His to Own (His to Own #1)

by Autumn Winchester

  “I’ll call you back,” Zachariah grunted out before tapping the end button on his smartphone. Then, to me, he spoke. “Although I enjoy this, you’re gonna gain someone’s attention soon.”

  “No one else is here,” I spoke, confused, against his skin.

  Zachariah groaned out, and it went straight to the spot between my legs. Within milliseconds, his lips crashed against mine after he pulled my face upwards. His lips were hard, demanding, against my own, but yet soft. He knew how to control me, just like I wanted.

  I kept my eyes closed, enjoying the sensation of his lips on mine. He made all my worries go away. Made me forget about what the future that was so unknown to me now. Most of all, he made me feel things I didn’t know how to explain.

  Pulling away after a few moments, Zachariah placed his forehead against my own, panting. I nearly whined, not wanting him to stop. I wanted more. More of something.

  “I can get carried away with you,” he spoke, running the back of his hand down the side of my face as I lazily opened my eyes to meet his dark lust filled ones. “But we can’t rush into this.”

  “What is this?” I asked, blinking at him. As I spoke, I couldn’t help but let my lips brush against his once more.

  Pulling back, he answered me, not holding anything back. “I really don’t know, Avidya. But God, I want so much from you. I never thought I’d find a woman that could give me what I never thought I was missing. I hadn’t wanted to marry anyone unless I absolutely had to. But you . . . you make me crave for that type of relationship since I saw you that night where you bowed to me. Yes, you were given to me, and you are mine, but you are so innocent in all this. You know nothing of the life you have grown up in. You know nothing about the people that surround you.

  “I want marriage with you, and we will have that in time. For now, our bodies sing to one another. I truly believe that God has brought us together for some reason.”

  “You are as addicted to me as I am you,” I summed up, looking into his eyes.

  “Yes, I suppose so,” he said, a smirk on his face. “You have already changed my life.”

  “I don’t know who I am,” I told him, dropping my eyes.

  “That’s okay,” he spoke as though he already knew that. “You have time to figure that out. We will figure that out in time.”

  “But what will happen to us? To me?” I asked, almost fearing the answer.

  Cupping my chin, he made me look at him before he answered. “My parents are probably already planning an engagement party, as I don’t bring anyone to meet them. Ever. So, we will get married within the year. You are welcome to go to college, get a job at a place that I believe to have high security for your safety, or you are welcome to work in my family if you so decide to.”

  “No college,” was my first thought. “But what does your family do?”

  “Many things,” Zachariah answered, leaning back and pulling me against him once more. “We have a number of businesses, Violet is the family doctor, as we do require her services more times than I like to admit. My mom does a lot of the fundraiser gatherings, plus helps my sister-in-law when needed.”

  “And you? Your dad?” I asked after he paused for a few seconds.

  “I don’t want to scare you,” he sighed out.

  “I’ve seen you kill,” I reminded him. “And yet I’m sitting on you lap, no less. You haven’t scared me away.”

  “That is true,” he laughed, not ashamed that he did, in fact, kill right in front of me. “I work with my grandfather and father. I help keep things running and bringing in money where it needs to. When it needs to. Normally, I have my own men keep track of all those girls that you saw, but I do check up on their care often.”

  “You also kill those that betray you,” I stated quietly.

  “I never said I was the good guy,” he replied, almost sadly.

  “You are,” I said, sitting up to meet his eyes. “You do what you have to live the life you were born into. It is expected of you. You are the good underneath everything. You are good to me.”

  “You are different, Avidya,” Zachariah said as he looked into my soul. “I will never hurt you. Not on purpose.”

  “Nor will you hurt anyone that you are close to,” I said, knowing it was true.

  “Never,” he said. “I would give my life to keep those I care deeply about safe. You included.”

  “Why me?” I asked, generally curious.

  “Because of who you are. You may have been wronged from the moment you were born, but there is a reason. A reason why you have been put on my radar. I’ve known about you for years; I have done my homework so I basically know everything there is to know about you. Or at least what there was. But you are so different than I expected. You aren’t the spoiled girl I figured you would be raised to be,” Zachariah answered. “Now that I have met you, you mean just as much as everyone else that I care for, if not more. You are mine, Avidya, and I take care of what belongs to me.”

  “Okay,” I responded, trying to wrap my mind around what he said. I knew there was more to everything. More to who I was, where I came from, and more on who this man was. It could all wait for now.

  “Is that all?” he asked.

  “For now,” I smiled. “I’m sure I’ll have more questions later.”

  “I am sure you will,” he laughed. “Now come, your belongings should be arriving in the next hour, and you need to eat.” He patted my leg in the process, a silent sign that I needed to get up.

