’s eyes widened. “Oh, my! I had no clue we were staying at the Tres Belle. This is the most exclusive hotel in Los Angeles.”

I chuckled, pleased by her giddy excitement. “Only the best for my wife.”

She shook her head. “I can’t believe we’re already officially married. That place wasn’t messing around!”

When the driver opened the door at the entrance to the hotel, I stepped out first, holding my hand out for Bella. “That’s the power of money,” I told her as I pulled her to me.

She looked somehow charming wrapped up in the jacket of my suit. When she offered me a bashful smile, my heart melted just a bit more. Damn, I’d never been drawn to a woman like this before. Just what was it about her that captivated me so much? I could tell that she didn’t feel the same connection that I did, but that was okay.

“Our contract is for ten years,” I murmured into her ear as I held her close. “Get used to this sort of thing. I told you that you’d be the most pampered wife in history. I meant it.”

Whisking her to the private penthouse elevator that had already been arranged for us, I was pleased there weren’t many people in the lobby to see her. Not only was her dress too revealing, making me jealous of any potential male eyes landing on her fair skin that might peek out from around my jacket, but I also couldn’t afford a scandal if anyone here recognized me and spotted her in such a revealing dress.

As we stepped out into the penthouse suite, Bella gasped again. “Damian, I had no idea we’d stay in the penthouse! It’s like a dream.” Her grin was so wide and honest that it made my heart clench.

Damn, but she was perfect. If I already found myself this affected by her, I couldn’t imagine the voters in New York would be able to resist.

I pulled her to me in a quick hug, pleased at the way her slender body felt in my arms even if she wasn’t as well-endowed as the women I normally took to bed. “I’m so glad you’re happy. I’m going to call the hotel boutique and have some clothes sent up for you. That ridiculous dress makes you look like an easy woman, not the attractive lady you really are. What’s your dress size.”

This observation earned me another of her dazzling smiles. “You weren’t partial to this dress either? I felt like cattle waiting for slaughter in this damn thing. They pretty us up but show off all our parts. Ugh...” She slipped my jacket off her shoulders, turning to show me how the small scrap of fabric labeled as a dress didn’t cover her back and gave a clear view to the beautiful arch of her lower back and on to the crack of her rear.

I stepped forward, hugging her from behind. Feeling bold, I placed a gentle kiss against her ear. “I can’t deny you’re mouthwatering, but you’re more than a piece of ass.”

She struggled in my embrace, and I realized her breathing had become ragged—not in a sexy way. She was filled with fear.

Immediately releasing her, I stepped around in front of her, pulling her chin up gently so she’d look into my eyes. “Bella? What’s wrong?”

Her breath came in rapid gasps, her body trembled beneath my touch, and I had a feeling she couldn’t really see me.

“Bella,” I repeated at higher volume. “You’re safe with me! It’s not even dark out yet. I’m here with you and everything is going to be fine. Bella, look at me!”

Focus finally came to her gaze, though her shuddering didn’t subside. “Damian?”

I breathed out a sigh of relief, rubbing her shoulders gently. “It was because I hugged you from behind, right? This fear of yours goes further than simply not liking darkness. What happened to you to cause such fear?”

She blinked a few times, breathing in and out. I could only guess it was her effort to calm herself, but it didn’t look to be helping. When I’d suggested a counselor before, I hadn’t realized how extensive her problem was. We were definitely looking up doctors as soon as we returned to New York.

“Talk to me,” I coaxed, leading her to the couch and sitting her down. I took a seat next to her, within touching distance but not touching. I might be a brand-new husband, and I was sure I’d be horrible at the job, but right now I wanted to do whatever I could for her. “What happened?”

“My dress size is a six.” She looked down, twisting her hands in her lap.

“Okay...” I placed my hand over the top of hers, noting how cold they were. “I’ll call and get the dresses sent up, but right now we have something more important to discuss. What’s going on with you?”

She puffed out her cheeks, then slowly released the air. “I think I’m worse than usual because you’re taking me to New York in the morning.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

She finally turned to look at me voluntarily, tears swimming in her beautiful brown eyes. The warmth they normally exuded was nowhere to be found, her profound sadness and fear covering it in a way that made me grit my teeth with anger. Who had done something so terrible to her that she reacted this way?

“I used to live in New York City,” she explained, her voice so soft that I had to lean in to hear her. “My entire family lives there. About eight years ago, I was working at my first job. It was late at night, closing time, and the owner of the small bakery I worked at asked me to run the deposit bag to the bank and put it in the overnight drop. I guess there wasn’t a safe inside the bakery, so he took the money over every night. That day, he’d hurt his back and couldn’t do the walking. I figured I’d be fine. It was only a few blocks away. What could go wrong?”

