Emotions were for weak men. He hadn’t climbed to the top by being a pussy, and his reputation wasn’t based on goodwill or a heart of gold.
As soon as he opened the door, he half-expected the room to be empty. No woman wanted to be bought and sold, so he thought he’d have a constant battle on his hands keeping her in line. But there she was. Sitting on the edge of his bed, leafing through a book. She looked up at him with a mix of fear and anticipation in those big blue eyes.
His heart did a fucking flip.
“Why are you still here?” he asked.
She tilted her head a bit, staring without speaking.
“Do you always do what your father says?”
“I don’t have a choice. He made that clear before bringing me to you,” said Beth.
He opened his closet and pulled a t-shirt off a metal hanger. It clanged until he shut the door. Instead of putting it on, he balled it up in one hand. “And what do you think of all this? No … if you had a choice, where would you be right now?”
Forge almost didn’t ask the last question, not wanting to know the answer. As much as he could fantasize, Beth hadn’t walked into his life willingly.
“Sitting here. On your bed.”
He cocked an eyebrow.
“My father owed you a lot of money. More than I can even begin to imagine. You took me as a trade, whereas he gave me up without a second thought. Maybe I’m where I should be.”
“You’re right. This is exactly where you belong.” He squatted down in front of her. “You’re mine now, Beth. Not for a week or a month or a year. Forever.”
He waited for her to react, to cringe, something that would prove she hated everything about this fucked-up deal. But she swallowed hard, her eyes dilating briefly. Then she nodded.
So obedient.
There was a lot more to her than appearances.
“And I won’t trade you. Not for all the fucking money in the world.” He rested his hand on her knee. She flinched. “Your father’s an asshole. Don’t pretend he’s anything else. You don’t have to protect him anymore. He has no power over you.” Forge remembered the look in Beth’s eyes when her father ordered her robe removed yesterday. She’d been humiliated, a pawn in her father’s twisted business dealings. He knew what it felt like to be alone in the world, not a single person to lean on. That shit had made him strong.
It was destroying Beth.
“Can I ask you a question?” she nearly whispered.
He nodded.
“Do you buy a lot of women?”
Forge smirked before standing up. “No, sweetheart. You’re the first. And I’m hoping you’ll be the last.”
She had the worst poker face, so he knew she liked his answer. Was she already staking her claim? Her jealousy made his cock hard.
“My father said you’re the leader of the Hell’s Slaves MC. I’m completely out of my element. I don’t think I’ll ever fit into your world. I’m not like the women here.”
“And that’s the only reason I bought you.” He held his arms out to the sides, putting himself on full display. “Judge me all you want because of my title, but if I wanted whores, my bed would never be cold.”
“That’s not what I meant…”
He grinned. “You don’t think there’s good in everyone? In me? I thought you vanilla girls were always looking for the silver lining.”
“You don’t know me.” Her chest heaved, signaling her growing frustration. He liked her spunk.
“I know a lot more than you think.” His mind spiraled into the gutter. It was impossible not to when she looked so damn delicious. The shirt he’d given her was pulled tight over her tits. He could envision her naked and begging. “And I look forward to testing the theory that good girls like it dirty.”
Her mouth dropped open, showcasing her innocence.
“Just teasing.” He winked.
He was starting to believe she was the best purchase he’d ever made.
****
Beth tried not to stare at the bulge in Forge’s sweatpants or the hard, ripped muscles covering his arms and torso. He was huge. Instead of feeling intimidated by all those tattoos and the fierce expression on his face, she was undeniably drawn to him. She loved these new feelings of being wanted, chosen, claimed. He wasn’t the type of man she expected to spend her life with. She’d only been around her father’s business associates—highly educated and clean-cut men from good families.
Forge was the polar opposite.
And he made her body thrum in anticipation. She knew a man like him took what he wanted, no holds barred. His reputation preceded him. When would he take her virginity? Was that what he’d paid for, or did he want more? She secretly hoped and prayed he wanted her, the woman. Not just her body. Being a pariah her whole life turned her into the shell of a person. A shadow.
Being bought by Forge wasn’t an insult. It meant everything. For some reason, she didn’t believe he was the monster her father made him out to be, and she hoped she wasn’t wrong.
He walked about the room, put on socks and then some cologne. His scent was already branded on her, and she breathed it in as he passed. “If he tries to get you back, it’ll be a mistake.”
“He won’t,” she said. She almost laughed at the thought. Beth had been a thorn in her father’s side since her conception. She was the bastard child
