Damon Earlier that morning Leaving Isabella alone almost caused me physical pain, but I needed to work. Andrew had sent me a message when I woke up that he would like to get the meeting over with as early as possible. "Talk to me," I said into the phone after dialing his number. "I have my friend with me, and he'd like to, as much as I would, get this meeting over with this morning," Andrew said with a clear voice. "I'll speak to the king and get back to you," I said as I hung up. It was too early for this shit. I thought as I caressed Isabella's silky hair. I gently untangled her from my chest and the mess of limbs that were our legs before climbing out of the bed. "Shit," I muttered as I almost fell due to a sudden dizzy spell. Looks like I pushed myself last night, I thought as I looked back at Isabella. Her new position showed the hickeys I left on her neck and chest, making me smile. Her sweet pale skin would show anything, making me oh so eager to leave something on the l
Isabella I swapped my heels for huge Crocs that were so comfortable my feet wanted to sink inside. Paired with them were a small pair of shorts that I found and the baggy T-shirt that I stole from Damon back in Rome. I took a little stroll to Paula's room. When she answered, her eyes were sleepy, and her neck was decorated with hickeys, just like mine was earlier that morning. Her lips were puffy and pink, and she had this drained, giddy smile on her face. "I'll come back later," I said and went back to my room. I had somehow taken a wrong turn because I found myself lost. There was no staff around, and not a soul was inside the vast marble hallways for me. Suddenly, I heard the clopping sound of male shoes and, hoping I would see Briggs, it was Valentino I saw instead. "I couldn't help but follow you, princess," he said, slurring the last word, making my skin crawl. "That's bad here. He might get angry," I said and turned to leave. "Are you lost?" he asked with a smirk on his fa
Isabella After another shower, being careful not to wet my hair, Paula was currently twisting my hair into yet another updo. On the bed lay a long green dress that I had glimpsed a couple of times but hadn't dared to touch in the closet. Beside it was yet another pair of dark red heels, similar to the ones I wore that morning but a bit lower and with more embellishments. The dress was made of silk, sand was sleeveless, and backless. I felt as though I would be extremely exposed, especially since she was styling my hair upwards instead of letting it flow around my shoulders and waist. "It's a dress meant to show off your shoulders and back. There's no reason to hide them under your hair," Paula said as she continued to gently pull my hair. Moments later, she finished and moved on to my face. With a few strokes of her brush, she had put my face into a somewhat acceptable fashion with minimal makeup. Around my neck, she placed a simple necklace, along with matching earrings, a ring
Isabella"That sneaky little bastard. I don't think it's a good idea to keep him here. But he's the dawn of Rome," I reminded Damon. "Even if he is sneaky and a bastard, which I agree with both, I also think he might be useful. At least in his connections and resources," I said.Damon turned around with an expression I hadn't expected. "I don't like how he looked at you. I'd threatened to gouge his eyes out when we were alone if you went near him or if he looked at you like that.Maybe I shouldn't get you dresses like this anymore. Maybe you should wear them for me alone," he said, taking steps towards me."I'm fine with that," I said, laughing slightly and sticking out my tongue, even if it was just to provoke Paula in my mind. "What was the proposition?" Damon asked, drawing me out of my thoughts."He wants part of the city. He wants some of the land; he basically wants to run Rome, or at least an extension of it here," I said, trying to keep my words even.Damon smiled a bitter sm
DamonAt first, I panicked when I saw that Isabella was not beside me. But after a moment of thinking things through, I realized she was most likely fine.I got up from bed, took a quick shower, and made my way to the gym before spotting her with Paula by the fountain. I suddenly had an urge to eavesdrop on both of them. It was an old wives' action which I wasn't used to, but I felt I needed to do it. With calculated steps, I made my way closer and sat on the other edge of the fountain as I put on my gym shoes."Doesn't it give you the creeps?" Paula asked, mirroring some of the thoughts I had inside."He does," Isabella responded. "I've decided that it's better to keep Valentino off the island. He knows a lot about the way things work outside the city. He could prove to be a useful ally in the future. But I can't give him what he wants. No.He can't have the city or any part of the island. In fact, I can't believe I didn't think about this before. My father left me a complete island
Damon "What do you know that I don't?" I asked, teasing him with a smile and muttered a thank you to the bartender who placed a glass of whiskey in front of me. "I hear he's hiding something. I know he might have brought back the princess with him, but..." I trailed off internally, hating the way he spit out the word 'princess.' Suddenly, I wanted to punch this sheltered boy and watch him writhe in pain as he clutched his broken nose. His nose was suddenly too straight. "You don't say. Wouldn't you know that?" he asked me. "The masked king is a very secretive person. Even with how close I am to him, I still don't know what he looks like. I think he did bring someone with him, but there's a chance that it might be a fake. He sent me to Spain to search for the girl, but we didn't find her," I said as I leaned closer toward him. “No way. But I heard she was in the lower city.” Frederick said the his eyes wide. “Trust me, she wouldn't survive a day in the lower city.” I said as I