Her story touched on a nerve, bringing up my own past. I wondered if she was so familiar because she was the one... No, there was no way that was true. That would be too big of a coincidence. She wasn’t that girl.

“Anyway,” she continued, still trembling, though she didn’t try to remove her hands from my grasp. “I was nearly to the bank’s drop box, and four men approached me. At least, I think it was four. One of them grabbed me from behind. He demanded I give him the deposit bag.”

As my horror mounted, her trembling increased.

“I didn’t want to disappoint my boss, so I said no and tried to run.” She shuddered again, a small sob escaping her. “One of them caught me from behind again. He demanded I give him the money or else.” She paused, practically gasping for breath at this point. “That’s when I felt the knife on my neck, but I didn’t immediately understand what was going on. I still struggled.”

She fell silent, but I knew what happened. I’d cut her. The gang I’d gotten mixed up in said I had to prove my worth by killing someone. Even though I hesitated, I’d still cut her, deep enough that I worried she’d bleed to death on the street before the ambulance I secretly called reached her. We took the money and ran, but I could never forget the feel of her blood coating my hands or the disgust with myself that I’d nearly killed an innocent person just to prove my worth to a group I didn’t even really care about.

The gang had beaten the crap out of me for failing and told me to never show my face to them again. Then and there, I decided rebelling against my family was no longer appealing, and I began turning my life around. I searched endlessly for news on the girl I’d hurt, finally learning that she’d survived. Isabella Taylor had fled New York shortly after the incident, and I lost track of her. The cops had no leads, since the security camera at the bank hadn’t provided a clear enough picture. Also, we had worn masks, so there was no chance of our identities getting out.

Shit, shit, shit! And double shit! How could this be that girl? Is that why she felt so familiar? She was young then, still a teenager, but her eyes were the same—whiskey brown and full of warmth, and also fear.

“Damian?” A soft hand slipped from beneath mine, patting the top of it. “What’s wrong? I didn’t mean to upset you. As you can see, I’m fine, it’s just that anyone coming up behind me or whispering in my ear scares the daylights out of me.” She gave a little self-depreciating shrug with a tense smile across her face. “I did warn you I have issues. Guess I forgot a few of them.”

“No,” I quickly assured her, grabbing her hand and raising it to my mouth to place a gentle kiss inside her palm. “This is not your fault. You don’t need to apologize to me about this, ever.”

And I had to make sure she never found out I’d been the man to create this fear inside her. Sure, we were both teenagers at the time, but that didn’t excuse anything. Obviously, she’d lived these past eight years in a state of trauma because of actions I’d chosen. Mostly, I’d been stupid and wanted to show my family I didn’t need them or their money. I had been such a rebellious, dumb, little asshole. Now, I couldn’t undo the hurt I’d caused her. I prayed she never found out.

There were only five other people who knew the truth that night, knew I had cut a girl’s throat when she wouldn’t give up the money. If my political opponents ever found out the truth, I stood to lose everything. Now that I was married to Bella, the stakes were even higher. I owed her so much. There was no way to ever repay the debt I’d incurred.

Maybe finding her on the other side of the country after all this time really was destiny. While at the party and feeling so drawn to her, I’d thought it was because we were destined to be together. Perhaps the real reason I’d been led to her was to somehow make up for all the pain and suffering I’d caused her.

No matter what brought us together again, I’d make sure Bella had a happy life. I’d never let anyone hurt her again, and I’d be damned if I’d ever did anything else to cause her pain.

I just couldn’t let her find out the truth. If she did, everything would be over—my hopes at being elected, my marriage, and most likely my freedom when she threw my ass in jail.

BELLA

Damian had remained fairly quiet after I told my story. Thank goodness I’d stopped before telling him how the thief had sliced me open. I didn’t tell him how scared I was, lying in the dark and bleeding out, trying to call for help but unable to press the buttons on my cellphone because my hands were covered in hot, sticky blood.

If a pedestrian hadn’t stopped by, holding a scarf to my wound until an ambulance arrived, I wouldn’t have made it. Talk about a horrid conversation to have with your husband on your wedding day. I needed to pull myself together.

As per our contract, sex was a part of my duties. I wasn’t surprised by that, considering I was now Damian’s wife. As a man running for an elected seat, he couldn’t afford any scandals. Of course, the only person he could sleep with was his wife. I had to take my duties seriously. It was obvious that Damian was ready and willing to hold up his end of the bargain and take care of me financially.

Already, twenty dresses and all the accessories to go with them sat in the living room of the penthouse suite. Damian had avoided me ever since he called the boutique, but he meticulously went through the selections provided, pointing to the stuff he wanted to keep.

