Chained Hands (Chained Hearts Duet Book 1)

by T. L Smith

  The knife drops from her hand, and her reaction is quick. She slaps me, hard, across the face. So hard my head swings to the right. It stings, I’m not going to lie. Twitching my jaw, I rub it as I meet her glare.

  “I’ve killed people for less,” I remind her which only manages to piss her off even further.

  She gets right in my face. “I dare you.”

  My hand shoots out, grips her neck, and squeezes. She doesn’t pull away or even fight it, instead she starts laughing as I hold on to her.

  “You are just as twisted and fucked up as I am.”

  “No, I’m not.”

  “Maybe I’ll break the deal with Paige and make you have my babies.” I smile at her.

  She claws at my hands wrapped around her neck. “Joke’s on you, fucker! I can’t carry babies. So, try all you like, you’ll be the last of your bloodline.”

  Leaning forward, I press my lips to her cheek, kissing it first, then biting it gently before I move to her earlobe, biting that even harder.

  “I won’t suck your cock,” she says, her breathing a touch heavier than before.

  “No one said you have to.” Tightening my hold on her throat, she does what I least expect her to, her hand comes up between us and cups my cock. I look down in surprise, then back to her face to see her smirking at me.

  “Release your hands, and I’ll release mine,” she taunts.

  “No,” I growl, leaning back down and placing my lips to hers.

  She doesn’t kiss me back, but she does squeeze my cock a little tighter.

  “I know you like pain, but how much pain is the question. Enough that I snap your cock in half?”

  “You could try, but then you couldn’t use it again. What a waste that would be.”

  She gives me an eye roll. “It’s already a waste.”

  “Have my babies,” I say.

  She drops my cock and pushes me back. I release her neck but make sure I’m still close enough to grab her again.

  “No,” she replies, taking a step farther back. “Are you dumb? Deaf? A complete imbecile?” She shakes her head. “What part did you not hear or understand?”

  A knock comes on the door, and she shakes her head as she turns to answer it. She opens it to the mailman who asks her name before she signs a delivery receipt, then closes the door behind her. She rips open the package to find another pair of shoes. Her eyes go wide before they turn into slits, her irritation now completely obvious. “I’m not here to be bought, you get that, right?”

  “Anyone can be bought,” I reply.

  She throws the box at me, just missing my head.

  “That hurt me more than it hurt you, just so you know,” she says, referring to the shoes.

  I know how much she loves them.

  “Accept my offer, and you’ll never have to worry about money again. You could have all the shoes you want, a nice place to live. Marriage.”

  “And what happens when you get sick of me?” she asks. “Think about it, Keir. You want me now because I don’t want you. You want me because I am a challenge for you. But what if I wasn’t? What then? What if I became compliant and weak? You’d kill me like you’ve done to so many others?”

  “I would never kill you. Have you not figured that out yet?” I tried, talked myself into it multiple times. Yet here she stands in an apartment I own. Because for some reason, I can’t stop thinking about her.

  “You say that now, but what if I did something you didn’t like. What would you do?”

  I say nothing.

  People who disrespect me or my wishes don’t usually survive.

  “Exactly. You can’t even say the words. I’m amazed you still have people around you. Do they not realize how much of an asshole you are? If they do, you should keep them. Hell, keep Paige, because I’m sure she knows and still wants you.” Her pink lips lift in a smile. She waves me off, as she walks to her room. “Let yourself out, I’m sure you know how to.” Then she slams the bedroom door shut and the wall shakes with the motion.

  My phone starts ringing. Roberto. Answering it, I stare at the door she just went through while I wait for him to speak.

  “Paige is here, requesting your presence.”

  “I’m busy,” I tell him.

  “Yeah, I told her that.” I hear a rustle of the phone before her voice comes through loud, and oh so fucking clear. “Where are you? My biological clock is ticking, Keir. It’s time to grow up and be parents.”

