Chapter 15: You Belong To Daddy

MARIELLE

“Julian.”

I forced a smile, limping slightly as I walked over to him. The aftereffects of last night… the desk, the couch, the sheer intensity of Cassius had left me tender and shaky. Julian was by my side in an instant, his face etched with worry..

“What happened? Why are you walking like that? Are you still not healed from the fall?”

I shook my head, trying to project a calmness I didn't feel. “I’m fine, Julian. Really.”

“How did you even fall?”

“Our baby was just being clumsy,” Vera interjected, nudging me with a grin. I rolled my eyes, but the movement felt heavy. Julian took my hand so gently, as if I were made of glass, and let out a long sigh.

“I was so scared when I heard.”

“We can tell,” Vera remarked, giggling as we moved toward the cafe.

“Where’s Damian?” Vera asked, scanning the area.

“He’s waiting at the table,” Julian said, offering me his arm. I took it, grateful for the support. We had come for a quick evening coffee, Vera had insisted on this meeting because Julian had been desperate to see me after the accident.

“Where’s your necklace?” Julian asked, looking at my bare throat.

My cheeks flamed. The memory of Cassius’ fingers tangling in that chain, using it to jerk me closer while he claimed my body on his desk, made my thighs clench with a sudden, traitorous heat.

“I… I forgot to wear it,” I lied, my voice hitching. “I was scared of losing it, so I kept it somewhere safe.”

The truth was much more violent. Cassius had ripped it from my neck, broke it into a thousand tiny pieces, and burnt it. He wanted no trace of another man's gift on my skin.

We settled into our seats, and Julian draped an arm over my shoulders, leaning in. “I really wanted to come to the mansion to see you, but I know your family is… intense.”

“Marielle!”

Vera suddenly spat out her drink, coughing and patting her chest. I froze, my heart dropping into my stomach. I turned my head slowly, and there he was.

Cassius.

He stood a few feet away, hands shoved deep into his pockets. His hair was perfectly styled, but his face was a mask of cold, vibrating fury. Enzo stood beside him, looking just as lethal.

“Princess.”

The word was a low, dangerous vibration that sent goosebumps racing across my skin. Julian looked confused, then stood up as he sensed the shift in the air. Vera was already mentally packing her bags, her face pale with regret.

“Who are you?” Julian questioned, stepping forward.

I quickly grabbed Julian’s arm, signaling him to be quiet. I could feel Cassius’ gaze burning into the spot where my hand met Julian’s skin. I stepped between them, forcing a polite smile.

“Julian, this is Cassius. My… uncle.”

“And ..my..uncle,” Vera added quickly, stepping over to hug Cassius. He gave her a curt, stern look before his eyes snapped back to me.

“He’s Julian, and that’s Damian. Our friends from uni,” Vera introduced.The silence that followed was suffocating. Julian leaned down, his voice a whisper near my ear.

“That’s the cruel..”

I cut him off with a sharp look, but it was too late.

“The fuck are you both doing here?” Enzo growled. Vera jumped, hiding her face against Cassius’ shoulder. While Cassius had a soft spot for Vera, Enzo was always the one to play the disciplinarian in his stead.

I looked at Cassius. He wasn't even looking at me anymore. His eyes were throwing literal daggers at Julian, his jaw so tight I thought it might shatter. He looked like a volcano seconds away from a catastrophic eruption.

“Dude, chill,” Damian said, trying to play it cool. “We were just hanging out.”

I mentally cursed Damian. You didn't "play cool" with the head of the Marchetti family.

“Enzo, take Vera home. Now,” Cassius ordered.

Vera gave me a terrified, sympathetic look before scurrying away with Enzo. I looked up at Cassius, my pulse racing. I knew he wanted me to move, but suddenly, Julian’s hand clamped around my wrist.

“Stay,” Julian said firmly.The air in the cafe seemed to vanish. Before I could even blink, a brutal, bone-cracking punch landed squarely on Julian’s jaw. He hit the floor with a sickening thud.

“Do not fucking touch her!” Cassius roared.

He stepped forward to lunge at Julian again, but I threw myself in front of him, grabbing his arm. His muscles were like granite under my touch. He was beyond reason.

“The fuck, dude!” Damian yelled, rushing to help Julian, who was currently spitting blood onto the pavement.

I started to move toward Julian to help him up, but Cassius’s hand clamped onto my arm like a vice, jerking me back.

“Touch him, and he loses his life right here,” Cassius hissed, his eyes flashing with a terrifying, fiery light.

I stared at him in disbelief. “What is wrong with you?”

He didn't answer. He simply dragged me toward the car, ignoring the shocked stares of the other patrons. He threw open the back door and pushed me inside with a harshness that made me gasp. He climbed in after me, and the door slammed shut like a prison cell.

“The fuck is wrong with you!?” I screamed, my anger finally boiling over.

“Dare to speak to me in that tone again and see what happens,” he warned, his voice dropping to that deadly, quiet register that usually made me shut down.

I pushed my hair back, my head throbbing with a sharp, stabbing pain.

Between the fall and Cassius’ roughness, I felt like I was falling apart. I tried to turn away, to ignore him, but he wasn't having it.He grabbed my arm and yanked me across the seat until I tumbled onto his chest. His arm locked around my waist, pinning me against him.

“Do not fucking ignore me.”

“Then why did you do that to him? He was just being a friend!” Cassius scoffed, his grip tightening until I whimpered.

“He put his hands on you. No one stays alive after touching what belongs to me.”

“I don’t belong to you!” I hissed, glaring at him.

A devilish, cruel grin spread across his lips. He gripped my chin firmly, forcing me to look at him.

“That’s not what you were screaming last night, princess.”

I blinked, the memories of the office…the begging, the "daddy," the way I’d unraveled for him..flooding back and making my skin burn with a traitorous heat.

“You know how possessive I am of what’s mine,” he whispered, his thumb brushing over my lower lip.

“I-I am not yours-”

“Oh, sweetheart. You’re daddy’s little slut.

That pussy belongs to me. Those gorgeous tits are mine to admire, and that ass is mine to spank whenever I please.”

He leaned in, his lips brushing against my ear.

“You belong to daddy. And it’s time you learned what happens when you let other men forget that.”