Eventually, he came to the end of the selection and handed a credit card to one of the attendants who had arrived with the clothing. “Take back the half I didn’t care for. Leave these two here,” he pointed out a couple. “Get the rest packed up and sent to my jet. Also, bring her some pajamas in her size and a lot of underclothing.”

“Very well, sir,” the attendant said while the other one gathered the stuff Damian hadn’t wanted. “We also have slacks and blouses, if madam would like something other than dresses.”

Damian shook his head. “No, I already have a personal shopper filling the closet at home, but she’ll need these outfits before we reach there. Thank you.”

As quickly as they came, the attendants left.

Cautiously, feeling a bit embarrassed and shy, I approached Damian. “Ummm... is it okay if we talk again?”

His head snapped toward me, surprise making his eyes wide. “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“You’ve been kind of...” I stopped, uncertain what I should do in this instance. I’d never been a bride before, and never thought I’d be one to a stranger. Deciding to take the initiative, I crossed the room to his side, slipping my hand inside his larger one. “I’m sorry if my past upset you, but I really will be okay. You don’t need to worry so much. Please don’t send me back to Prudence and let her sell me off to a trafficker.”

“What?” He turned to face me, and I obviously had his full attention now. “I would never send you away! Bella, why do you think I’m getting all these clothes for you?”

I shrugged. “Parting gifts?”

The corner of his mouth quirked slightly, and I relaxed a bit. “I’m pampering you,” he corrected. “And after hearing what you’ve been through, you deserve more pampering. Put on the black and white dress, I’m taking you out to a play tonight. We’ll be served our meal there. I arranged it while we waited on the clothing.”

“A play?” So that was why he hadn’t spoken to me. He wasn’t avoiding me, he was planning an outing. I had no clue what to think. I had expected to spend the afternoon and evening in the bedroom. “Wouldn’t you like to... uh, sample the wares you purchased?”

His lips twitched upward again. “I’d never say no to an offer like that but let me pamper you first. We have all night to spend together.”

So, he wanted to, but he was romancing me first? That was better than I’d expected. Tipping up on my toes, I pressed a kiss against his cheek. “Already, you’re a better husband than I had imagined finding. Just don’t push yourself too hard, okay? I’m already completely happy because you’ve promised never to leave me alone in the dark. That was the main thing I needed. All the rest is just a bonus.”

“No, you deserve more than that.” His hand palmed my cheek.

I leaned into the warmth provided, already feeling happy at his touch. “If you spoil me too much, I might become a brat.”

He tipped my head upward, his blue eyes staring into mine. His intensity shocked me, but I didn’t find it uncomfortable. “You’d be my brat, so I’d be okay with that. Let me spoil you.”

His lips covered mine, soft, undemanding, nibbling at me gently as though he was afraid to scare me again. We hadn’t shared a wedding kiss in front of the judge at the club, so I wrapped my arms around Damian’s neck, opening my mouth. His tongue slipped inside without any coaxing on my part, tasting me with his ever-gentle touch. My heart galloped in my chest, thumping to the rhythm of the soft caresses of his tongue against mine.

He let out a soft groan, which only made everything seem that much more exciting. His large hands wrapped around my back, caressing the small of it on the bare skin from the slutty dress I wore. This provoked a gasp from me that I couldn’t hold back, which only seemed to encourage him. He deepened the kiss, a bit more ravenous in his exploration. After a while, my mind fluttered away and all I wanted was the pleasure of his touch and mouth to continue. Unfortunately, he pulled back, sucking on my bottom lip for a moment before releasing me.

“Hot damn,” he whispered, his own breathing ragged.

“I agree,” I murmured, laying my head against his chest, unwilling to leave his warmth yet. “Are you sure you want to go to that play?”

His chuckle made his chest rumble beneath me, and his arms wrapped around my back once again. “I’m sure. As much as I want to be with you on the physical side, it’s more important to take care of you emotionally first.”

“Are you taking me out because of what I told you?” I looked up at him, stroking his hair gently away from his temple. “That’s very nice, but it isn’t necessary. It’s not like this was a blind date or a true love match. We’re in a contract. I’m more than willing to fulfill my obligations.”

He shook his head, then pressed a kiss against my forehead. “I want you to want me when we come together. If it’s simply an obligation to have sex, this is going to be a long ten years. Let me take you out, show you my world. I want to show you why you made the right choice in picking me. I can make you happy.”

I couldn’t refute his logic. It would be nice to get to know each other. “Okay. I’m not going to argue about being romanced. Show me what it’s like living in your world, dear husband.”