THE CONTROL: An Arranged Marriage Romance by Elena Monroe (ebook reader android .txt) 📕

the demon, doing the possessing and ultimately rendering it powerless when its name is spoken out loud.

Had I exercised myself by remembering? By telling Bowey?

Passing on coffee, I opened the fridge and found nothing of interest when I pulled my phone off the counter to find something to order. I hadn’t enjoyed food in years, and I wanted my first real meal to be epic.

While my phone was in my hands, I looked for a text from Bowen when I came up empty. The only messages I had were continuing conversations that spanned days with CeCe and Grace.

I felt light in ways I couldn’t explain. I matched with my Bowey, and I stopped holding hands with my demons the minute I could hold his hand instead.

Letting music blare from my phone, I finally let go and accepted my happy ending that I survived every hardship for. Dancing around the kitchen, I let the upbeat music not match the lyrics about troubled souls.

My letting loose was cut short when the doorbell rang through the house. My stomach came alive again as I swayed my hips all the way there.

I wanted to scream I’m back bitches! Demon-free and pretty kick ass.

Prying the heavy door open, my phone dropped from my grasp when it wasn’t the Grub Hub driver dropping off my juicy burger and fries.

Elias.

His eyes were dark, posture nearly perfect even at his height, and his hands were in his pockets, but I knew better when he pushed out my In-N-Out bag towards me.

Just because you look tough doesn’t mean you are.

“What are you doing here?” I knew better than to assume the boxing tips would be applied perfectly to help me in this situation as the bag hit the floor, fries sprinkling the dark wood as he charged the small space between us.

I felt his eyes glide over me when his hand grabbed my mine, pulling my arm to inspect between us when he pointed out my bruises. “He’s hurting you?”

Elias was deception at its greatest. He could mimic every feeling and you wouldn’t know the truth from a lie by the end of his demonstration.

Yanking my wrist from his grasp, his hand only tightened. “Elias, please.” His fingers were wrapped around my arm so firmly I swore I felt the muscle melting down to nothing.

He wanted to control me in ways that would make me his. 

I didn’t belong to anyone but Bowey and that killed him.

Wrapping his arms around me from behind, I struggled against his tight grasp, but it only made the satin of my robe fall open even more.

His lips touched my ear in a hot exhale that made me cringe. “What do you think you’re wearing? My angel doesn’t dress like this.”

Elias liked to pick apart my every decision, every move, every fabric that touched my skin like he was the all-seeing eye, and I had no say. His old habits fell right back into place like I wasn’t married, or this wasn’t LA but Denmark.

“It’s for Bowey not you... Why are you here, Elias? You’re hurting me.” I fought against his grip on my arm when he used his strength to throw me around like a ragdoll.

Pushing me against the wall, he forced my cheek against the cold wallpaper. His chest pinned me in place, and I felt his hand trail up the back of my thigh under the unsubtle satin of my robe.

None of it was intended for his eyes, but he was going to enjoy me regardless. “All these bruises, just like Denmark. He doesn’t like your mouth either unless it’s busy?”

Pig.

After remembering what he did to me in Denmark, I realized that I was completely healthy before that. I was unhappy and depressed, but my body wasn’t frail the way I was now. The only reason I had these bruises was because I stopped eating, and when I had to, I forced myself to stick my fingers down my throat far enough to make me regret eating at all.

It was my own subconscious defense—to stop my period from coming all together. If I didn’t have a period, then I wouldn’t have to drink the tea and live through that nightmare over and over.

Struggling under his grip, I needed to make this stop. He had to listen to me. “Elias. Please, stop. I’m Bowen’s now. You… you need to leave.” I said it like I believed it was true when we both knew if it came down to it Bowen would choose a bottle of Hennessy over me because his demons didn’t just hold his hands—they held a firm grasp around his throat.

Elias dragged his hand up my skin, pushing the robe up enough to expose my bare ass when his body pressed further into me with so much motivation it was hard to think straight.

This couldn’t happen again.

His hands were busy with his pants as his body weight pinned me in place. I wanted to beg him to stop, to force my way free—anything except be frozen the way I was.

“You - you can’t do this to me again. I know what you did.” My teeth grated and I felt my jaw hurt from the tension as I barely forced my words out.

I could feel exactly how much stealing what he wanted made him excited when his hard ridge dug into my backside. His lips pressed to my temple, letting out a groan that I wanted to shake from my memory immediately.

His grip on me forced my body from the wall, throwing me against the floor in a strong push I couldn’t catch myself from. Landing on my hip, I felt the sharp pain wrap me around me as I moaned out in pain while he added to my collection of bruises.

Tainting my love bites with