Chapter 2 The new master

Chapter 2: The New Master

​The privacy glass slid up, sealing Elena in a tomb of black leather and expensive cedar-scented air. Dante Vane didn't look at her; he looked at the city lights as they glided away from the only life she'd ever known.

​"Who are you?" Elena's voice was a jagged whisper. "And how did you know about the debt?"

​"I know everything about Silas Thorne's failures," Dante said, his voice a low vibration that seemed to buzz in the small space. He finally turned. His eyes were cold, calculating, and dangerously fixed on her. "Including the fact that he traded his wife for a bailout."

​Elena felt the sting of tears but swallowed them down. "I'm not his wife anymore. I signed the papers."

​"You did," Dante leaned in, his shadow engulfing her. He reached out, his thumb catching a stray tear on her cheek. His touch was electric, far more intense than Silas's ever was. "But you didn't read the fine print, did you? Silas didn't just divorce you. He assigned your 'contract' to me."

​"My contract?" Elena gasped, her pulse hammering. "I'm not a piece of equipment!"

​"In Silas's eyes, you were. In mine..." Dante's gaze dropped to her lips, his expression darkening with a hunger that made her stomach flip. "You're an investment. And I always get a return on my investments."

​"I won't be another slave," she snapped, her hand going to the door handle.

​"The doors are locked, Elena." Dante's hand moved from her jaw to the back of her neck, his grip firm and possessive. He pulled her closer until their breaths mingled. "You have two choices. You can walk out into the street with nothing and wait for Silas to hunt you down when he realizes he wants his toy back... or you can stay with me."

​"And why would I stay with you?"

​"Because I'm the only man who can give you the one thing you crave more than freedom." Dante leaned closer, his lips brushing against her ear. "Revenge. I'll give you the money, the influence, and the seat at the table to watch Silas Thorne burn. But the price is simple."

​Elena's breath hitched as his other hand slid onto her thigh, the heat of his palm seeping through the thin silk of her robe. "What price?"

​"Absolute obedience," Dante rasped. "In public, you are the most powerful woman in this city. In private... you belong to me. Every inch. Every moan. Every secret."

​He pulled back just enough to look into her eyes. "So, Elena. Do you want to be a victim? Or do you want to be my weapon?"

​Elena looked at the predatory man before her. She could still feel the phantom bruises of Silas's touch, the weight of his disrespect. She looked at Dante's outstretched hand.

​"I want him to lose everything," she whispered.

​Dante's lips curved into a chilling, erotic smile. "Then prove it. The night is young, and we haven't even reached the mansion yet."

​He didn't wait for her to move. He pulled her onto his lap, his mouth claiming hers in a kiss that was a declaration of war-and total possession.