In Bed with the Devil: A Billionaire Second Chance Romance by Tia Siren

Author:Tia Siren [Siren, Tia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Tia Siren
Published: 2018-03-18T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter 10

Joanna

“I’m going to stay here for the week to protect you from Sid, to protect you from yourself also.”

The thought of staying in Bastian’s log mansion was enough to make my head ache with confusion, but for him to be here the entire time? A whole new sensation took over.

“You’re going to stay here the entire time?” I repeated. “Bastian, you don’t have to stay here. I can handle everything by myself.”

Bastian’s eyes didn’t falter in their intensity as he shook his head at me. “I’m serious when I say that. I’m going to stay here because I’m worried about you going back to that dickhead ex-boyfriend of yours.”

“What makes you think I would do that?” I asked defensively, crossing my arms. “Do you think I enjoy being his punching bag?”

“Obviously not,” he replied, and dark clouds gathered in his eyes. “I just know how tough it is to get away from that situation. He’s going to throw out an apology to you and promise change, but are you going to believe it?”

I turned away to gaze at the king-sized canopy bed that called my name. Exhaustion tugged at my brain as I stared down at the mountain of throw pillows that smelled fresh and clean. The entire guest room was the size of my house back in Salt Lake. My old house, I corrected with a painful jolt. Maybe Bastian had a point about having a hard time letting go of the past. It wasn’t easy to just forget years’ worth of the good times, either.

“That’s what I thought,” Bastian said. “It’s not easy, Joanna. No one is saying that it will be, but you’ve got to see your self-worth here You don’t deserve to be in a relationship where you are getting hurt all the time.”

Bitterness tore through me as I stared at the suitcases at the end of the bed. This was what my life had come to—living out of suitcases because I had been too afraid and confused about what to do when it came to Sid. I could’ve walked away the first time Sid had punched me, but I had forgiven him the moment that he had promised to get help. The help had lasted for a few months, and Sid had explained to me that it was the stress from his job. He saw horrific things. He told family members that their loved ones were dead and had been mangled in car accidents. Shit like that weighed heavily on a person’s soul over time. His temper never quieted though. Those appointments with the police department counselor eventually tapered off, and the physical abuse began again.

It was all a vicious cycle that was only broken up by going to work, Monday through Friday from eight to five. That was my respite, my break from how fucked up things had gotten in my life.

I still felt uneasy, though, being alone with Bastian for an entire week while he worked from his office here. I had

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