  I followed Zachariah to the kitchen, where he already had a silver bowl filled to the brink with a variety of muffins.

  “Help yourself. Coffee?” he asked, pushing the muffins towards me as I took a seat at the island.

  “No thank you,” I replied, picking out a blueberry one.

  “Not a fan?” he asked towards the coffee.

  “Not really, no,” I answered. “Not a fan of the taste, but I do love the smell.”

  “I’m surprised by that,” Zachariah stated. “So, did Lynn say what was in the boxes?”

  “Nothing, really,” I answered. “Just that it would contain the information about my birth parents. I have no idea what could be in them if anything important.”

  “Guess we’ll find out in time,” Zachariah shrugged. “At least I do have it confirmed that Lynn and Cody are not your biological parents, nor any relative of yours.”

  “A genius could have figured that out,” I joked before stuffing another bite of the muffin into my mouth. These muffins had to be the best I’d ever tasted.

  “She did make the comment that she set Shemoli up to take me,” I hinted.

  “I know he had a hand in it,” he stated. “Everything that keeps coming out puts you in more danger by the day. I’m afraid it’s not going to change anytime soon.”

  “And marrying you will be safer?” I asked, giving him a look.

  “In some ways, yes,” he said, looking at me in a seriously. “It will certainly provide the protection that you need, but I am also a man with my own enemies, so that will likely increase yours as well.”

  “So, I will be hunted down either way,” I summed up.

  “You won’t be hunted down,” he said, raising an eyebrow. “I can keep you safe, so there is absolutely no reason to worry, Avidya.”

  “My safety is one of my least worries,” I muttered out before quickly finishing off the rest of my muffin.

  Chapter 22

  Avidya

  Standing in the doorway of the office, I stared at the pile of brown boxes that were set up around the large overstuffed chair that was backed up towards the row of bookshelves along one wall. Surely, this was more than the few boxes mom had mentioned.

  “Your mom had your room packed up when my men went over to gather your belongings,” Zachariah’s voice reached my ears. I assumed he had followed me after he had told me where to find the boxes. There was more than just a few.

  “There’s no way this is all mine,” I said, still not
tearing my gaze away from the mountain.

  “My men are positive that it is, in fact, all yours,” he spoke, stepping up behind me and laying a hand on my lower arm. His touch was warm, and I was extremely tempted to lean into him. “Clothes, books, and then the items your mother had mentioned. Whatever you don’t want can be donated or packed away until you decide on what you would like to do with them.”

  “Okay,” I muttered. I didn’t want any of this stuff, but I’m sure mom wouldn’t have boxed it up if she had no reason to. Mom wouldn’t have packed all this, as I knew for a fact that father would have just burned it to ashes before she would have willing sent it to me.

  “What you want to keep, I can get up to your room after you get through it all. Or I can put in storage,” he went on. “There’s no hurry.”

  I had no plans to keep much out of all this stuff if anything at all. Zachariah already had more than enough clothes stocked up for me, things that I actually liked even.

  “What about the journals?” I asked. That was the whole point of this man sending his own men over there to get them.

  “You’re welcome to keep them in here, or in your room,” he answered with a shrug as he dropped his hand from my arm. “I do want to read them, but they belong to you, Avidya.”

  The journals would be the first and possibly the only thing that I’d keep. What would I find in them, though? Did I really want to know? What secrets did they contain?

  “Any idea what box those would be in?” I asked, glancing up at him, already knowing the answer.

  “Nope,” he replied. “I gave my men orders to not look inside the boxes.”

  “I wouldn’t have cared,” I replied. I was used to not having much privacy.

  “But I do,” he returned, his eyes meeting my own.

  “Why?” why did he care so much?

  “Someone should,” was the only answer I received with a soft look like it was that simple.

  Before I could say anything more, Zachariah went straight to his desk and busied himself with booting up his computer. I couldn’t help but let my eyes wonder over his form. Even dressed laid back, he was a sight to behold. His dark hair was slightly damp from his shower, and he forewent shaving. Again.

  I noticed in the short amount of time I had known him, I had never seen him complexly clean shaven. There was always a small dusting of facial hair, and I rather enjoyed it that way.

  I still couldn’t figure out why he would pick me when he could easily have a line out the door of willing women.

  “Are you just gonna stand there all day?” he asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

  “If I can stare at you, yes,” I answered. A moment later, I blushed as red as a tomato. I hadn’t meant to say that out loud, but this man caused me to blurt my thoughts.

  He gave out a chuckle as I looked down at the floor, wishing it would open up and swallow me whole. Could I possibly embarrass myself anymore?

  “You are certainly a breath of fresh air,” he said, his voice light and cheerful. “If you want to stare, go for it.”

  Instantly, my head lifted and met his dark eyes. I hadn’t expected that response.

