Finally, he dragged his gaze away from where Mairi’s body was connected with another man. Finally, Damen found the strength to look into her eyes, those wondrously expressive eyes that could never lie to him.
And in those eyes, he saw the truth.
Mairi had given herself to another man.
No. No. No. He wanted to deny the reality he saw in Mairi’s eyes, but he had never been one to lie to himself. He had a feeling he would never want to sleep again. If he did, he was damn sure he would have nightmares about this, and there would come a day when the pain would eat him alive and he would never wake again.
He did not think he would even dare close his eyes.
If he did—
If he did—
Goddammit, if he did, his sick and twisted mind would not have any difficulty picturing Mairi, his lovely Mairi, in another man’s bed. Her na**d form, once a sight that was exclusively his, being feasted upon by another man’s hungry eyes. Her generous curves, once familiar only with his touch, being caressed by another man’s hands. Her silken limbs, those gorgeous long legs of hers, wrapped around another man’s hips, her tender and sensitive flesh that had only ever known his c**k welcoming another man’s possession—
Goddammit, he would die of jealousy.
And he only had himself to blame because he had forced her into this.
“Mairi.” Damen wanted to say so many things, so many damn things, but his voice broke at the end.
The way Damen suddenly blanched, a sick look falling on his face, made Mairi cry out.
Never. Never. Never would she forget that look on his face the moment Damen Leventis realized that she no longer belonged to him.
Mairi felt herself drowning under a powerful flood of guilt, resentment, and pain – so much pain that she wondered how it could have all fit inside without her body exploding. That look on his face made her feel so cheap. Would this feeling ever stop? Did it mean she was never meant to be with Damen Leventis because she would always feel like she didn’t deserve to be with him?
Maybe, she thought hysterically, maybe that really was how this was supposed to end.
“His name is Drake,” she heard herself saying.
Damen stiffened.
At her side, Drake’s head snapped towards her.
“He’s been living with me for a week.”
A sound of raw agony spilled out of Damen’s throat, and she knew that he was imagining the worst, knew that he was thinking she had spent every second of that week in Drake’s arms, allowing the other man all the liberties that only Damen had once possessed.
He was imagining exactly what she wanted him to think. Mairi needed him to think it was like that because she knew now that she would never be able to leave him, not even when she knew that she hadn’t been the one to betray him. He was the one who betrayed her with Alina, but her heart didn’t care – wouldn’t ever care.
Because she loved him.
Her love for him was an ugly and unbreakable chain that she would never be free from.
But there was still hope.
All she had to do was destroy Damen, and he would destroy them both.
“And when he asked if I wanted him…” She swallowed hard, and then she raised her chin and said hoarsely, “When Drake asked me if I wanted him to make me come—”
“DON’T SAY ANOTHER WORD.” Pain so great it was indescribable crossed Damen’s face.
“I told him—”
Damen whitened. “Goddammit, please, I’m begging you, don’t say it.”
Something inside her broke down at the realization that Damen was begging her. Greek billionaires were not supposed to beg. It was always supposed to be the other way around, and Mairi shook her head wildly, as if by doing so she could deny what was happening and keep pretending that he was the same cold-hearted man who threw her out of his house.
“I said YES—”
“Shut up,” he snarled. A white line had formed around Damen’s mouth as he used every bit of his control not to lose himself in despair and rage.
Mairi didn’t tear her gaze off him. “I said yes,” she repeated.
“SHUT UP—”
“And he touched my br**sts, f**ked me with—”
Damen could no longer take it. “NO.” He stalked towards her, but before he could take another step, Drake’s security came out of nowhere. Men were suddenly holding him back, and that was when he lost it.
“Let go of me!” Damen was strong, but there were seven men holding him back, and his frustration and rage grew as he found himself unable to escape them. His gaze sought Mairi, and his heart splintered when he saw she was crying.
It had killed him to hear her say that, but seeing her cry so hard, he knew those words had not come without cost to her. It had killed her, too.
“I don’t care who you f**ked,” he rasped. “Because that’s all it could ever be.”
“Stop it.” She didn’t want him to understand. She wanted him to hate her so they could be over.
“When it’s the two of us—” His voice thickened, and again he struggled against the men holding him, every instinct in him directing Damen to hold Mairi. Couldn’t they damn well see that she was hurting? “We make love, Mairi,” he said gutturally. “And that’s what matters. That’s what always will matter.” He let out a strangled breath. “I love you—”
“Shut up!” Mairi covered her ears. “Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP—”
“I love you.” He repeated the words fiercely. “I will always love you. I f**ked up, but you know – goddammit, you know I f**ked up because I love you too much—”
Mairi shook her head wildly. She looked at Drake, begging, “Please. I don’t want this anymore.”
When Drake started to speak, she was afraid he would still want her to be strong, to do things on her own, but instead his voice was gentle as he said, “I understand.” He pulled her towards him.
When Damen saw Drake stroke her hair, saw the tenderness in that touch and knew that whatever or whoever the man was, he was not completely immune to Mairi – that was when he forgot all about being rational. He forgot about everything except for one thing: he would never let anyone take Mairi away from him.
“LET GO OF HER!” Terror over losing Mairi had taken a life of its own and it possessed him like a dark spirit. Damen went wild, overthrowing those who held him.
Drake pushed Mairi swiftly behind him. “Stay there.”
Mairi was wide-eyed, unable to believe the havoc Damen was creating. She had always known he was strong – she had seen how vigorously he worked out in the past, but this was…this felt like something else had taken over Damen. He had just managed to overthrow two of his guards, and he was in process of doing the same to the third.