GIOVANNI'S POVThe fury that simmered within me was a volcanic thing, hot and suffocating. It began as a faint rumble a moment ago, but now it roared. Tristan, Tristan, had the unmitigated gall, the sheer temerity, to even attempt to strike me. My hand, still clamped around his jaw, felt the tense shudder in his muscles, the tautness of his defiance. A punch. To me. Giovanni Sokolov. The thought itself was an obscenity.Then his words, shrill and accusatory, sliced through the air like a whip. They were not merely sounds; they were a direct assault, a challenge to the very foundation of my existence, my authority.“How dare you think of me as dirty like that?” he yelled, his voice cracking with the force of his indignation, a raw, exposed sound that should have softened me but only stoked the embers of my rage. “You’re disgusting. Why not look at yourself in the mirror? You’re about to get married, but you’re still keeping me here. Aren’t you ashamed?”Ashamed? The word hung in the a
TRISTAN'S POVMy eyelids felt heavy, glued together by the residue of a fitful sleep and the dull throb behind my temples. I blinked, once, then twice, the soft morning light filtering through the heavy drapes doing little to soothe my aching head.Anastasia, a vision of vibrant energy even this early, was helping me back into the vast, ornate bed. Her hand was warm, firm, pressing against my waist as I leaned into her for support, my legs still shaky from whatever ordeal had possessed me yesterday.Then, a sudden, cold shadow descended upon the room. The air shifted, growing heavy, thick with an unspoken threat. I blinked a few more times, the image coalescing into the formidable figure of Giovanni, framed by the doorway.His presence was not merely physical; it was an oppressive force. His aura, usually a calculated blend of charm and authority, now felt entirely darkened, like a storm cloud gathering on the horizon. His eyes, usually a piercing grey, blazed with an intensity that p
GIOVANNI'S POVThe sun scorched the stone statues of the courtyard, highlighting the boredom festering within me. I traced the intricate carving on my signet ring, each spiral a testament to my family’s relentless grasp on power, a power I was increasingly forced to embody.Across the table, Juliana, was prattling on. Her voice, like the incessant chirp of a bird, flitted between details of a wedding that felt less like a celebration and more like a corporate merger.“...and the peonies, of course, must be flown in from Holland, darling. Nothing less will do for the centerpieces,” she declared, gesturing dramatically to an unseen floral arrangement.My gaze drifted past her, past her parents, Luca and Giulia Conti, and landed on my father, Viktor. He sat there, a smug satisfaction plastered across his face, soaking up the fake flattery like a sponge.“Then the caterer, Mama,” Juliana continued, oblivious to the silence she had inadvertently created. “I was thinking Chef Benoit. His tr
TRISTAN'S POVThe first thing that registered was the searing pain. A deep, throbbing ache that radiated from the very core of my being, encompassing every muscle, every bone. My eyes fluttered open to the familiar softness of my bed, the morning light filtering through curtains.I tried to shift, a low hiss escaping my lips as the pain flared, protesting even the slightest movement. My body felt like a battlefield, a testament to Giovanni’s… wildness from the night before.The fountain in the garden maze. The chill of the water against my skin, the rough stone pressing into my back, the relentless, punishing thrusts that had me gasping for air, for release, for anything but the brutal ecstasy he extracted.It was all a hazy, nightmarish blur now. I remembered the desperate struggle to pull my torn clothes back on, the fabric clinging to my sweat-slicked skin, the shame already settling deep in my gut. After that, nothing. A blank. I must have passed out, completely,
GIOVANNI'S POVI stood there, my chest heaving with a tempest of emotions.... anger, jealousy, and a possessive lust that had been simmering for three long days.My eyes, dark and unyielding, were fixed on the red marks that striped Tristan’s exposed ass, the result of the harsh whipping I had delivered with my belt. The image of him naked, another woman’s hands stroking his cock, then a few minutes ago... Tristan's laughter mingling with the voice of another man, replayed in my mind like a curse. It was a betrayal I couldn’t forgive, yet my desire for him only deepened with every memory.Tristan lay bent over the garden fountain, his body trembling, tears streaming down his face. The marble beneath him was cold, a stark contrast to the heat radiating from his skin. The garden maze, once a place of tranquility, now felt like a cage, its high hedges closing in around us, trapping us in this moment of raw, unfiltered emotion. I stepped closer, my boots crunching on the gravel path. My
TRISTAN'S POVThe cool evening air of the garden, which had moments ago kissed my skin with the promise of a peaceful respite, now felt like a shroud. The scent of jasmine and damp earth, usually so comforting, twisted into something terrifying, choked by the sudden, suffocating presence of him.Giovanni.I saw the black on his demeanor, a darkness so profound it seemed to leach the colour from the vibrant surroundings. His eyes were now chips of obsidian, devoid of warmth, reflecting only a searing, unadulterated rage. He stood by the arched trellises, framed by climbing roses, but he looked less like a figure in a romantic painting and more like a predator, coiled and ready to strike. My heart, a panicked bird, hammered against my ribs, an urgent, frantic rhythm that felt impossibly loud in the gathering silence.He was seething, I knew it. Every fibre of his being vibrated with anger, with that raw, untamed jealousy that always simmered just beneath the surfa