  “I could watch you all day, too, Avidya. You are the most beautiful innocent girl that has been in my company for many years,” he went on. “But I do have work to do, and you should start on getting through a few of those boxes and see if you can find those journals.”

  “What will you do with the information that’s in them?” I asked, letting my feet carry me to the pile and sitting down on the chair.

  “I’m not sure. Depends on what I find out. It’s possible that the journals will not have any information that will help me figure out where you came from,” he answered.

  “And if they do?” I asked.

  “Keep it between just us for the time being,” he answered as he crossed his arms on top of his desk and leaned forward. “I have to find out why your father wanted to marry you off, and why he has you, to begin with. I’ll find out in time, as I have more than enough blackmail on him to make him give me the answers I need. The timing needs to work for me before I take such measures, though.”

  I wasn’t sure why I cared so much. So far, he had given me no doubts about what he could do. I had no idea who this man across the room was, other than his name and my soon to be husband. I couldn’t help but question myself here, or my own thoughts. He made my mind think in ways that I hadn’t before.

  “You’re worried,” he said, leaning back in his chair as my gaze dropped to the floor. “Why?”

  I gave out a shrug, not wanting to voice my fears and worries. Would it change anything if I did?

  He stood and walked around his desk towards me. Once he was in front of me, he kneeled down and made me meet his eyes by lifting my chin with his index finger.

  “Whatever you are concerned about, there is no need to be. I will let you have a say on what happens in your life. I will keep you up to date as much as I possibly can on everything if you want me to. I will practically do anything to keep you happy. I want you to be happy, Avidya,” his voice was calm and smooth as though he knew my doubts and fears. He was able to speak in a way to calm my worries.

  “I won’t ever back out on my promises,” he went on. “I’m always upfront about my wants, which have already all been laid out before you. I just want you to be happy here with me, and not have to worry about anything.”

  “I don’t know who I am, so how can I be happy?” I muttered with a blink of my eyes, fighting back the tears that gathered out of nowhere.

  “You will in time,” he replied softly. “I can’t wait to find out with you, but I know it’ll take time. So far, I really like what I’ve seen.” He let go of my chin and stood up. My eyes followed his movements. “Now, how about you get some of these boxes sorted through while I answer a few emails that need my attention.”

  “Okay,” I said in a daze. I knew he was a man that liked things a certain way, but wouldn’t he want more control over my life and actions like my father had?

  So far, I knew that Zachariah was laid back, but just being in his house for a matter of hours, he was so different than what my father was. This man’s presence alone made me question myself and what I had known to be. He made me feel things I never thought I’d experience, let alone even learn about.

  I knew Zachariah said he wouldn’t touch me in any way until we were married, but when would that be? He had yet to go into much detail about anything in the far future. Would he really have me marry him, or would he find another way to keep my safe?

  Surprising a sigh and pushing away my worries, I opened the closest box to begin sorting through it all. I had to start somewhere, although I preferred not to at all. Opening the flaps, I found the box to be filled with a number of clothing items from my old closet. Pulling out each thing, I had no desire to keep any of the shirts or dresses. I loathed the dresses, and it didn’t help that I was forced to wear them every Sunday.

  That thought made the question of what would happen now on those days. Did Zachariah attend church? I certainly didn’t mind missing out on it, even though I believed in God. His sister and parents went often enough, but I couldn’t recall ever really seeing Zachariah there more than a time or two. Although, that could have a part to do with me not really wanting to be very sociable after service if I could help it.

  Stuffing everything back into the box, I pushed it slightly out of the way before pulling another box towards me. The next box was filled with shirts and pants, which part of them I did keep. Some donation place would love to get such nice clothes in, at least.

  A few boxes were filled with blankets from my closet, although I had no idea why my mom thought I may want them. I had no use for them. I set them in a pile for storage. Maybe I would want them for some reason sometime later.

  One box had my phone wrapped in a blanket from my bed, and I couldn’t help but smile. It may be disconnected now after the little showdown with father, but I would still
be able to get ahold of her since I had her phone number. One bad thing about electronics, I never did take the time to memorize phone numbers.

  After the fifth box, I finally found the box of journals, which were also wrapped in some unneeded blankets. Along with the seven colorful bound books, I found a letter with my name on it in my mother’s handwriting.

  Glancing up at Zachariah, I found him still where he was, working away on his computer. He seemed to be concentrating on whatever he was typing away at.

  Opening the letter, I slowly read the words, not sure what to expect, nor what to feel.

  Avidya Mrya Ray,

  I am sorry for everything that you have been put through, and for what is to come. I am sure that these journals will have the information that you will need, and some that you will not want to know. It is past time for you to find out the truth. I so wish I could be the one to tell you, but this way will work just as well in the end.