  “Will you leave already?” I stare at Sailor as she speaks through the crack of the door. Shaking her head, she shuts it again.

  “You’re with her, aren’t you?”

  “Now is not the time.”

  “Like hell it’s not!” Paige screams. “Where are you? Tell me right now.”

  Before she can say another word, I hang up on her, and walk to the bedroom door. I hear the shower running and stay put until it turns off before I enter. Walking in, I see her dress lying neatly on the bed. I settle in on her mattress to wait. It’s not long before she walks out with a towel wrapped around her gorgeous body hiding it from me.

  “You don’t take the hint, do you?”

  “I always get what I want.”

  “Congrats, you’ve had me. So, you’re free to leave.”

  “I don’t just want some of you, I want all of you.” I stand and undo my top button.

  Sailor’s eyes flick to it, and her head starts shaking. “Don’t you dare do that. Back up, right now.”

  I’ve come to the realization I want her.

  All of her.

  At first, I thought it was only her body I wanted. Oh, how wrong I was. When I saw her again and spoke to her, I knew I had to have her. That only she will do.

  The not having a child part could be an issue, considering I have to produce an heir. But that we can work out at a later date.

  Her hands cling tightly to her towel, gripping it with all her might, as I almost get through undoing all my buttons.

  “I’ve told you … I don’t have time for this. I need to sleep and relax. And this, ” she waves her hand in front of my body, “… is not relaxing.”

  “What do you think I’m doing?”

  Her head drops to the side as her brows raise. “You know exactly what you’re doing.”

  “No idea what you’re talking about. I have the day off and figured why not spend it in bed with you. I have food on its way.” Pulling my shirt off, I place it neatly on the edge of her bed.

  “If I asked you to leave?”

  I turn my back to her and kick off my shoes. “I don’t listen.”

  “I’ll leave, then.” Sailor turns to walk to the door, but I call her name as I lie back.

  “If you leave, I’ll just follow. Now, get in the bed, lollipop. I promise I won’t fuck you unless you’re begging for it.”

  She spins on her heels. “I would never.”

  Putting my hands behind my head, I smile at her, watching as she takes in my bare chest.

  “Never say never.” I wink.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Sailor

  I tried almost everything to get him to leave, but he didn’t budge. Like, doesn’t he have a job to do or something? Or does he just choose who he wants to kill today?

  We had pizza, and it wasn’t just your average pizza, it was amazing. I haven’t been spoiling myself with takeout lately due to trying to save as much money as I possibly can.

  “Why aren’t you charging me the full rent?” I ask as he sits next to me while we watch some horror movie, which was my pick.

  “For the apartment?” he asks, his eyes still fixated on the television.

  “No, for the sex,” I respond with an eye roll. “Of course, for the apartment.”

  “The sex is free. Told you all you have to do is beg.” His gaze slides away from the movie, and he winks at me. “But to answer your question, Joey told me what you looked at before. This is a better option and was tenant-free so ...”

  �
��You should charge me properly, or I’m moving out.”

  “I take payment in the form of blowjobs.”

  I almost choke on my drink. “Surely, you know that’s not going to happen.”

  “Well, then you know I won’t take payment. I own this apartment outright. It was actually one of the first things I bought. It’s solely mine, and I lived here for years before I upgraded.”

  “You don’t live in the city,” I state.

  “I do. Would you like to see?”

  That’s an invitation, and I do not want to say yes, so instead, I take another sip of my drink to avoid answering.

  “Is this the kind of thing you did with him?” he asks as I jump from a man appearing out of nowhere on the screen.

  “With Dillan?” I ask, and he nods his head. “No. Dillan hated sitting for too long. On his days off, he would be out with his friends while I was at home alone.” I shrug. “I ended up liking it that way, though,” I tell him honestly. “Alone time is good for the soul,” I whisper.

  “I’m alone no matter what I do, what decision I make,” he says, his eyes locked on the television. It’s like it’s the most genuine thing he has ever said to me.

