Valentina tossed and turned as she listened to Victor’s quiet, steady breathing next to her. She gently kicked the covers from her legs and eased out of bed. The soft sounds of the night frogs, crickets, and owls lured her from the warmth of the bed to take a lone nighttime walk. Being completely alone was rare anymore, and was one of the less appealing aspects of her current circumstances.
As she curled her toes into the plush carpet, her belly fluttered like little butterflies, prompting her to wonder if the odd sensation was due to the elicit thrill of sneaking outside on her own or was it the first sparks of life growing deep within her. Either way it was far too early to actually feel a baby moving. And yet…if it was the first stirrings of her maternal instincts then she knew she would do anything to protect that feeling—anything at all.
It’s just me, it’s too soon to know. She pushed aside the sinking feeling she experienced at the thought. Feeling disappointed would mean she wanted a family as badly as he did, and how was that possible? The thought of raising a child in the cartel life was terrifying. How could she live with that kind of worry?
Valentina quietly put on jeans and a t-shirt, along with slip-on athletic shoes. Every nerve in her body seemed to be on high alert, her blood pumping through her body, revitalizing every life-giving cell right down to the marrow in her bones. Despite all her worries, she was truly glad to be alive.
Pausing as she opened the bedroom door, she looked over her shoulder one last time at the man who had changed her life and was determined to stake his claim on her. She tiptoed out of the room and quietly made her way down a winding staircase at the back of the house. The large country home was huge and no doubt harbored as many secrets as its inhabitants did. This small, narrow staircase was an area she had been wanting to explore and now was the perfect time to do it unhindered by prying eyes.
She tiptoed out a back door and into the yard, marveling at the expansive beauty of the grounds. The Ramirez home was not a flash in the pan, it was a hard-fought legacy that would be enjoyed by generations to come. Whatever they did, they did it heart and soul with the kind of passion she wished she had. The only thing she’d ever had any passion for was acting and she couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to feel wholehearted and passionate about a family of her own.
Something inside her chest clenched and her heart seemed to twist helplessly at the memories of a lifetime of being used as a meal ticket. There wasn’t a single person, up until now, who had simply wanted her. Now she was faced with Victor, who not only wanted her but demanded her complete surrender. She viewed their sexual attraction with some trepidation, even as she fought the urge to let herself be consumed by him.
The woods on the far end of the yard seemed to call her name. At the edge of the woods, there was an area with an arbor arch that was beautifully overgrown with foliage. Valentina thought of a book she had read as a child about a secret garden. She smiled and blinked back tears when she thought about how books had been her only true friends back then.
The life of a child star is never what the public sees. Her mother had lived the high life while she worked the hours of an adult at the age of a child. Her mother was always coming up with excuses about how they needed to work together because there was no man helping to carry out the financial responsibilities. She’d asked her mother about her father numerous times but her mother never gave up any details. So, Valentina carried the load for both of them while her mother lived a life of excess.
Teamwork? No. That hadn’t been the case at all, and as far as being a princess, that was bullshit too—she was Cinder-fuckin-rella, little more than a meal ticket and a maid. Oh, her mother was good at keeping up appearances, but she turned a blind eye to way too many things—overly affectionate directors who always tried to meet with Valentina ‘privately’, screen tests where she was asked to strip or dance when the role clearly didn’t call for it. Those moments, and her mother’s refusal to complain for fear of burning bridges, cut so deeply that Valentina had learned to ‘stuff’ her darkest memories into the farthest reaches of her mind. Nothing could undo the trauma her mother had allowed to befall her in the name of working together. No wonder she had balked at Luis’ attempts to make her take off her clothes for the camera. She had to admit, Victor’s intervention had saved her from an untenable situation and provided her with some much-needed protection--
“Don’t. Make. A. Fucking. Move.” Her breath caught in her throat as a large hand covered her mouth and an arm wrapped around her shoulders. She was yanked back, losing her footing as she wriggled and flailed against her attacker’s body. Her movements accomplished nothing and only seemed to excite him, based on the substantial hard-on pressing against her ass.
“If I wanted to cut off your airflow, all I’d have to do is cover your mouth and press your nose closed. Simple. Kind of ironic how your life’s in my hands now, huh? Your prince charming has a dark side, you know.”
In one swift move she jerked his arm down and turned around, shrieking at the sight before her. “What the fuck?! Are you crazy? And by the way, you weren’t pressing hard enough to suffocate me.”
The lopsided grin on his face did nothing to disguise the sinister look in his eyes. He answered innocently enough, “Oh, I am crazy…especially when it comes to you and my unborn child.” With one arm he pulled her close until there was no space between them. When she looked up at him, something shifted inside him and the tension that usually filled his chest melted like hot candle wax.
“So, if I were pregnant…you were planning to cut off my air and leave me gasping for breath? Nice.” She rolled her eyes as she spoke.
“I like nothing better than to take your breath away, woman, but not like that, no.” He turned her body around so that her back was against his chest once more, and her ass pressed against his growing erection. His fingers slowly trailed down, unbuttoning her jeans. As he tugged the zipper down, she moved her feet apart to give him the access he clearly wanted.
“Oh, you are so wet. Such a dirty little girl when it comes to me,” he whispered in her ear before tugging at her ear lobe between his front teeth.
Her body felt electrified, her hips thrusting toward his hand in a silent effort to get him inside her in whatever way suited him. He pumped a finger in her soaked opening as he used his thumb to manipulate her clit. A feral growl rumbled from somewhere deep in his chest as her body clenched on a gasp, then melted against him. He gained so much pleasure in being a witness to her sexual pleasure. For the first time in his life, he found his own satisfaction through someone else’s.
He stroked his free hand over her long, silky hair as she came down from the orgasm. When she turned around and slid her hand down to cup his aching cock through his jeans, he stopped her. “It isn’t about me babe, it’s all about you.”
Pressing her forehead to his chest, her embrace tightened, wordlessly thanking him for putting her first. God knows he was the first man who ever had.