Read Online Flashback by Ella Ardent - Free Book Online Page A

was
dispassionate and authoritative, as if he alone had the right to
tell her what to do. Rebellion flared within Athena. “You are mine
and you will stay where you are safe. I command it.”
    “This isn’t a game,” Athena said, pulling her
arm from his grip. “This is life . This is my responsibility
and this is serious.”
    “Which is precisely why I won’t let you
involve yourself.”
    “It’s not up to you!”
    “I won’t lose you again!” The Count shouted,
as she had never heard him shout before. They glared at each other
for a potent moment, then Athena headed for the door.
    “I’m leaving,” she said.
    “No, you’re not.”
    “You can’t keep me here like a captive
slave.”
    The Count folded his arms across his chest
and lifted an eyebrow. He could be stubborn and Athena knew it. If
she defied him, she played along with the script he loved so well.
He would chase her and capture her and discipline her. She didn’t
have time for that game, or any patience with it.
    Instead she had to change his mind.
    Athena exhaled, then went back to stand
before him. She spoke softly, not with defiance but with resolve.
“You say you love me. Would you rather force me to stay with you,
or would you rather I chose to stay with you?”
    “It doesn’t matter. The end result will be
the same.”
    “No, it won’t. Because if you lock those
doors against me, I will hate you with all my heart and soul. You
might be able to do whatever you want to my body, but I’ll
guarantee to you that it will be an empty victory. I will escape,
but I’ll make sure you pay first.”
    His eyes narrowed.
    “I could love you, but only if you love me
for who I really am. I’m not a little girl anymore. I can’t be
protected from the world, even if that’s what you want to do.”
    He glared at her for a long moment, then
walked away from her. “I remember being surprised by your room,” he
said heavily. “It was what convinced me you could truly be mine.
That we were kindred spirits.”
    “Why?”
    “No posters, no pictures, no teddy bears.” He
pivoted to face her. “You were never innocent, Athena. You always
needed what I could give you.”
    “Maybe I need more than what you’ve given me
so far.”
    His gaze was hard and she could almost hear
him thinking. He was weighing the possibilities, choosing the path
most likely to give him what he wanted.
    Her.
    How much would he bend? How much could he
compromise? How much would she love him if he did?
    How much would she hate him if he didn’t?
    He must have glimpsed her determination,
because his lips tightened and the fight went out of his shoulders.
“You called yourself my Countess once,” he said softly.
    It was true. Athena said nothing, just felt
the lump in her throat. She could go without his permission, but
she didn’t want to part that way. “I still might, if we met as
equals.”
    “No guarantees on that?”
    “We’ve yet to try it.”
    He turned his back on her abruptly. “Go
then,” he said heavily. “Go then and do what you want to do.” He
made to leave the room, but stopped right beside her. “Rex might
not be the man you want him to be.”
    Athena shrugged. “That wouldn’t be much of a
surprise. The fact is that I’ve never known what to expect from the
men I’ve loved.”
    The Count flinched at that and it was almost
enough.
    Athena turned away from him and picked up the
cup of chocolate. It had cooled slightly but was still delicious.
Made from scratch, just the way the maids had made it in her
grandmother’s house. Athena closed her eyes and savored it, bracing
herself for what she had to do. In a way, it was a relief to
revisit the past and she found strength in its familiarity.
    In another way, it was a false security. The
past was over and her concern should be the future. The Count
hesitated on the threshold, perhaps wanting something more from
her, but Athena didn’t turn around until his footsteps had faded
and he was