DamonI closed my eyes and quieted the sounds around me until I heard nothing but my heartbeat. I could feel the steady pull of the mask, craving violence and death."Hush now, you'll get your fill," I told it in my mind, and it quieted in response. I felt almost euphoric as we lifted off the ground and moved through the air. As I had promised, fire would go up tonight. As I had promised, there would be death tonight. In no time, I felt the helicopter begin to descend as we steadily got lowered to the ground. As soon as we did, I let the sounds back in and exited the helicopter.The mask began to hum again, craving, crying for blood and death. This time, I couldn't stop the cry.I grit my teeth as I felt a surge of power flood through my bones.We had stopped right inside Martinez's estate. In the distance, the manor's sounds were coming out from the well-lit windows, almost as though there was a party."Looks like there's a party," I heard Miguel say beside me. "I'm sure they wouldn
DamonFrank had been beaten up rather badly. His eyebrow was split, and his lip was busted in multiple places, bleeding profusely. I was willing to bet he had a broken tooth or two in his mouth. His bloody grin cemented my opinion. I leaned down and began untying his binds. I suddenly realized I could snap the ropes which gave out under the slightest pressure from me as though it were twigs. I snapped the ropes around his feet hands and the one binding him to the chair across his chest.He didn't move until I lifted him under the arm and draped his arm across my shoulder. His feet dragged behind him, but it was clear he struggled to stay upright as his breathing was labored. I kept silent as I climbed the stairs, respecting Frank's condition.Outside, the middle-aged woman stood between Miguel and Alessandro, neither of whom paid her any attention, but she was trembling in fear.As soon as they saw me, the duo moved to open the car door. Within a few minutes, Frank was in the car, an
IsabellaPerhaps it was Donatella's face that was the most surprising, but the days following my declaration and official ascension to the throne were followed by endless visits to my family's estate.I had to temporarily move there because I was worried about the constant movement and how my son would take it. However, according to Julio, it also applied pressure to bring Cassandra back to the city.She had disappeared a few days ago, and I believed she went to have her child."I must say, he's a very handsome boy," Nicholas said as he carried my son and began to walk around the new nursery. The baby cooed in his arms and raised his little fists towards his face. I smiled but began to miss the little bundle of warmth that he provided. I had once complained to Damon, and his reply was,"You'll just have to get used to it. Or are you going to take my son away from me?" Damon said with a smile.***To my surprise, Cassandra didn't show up over the next few weeks. I began to genuinely w
IsabellaGeorge knelt in front of me in the gazebo. I had given Alessandro the go-ahead to let him come to the mansion. He came accompanied by three more people that I didn't recognize."There was a mistake, Princess. If I had known…”“I know you think that I am a benevolent figure of never-ending kindness that might accept you. But you must understand that given my position, I simply cannot forgive you right off the bat. You have to prove yourself to me. You have to prove yourself to the city. You have to prove your loyalty, and it will cost you more than it did the last time," I found myself saying.Shortly after that, I left the men alone and made a beeline for the nursery where I felt my son squirming and crying in his cot. The maid I had instructed to stay with him was trying to keep him calm, but she was failing miserably, making me laugh.I stretched out my hands, and just as she placed him in it, the infant settled down. Shortly after passing him and singing to him, I felt ar
DamonAfter Isabella told me that I should handle Cassandra, Valentino, and her allies, I got to work instantly, telling Ted to pull out the old files he had on the trust of those she committed."So what do we do with them?" he asked. "We pick the weakest link. We pick the one most sympathetic to the lower City. Find me a couple of them and show them the pictures."A few days later, I received a call from Ted while I was out in town on a meeting with Nicholas."We have a number of them. What do you want us to do?" he asked. "Tell them to come to my place," Nicholas said with his arms raised. "I'm sure we'll do a good job convincing them." I smiled and told Ted to do the same. Six men, members of the lesser families, came through his gate.I recognized Antonio and George to be some of them and stopped myself from snickering behind my mask. The men bowed when they saw me, but it was clear that their initial fear of me was gone. I smirked behind the mask and looked at them.I loved se