  “You choose to stay, though, don’t you?” I ask.

  “I will always stay. It’s who I am. I am nothing without what I do.” I shake my head at his words. “You don’t believe it?”

  “No, I don’t. I thought when I was younger that I was destined to stay with the people I hung around … drop kicks doing anything to get by, but I wanted a change, so change is what I did.” I shrug. “If you want something badly enough, you’ll do it.”

  “From what I gather, your change put you in another position where someone else had control over you.” He isn’t wrong, but he also isn’t completely correct either.

  “I loved him, you know that, right? Maybe not toward the end, but I did love him. And he wasn’t all bad. We had good moments as well as bad ones. That’s what makes a marriage,” I tell him. “How are you going to be when you’re married?” I ask. “I’m guessing that’s a part of it as well.”

  “It is. Marriage and a child. A boy to carry on the family name.”

  “What if she doesn’t give you a boy?”

  “We try until she does.”

  “You know we don’t live in the past anymore, right? Women are just as powerful as men,” I state, crossing my arms in front of me.

  “They think they are,” he argues back.

  I get up from the bed, still with a towel wrapped around to keep me covered and walk to his side of the mattress.

  His side.

  It’s not his side.

  I scream at myself for even thinking that.

  I’m not as hopeless as I once was. I understand my power, understand who I am, and I would never let a man treat me like I was treated by Dillan again. You live and you learn. I see powerful women every day at work. Men stare at them, but the women pay them no attention.

  I want to be like them.

  I feel like in this moment I could almost get whatever I want out of Keir. I know it’s wrong, but it’s not going to stop me from trying.

  Keir’s gaze tracks my movements while I saunter my way over to him, and he sits up straighter as I get closer. His hungry eyes take me in, and I like the way he makes me feel as if I am the powerful one, the queen, and he nothing but my pawn.

  That’s the reason why he won’t leave me alone, is it not?

  Stepping closer, I grasp the top of my towel and slowly pull it off, but not enough to where it drops and shows my body.

  “Are you saying that I’m not a powerful woman? That I couldn’t run an empire?” I ask.

  He bites his bottom lip before he answers, “I don’t know, could you?”

  I mean, he’s probably right, not about the woman part, more so about the fact that I’m unsure if I could do what he does. But that’s only because I don’t want to tear my soul to shreds because I have a feeling his soul is in a million pieces. Maybe he thinks I can replace it, or fix it somehow, but I’ve got news for him, I can't.

  Some things are made to be broken, and he is one of them.

  Some things can’t be fixed even with heavy-duty glue.

  I can’t imagine him as a normal functioning human with a desk job. When I look at him, all I see is radiating power and a man who stares at me with admiration, but most of all hunger. I worked it out that those confused and angry looks he gives me aren’t because he hates me, but because he hates how I make him feel.

  “I’m sure Paige could,” I say, pulling my towel back in place and going into my closet to get changed. I need to go out and get groceries, do normal things, try to get my mind off this man.

  He laughs as I grab a pullover dress and slide it on, then drop my towel. I get some panties and pull them on. When I turn around, he is standing there in the doorway, completely dressed.

  “Where are we going?”

  “Groceries. But …” I look down at my watch, “… it’s time you go home.” I smile at him, grab my phone, and walk out. He follows but says no more. When we get outside, I wave goodbye, and he stands there watching me.

  “Sailor …” I turn back around at my name. “I think you could rule a fucking kingdom if you tried.” He gets into his car, and I can’t help the smile that gets stuck on my face and won’t leave.

  “Hey … Phillip?” I ask. I’m pretty sure that’s his name.

  “Yes, Miss.” He hands me a note, which I have to put the groceries I am holding down to take, and then turns and walks off.

