Chapter 43

"Is this your excuse for pretending to be a stranger to assault your own wife? You bastard! You sicko! Do you think any of this makes sense? Do you think I’ll forgive you just because you say these things? What do you take me for? Some heartless toy?!" I sank my teeth into his arm, drawing blood. The metallic taste flooded my mouth, sharpening my frayed nerves. My eyes burned with grief and fury as I glared at him, but he refused to let go. Instead, he tangled his limbs around me, dragging me onto the bed and pinning me down. "I’m sorry, my love. Truly, I am. When your family first proposed our marriage based on your birth chart, Dad and I thought you were in league with those people. I didn’t trust you from the start. And then… Dad once saw Nicholas getting handsy with you. We both assumed there was something between you two." He ignored my ragged sobs, wiping the tears from my face with one hand while grabbing a tissue to clean my runny nose. His voice, low and insistent, continued m