I stumbled backward, my heart pounding against my ribs.
I lied desperately to cover up my memory loss.
"I didn't lose anything," I snarled. "I just got a wake-up call after surviving a near-death experience, and I never want to be your submissive pawn ever again."
I truly did have amnesia, and Caspian had caught on to the clues.
The divorce proceedings slowed to a crawl.
After work, I unlocked my door, but the moment my heel crossed the threshold, I gasped; the fingers gripping the doorknob instantly lost all their warmth.
Caspian was sitting on my cheap fabric sofa.
He sat there with his long legs bent at an awkward angle. His worsted wool suit clashed entirely with the peeling wallpaper, yet he commanded the cramped space as if sitting on a throne.
"How did you get in?" I demanded.
"I paid off your landlord."
He said it so casually, as if bribing his way into the building was an everyday occurrence.
I dropped my bag onto the scuffed floor, holding out a trembling hand.
"Give me the keys," I ordered. "I'm changing the locks tomorrow."
Caspian ignored my threat.
He stood up slowly, his massive frame making the already tight room feel even more suffocating.
He was convinced he knew the truth—that I hadn't stopped loving him, I had just forgotten.
"Sienna, exactly how much have you forgotten?"
His voice was a soft, almost dangerously low whisper.
I backed toward the door.
"I told you, I haven't forgotten anything," I snapped, my heart racing. "I just don't love you anymore."
Caspian lunged.
He moved so fast, far quicker than I could react, it was practically lethal.
He wrapped his thick arms securely around my waist, lifting my feet entirely off the ground.
He buried his face against my stomach, pulling me flush against his hard body.
"We will deal with this when you remember," he murmured to me.
"Let me go!"
I struggled to break free from his vice-like grip, my fists pounding against his broad shoulders.
"If you don't love me, then let me leave!" I screamed. "I've always wanted to escape you!"
Caspian only held me tighter, completely unfazed by my frantic hitting.
It was infuriating; he was dismissing my genuine outbursts as nothing more than a lover's quarrel.
He set me down, then slowly slid his large hands up to cup my face, forcing me to look at him.
"I need to explain the shadows that ruined us," he began.
I tried to turn my head away, but his thumbs pressed firmly against my jawline.
His voice was hoarse and laced with pain.
"Elena's grandfather saved my father from an assassination attempt," he explained, his gaze piercing. "The blood debt bound me to protect her family's bloodline."
He stared deeply into my eyes, searching for a shred of understanding.
"I swear on my life, Sienna, there is no love between her and me. Only duty."
I scoffed at him, scoffed at his twisted mafia logic.
"A duty that places another woman's life above your wife's means this marriage is worthless," I lashed out.
I shoved hard against his chest, but he didn't budge.
"If she is your duty, then go fulfill it, and leave me out of it."
Caspian gently pinched my cheek, treating my anger like a child throwing a tantrum.
He let out a long, exhausted sigh.
"I'm sorry I kept quiet in the past," he whispered. "I thought you understood the rules of our world."
He leaned down and pressed his warm lips against my forehead in a lingering kiss.
"I swear to you," he murmured against my skin, "never again."