  “What’s this?” I ask, but the elevator doors shut before he can answer. When I open it, I see an address and time on it. I could just not go, but would that mean he will show up to my place again unannounced, make a scene and invite himself in? And why tonight? I just spent the entire day with him.

  “Ellie, I’m going to have to cancel,” I say to her through the phone as I put away the groceries.

  “What! Why?”

  “I have to go meet Keir. He sent me a letter. And I don’t want him coming for me as he makes so much noise the neighbors complain, and I don’t want to lose my apartment.” I choose not to tell her he was here most of the day.

  “Okay, well, call me when you’re done. I can come over after?”

  “Maybe,” I say noncommittally, then hang up. It’s not that I don’t like her. I do. It’s just that I like having me time more.

  After I put everything away, I grab my keys and phone again, then leave the apartment. The place he asked me to meet him isn’t far from where I live. It’s a large block of apartments, more hotel style. Pressing the correct number, I’m buzzed up to the fifth floor. I knock on the door, and when it opens, I see her standing there.

  “I like that you aren’t late.” She holds it open for me to enter, but I stay where I am. “Come inside, Sailor Allan.” She calls me by my maiden name, not my married one. Odd.

  “I think I’ll pass.” I go to leave, but a hand grabs my arm and tightens its hold on me. When I look up, I see a man who looks a lot like Paige. Same dark hair, tall, and same facial features. Resting bitch face comes to mind.

  “Please remove your hand?” I ask kindly while trying to pull away. He ignores me and pulls me toward the door as I attempt to pull back, not wanting to go in there. When he doesn’t let me go, I kick him where I know it will hurt—right between his legs— and he swiftly drops my arm. I manage to step back away from him, but as I do, a pair of strong arms wrap around me tightly.

  “I know why he likes her. Feisty, this one.” He bites my ear, and I cringe at the smell of smoke and alcohol that’s leaking from him. I can’t see him, but he carries me easily through the door and into the apartment. There are only a few chairs and nothing much of anything else.

  “Sit her in the chair, and will someone check on Frank?” Paige questions as I’m placed in a chair like a rag doll. I go to get up, but his hand comes to my shoulder and pushes me back down with a hard knock. />
  “He bought me this as an early wedding present.” Paige waves her hand around. “That was over three months ago. He told me in the next three, we would be trying ...” She pauses, then swings her gaze back to me. “Then you came along.” She sucks air in through her teeth and says the words like I’m worth less than the shit on her shoe.

  Two other people join us. One is an older woman, who I’m guessing is her mother, followed by another woman who I think was with her at the club last night.

  “You aren’t welcome in this family,” the mother says to me, then takes a seat.

  They all have chairs.

  The front door opens, and Phillip steps through, his head down as he walks over to Paige and whispers something before he goes to stand near the door.

  “If you kill her, it won’t be an issue any longer. Keir would start trying for the baby,” the mother says.

  “Sir said you are not to kill her.” They all look at Phillip.

  Keir knows about this?

  What the hell is going on?

  I go to stand, but the guy who brought me in pushes me back down in my seat once again. “Stay, or you will regret it.” His breath tickles my neck, and it stinks, causing me to nearly dry retch.

  “Accidents do happen,” her mother chimes in, smiling.

  What the actual hell?

  “You can’t be serious?” I say under my breath, but because there is no other noise in this room, they all hear me.

  “Oh, you think you’re better than us?” Paige stands and walks over to me, and the hand on my shoulder disappears. “He is only with you because you are a piece of ass who gives it willingly, where I do not.”

  “But you are, correct? You plan to have a baby with him, willingly?” I say back to her. “Oh, actually, you didn’t get a choice, yet he does.” I smirk, keeping my eyes locked right on hers.

  “Accidents happen,” her mother says again. “He can only stay mad at you for a little bit if we kill her.”

  “No. He said and I quote ...” they all look to Phillip, “… ‘if anyone, and I mean anyone, thinks they can take her life, I will end theirs just as fast. But I will not do it easily.’”