IsabellaDamon had carried me into the tub filled with cold water. As soon as my body came in contact with the water, I instantly sighed in relief. Marie came to me with a small figure half wrapped in a cloth and laid the pink infant on my naked chest.I leaned my back against the foam headrest and let my child lean against my skin. He squirmed and cried, but Marie said it was all part of the process, even though my heart was aching as I desperately searched my mind for what to do to ease his sorrows somehow."If he doesn't cry, his lungs wouldn't be strong. You have to let him cry, princess," she had told me before I struggled with her, and Damon carried me into the bathroom. Even now, he was still crying, but I felt a bit assured as Damon held my hand and began to rub soothing circles over my knuckles. "You are so strong," he whispered. "I'm so proud of you." He whispered again, and this time his hand reached up to caress the head of the infant that laid on my chest. I smiled, bu
IsabellaDamon laughed suddenly, his shoulders quaking, and the room filled up with the hearty sound of joy. He stopped after a while and turned his head towards Cassandra. "It looks as though this wannabe princess is uninformed about what's happening in the city. Someone please tell her."Andrew cleared his throat. "The King…" Damon took off his mask, revealing his face, causing Cassandra to gasp and cover her mouth, as did Donatella. "The King has been married to the princess for quite a while now. I happen to be one of those privileged to witness the ceremony and the signing of their marriage certificate.This, of course, meant that as one without a surname, he would take his wife's own, making him Damon Montenegro Therefore, your challenge… your stake on the throne is very much mitigated by him.""That's not possible!" Cassandra screeched. "You wouldn't do that," she said as she turned her head towards me and stared daggers at me through the screen. "I did. Would you like to h
Isabella"Do I need to remind you that you are a fugitive?" Damon's voice cut through the silence like a hot knife through butter."Do I need to remind you that your crimes are so great you deserve to be put to death?" Damon stood up from his seat and walked towards the pregnant woman."Get out, or I will pull my gun and shoot you between your eyes, not caring about the child within your belly." Instantly, Donatella gasped and covered her mouth with surprise.She got up and walked towards both of them and set herself in their midst as though to protect Cassandra. "Ouch," I thought to myself. "So much for loyalty forever," I said out loud. Donatella turned to me."You must understand, princess, it's not as though I will not be loyal to you. It's just with the recent developments, we find ourselves needing an heir. Perhaps once she gives birth, she can leave." "I'm not going anywhere," Cassandra said, protesting as she pushed the older woman out of the way."I'm here to challenge her
Isabella“No, Isabella. We still need Cassandra to come out. We need her to show her cards. I'm sure it's not going to take long, but... you have to hang tight, Mia Bella," Damon said, shaking his head.He raised his hand and began to caress my belly before leaning in and pressing a kiss on my swollen abdomen. As if in response, the baby kicked where his hand was."He's saying hello to me," Damon said with a smile as he leaned forward and then pulled open the robe I wore to reveal my naked belly."So perfect," he said as he pressed another kiss on the pale skin. "So damn perfect," he said again as he met my eyes. I could see the expression there, his eyes flashing red before returning back to their normal hazel color. He spread open my legs and slowly removed the outer robe to reveal my naked pussy. Slowly, he kissed his way from my belly button down to my weeping pussy.***The extra wait was grueling, but I didn't mind it. I filled my days with walking, with Paula up and down the
Isabella"It was just a rumor," I told my husband as he paced the length of the room, hitting one wall and then going to the next to do the same."We both know rumors are next to truth. It wouldn't be said if it wasn't seen at some point. But you're the same person that said the city thrived on rumors. Why is this one only different?" I questioned him, but the man continued his insistent pacing. He had taken off his shirt, leaving him half naked and making my eyes wander to strange places."Please," I begged him as I stood up. I took off my coat."You're making me dizzy," I said.Damon stopped suddenly and looked at me. "And if the rumor's true?""Then we laid a trap. And I think traps are your thing… at least Julio's thing.""So let's call the ultimate trap master and have him whip up something for us," I said as I reached up towards my husband's head.***The day after, Julio sat opposite me in the gazebo. "How could you not tell me you were pregnant?" He asked, his eyes wide and f
DamonIsabella's face was pale when I saw her as she came out of the bathroom. She had a stunned look as though she was trying to remember something. I grabbed her hands and rubbed circles over her knuckles until she smiled at me."I am fine," she said with a shaking voice."Champagne?" I asked as I handed her a flute. She shook her head. "I can't keep it down," she said, forcing another smile at me."Isabella, what is wrong?" I asked with my mouth close to her ear. "I'll tell you when we get home," she said as she squeezed my fingers back.The rest of the evening couldn't come fast enough as I began to wish time could go faster. Finally, three hours after we arrived at the party, she tugged on my arm, telling me she wanted to go home. I bade goodbye to my friends and some others who were desperate to see me for some reason. We decided to take the chopper, being impatient and me wanting to find out what was wrong with my wife.I helped her out of her dress when we reached our room. S