Page 20 of The Predator

“Lee said there was important Mill business. I’m assuming this is what he was referring to?” He tips his head towards Elyse.

“Yes. You’re going to marry us,” I announce, and grab Elyse's ankle to tug her toward the door. When she moves to kick at me with the other foot I catch that, too, and pull her across the seat. I can feel Aries’ eyes on me, but he makes no further comment.

He knows better, and he has zero room for judgment.

Leaning forward, I pull her up so I can look into her red-rimmed eyes. "You belong to me, Elyse. All of you. Every single inch and I don't plan to let you go. Call me evil, call me a murderer, call me an asshole. Call me whatever you want. I don't care. It doesn’t change what we are, or what happens next. You are mine, and I am going to take care of you. I will keep you safe."

She blinks at me, her gaze unsteady. “It's not like I can stop you, anyway. You don’t care what I want.”

“I care more than you think. I care so much, but I won’t leave you to fight this battle on your own.” If only she understood how deep my obsession and desire for her are. Aries is still standing there, hovering, waiting. Quickly, I pull her out of the car and pick her up, then turn around to face him.

“Did I hear you wrong a minute ago?” He asks gruffly.

I shake my head. “Nope. You heard me correctly. We are getting married. Now."

Aries blinks once the only indication of surprise on his face. "What do you mean?"

"I mean we’re getting married, and you’re going to be the one to do it.”

He lets out a sharp bark of laughter and shifts on his feet. "Whoa. That ordination thing was a joke."

"Joke or not, all that matters is if it’s legal. Is it?”

"Well, yes."

"Great. That’s all that matters. Get inside the house so you can marry us.”

He narrows his eyes. "For someone who needs a favor, you’re being a real fucking dick, Arturo.”

"I don't give a shit, Haverford. It's been a bitch of night and morning so far. Right now, I want you to marry us so I can make sure no one comes for what's mine again."

His dark eyes ping-pong between Elyse and me. If he says no I will lose my shit. But there’s no one that understands obsession quite like Aries, and he gives a slow tip of his head.

"Whatever. I’ll do it, but only because you asked me so nicely. I don’t want to hear any bitching and moaning when this is over. Remember, you asked me to do this.”

"Noted."

With a disappointed shake of his head, he starts down the path into the house, and I follow, carrying Ely in my arms. Once we’re inside, I feel a little more at ease. Walking over to theleather couch, I gently lay her down. Her head lolls to the side, and her eyes flicker open and closed. The Xanax is doing its job, thank God. After a moment, I face Aries, who is standing in the kitchen staring at me like I’ve lost my fucking mind.

"Okay. How does this work? What do you need?"

"Nothing, asshole. Just stand there."

He turns on his heels and jogs up the staircase. Turning my attention back to Elyse, I tuck a few stray strands of hair behind her ear. "You okay, Little Prey? Do you need anything?"

Her gaze narrows, and she tries to focus all of her attention on me. “Yes. I need to go back in time and forget I ever met you.” Her words sting, but I can handle them. She’s upset right now and understandably so. At some point, she will understand why I did this.

Aries returns from upstairs and hands me a sheet of paper and a pen.

I look down at it, realizing it’s a marriage license, the paper still warm from the printer. "Fill this out, I'll sign it, and then pay off whoever I need to, to get it finalized."

I fill the form out then hand it to Ely and point to the spot where she needs to sign, "Sign here, Elyse."

She blinks up at me, and makes no move to reach for the pen. "What happens if I don’t?”

“You already know what will happen if you don't.” Anticipation unravels in my gut. Will I have to force her name on that line or will she do it on her own?

“Your last name will not stop my father. You might think you’re the Almighty God of Oakmount, but you aren’t. He knows people. No one can protect me from him.”