Read My Body-His Marcello for Free Online Page B

smile warmed me.
    “ Yes,
please, I’m starved,” I said, smiling back as I came toward him.
“Janice, would you like some, too?” I asked.
    “ She
doesn’t require anything,” Marcello said.
    I spun around to
face him and glared as he stared back at me. His eyes told me that
he had every intention of teaching me some respect. His glower brought an all-over blush to
my body, and goose bumps were rising on my arms. I loathed that I
had no control over my responses. I hated that a man who repulsed
me could compel my body to double-cross me.
    “ Come
here,” Luke said, drawing my attention away from
Marcello.
    He lifted me into
a big hug and I wrapped my legs around his waist. Sitting me down
on a towel covering the counter, he said, “Good morning, my wife.”
He handed me a plate full of scrambled eggs and toast with
strawberry jam. “Eat up, love. The morning could be
long.”
    “ Why
are we doing this again?” I let slip out before I thought better of
it.
    “ Are
you questioning me, Jane?” Luke’s eyes narrowed. The force of his
will was almost palpable.
    I shrank back.
“No, no, of course not, Luke. Thanks for the breakfast,” I said
with an apologetic smile. I wondered when I would learn not to poke
the beast.
    Luke wandered off
with Marcello and I could hear Marcello saying, “You treat her too
well, Luke. Have you learned nothing from me?” I couldn’t hear
Luke’s response as they had already made their way out
back.
    “ He
wants you, you know. More than he even wants me.”
    I faced Janice,
feeling so sad for her. I wanted to rescue her, to mother her, even
though she had to be close to my age of thirty-five. “Have you
eaten anything?”
    “ It’s
up to Marcello when I eat. No worries, Jane. I’m not
hungry.”
    “ What
are they going to do to me?” I said, looking down at the half-eaten
toast, too worried to eat another bite.
    “ Whatever they want, of course.”
    “ Do
you know what they have planned?”
    “ Yes,
but I can’t say. I have no intention of triggering Marcello’s rage.
It’s bad enough as it is. Listen very carefully when he gives you
his rules and Jane, seriously, follow them. Remember he’s no Luke
and there are no second chances with him.”
    “ But
Luke wouldn’t allow him to truly hurt me. Shouldn’t I be flying off
on my honeymoon instead of letting a lunatic use my body? Who the
hell am I?”
    “ I ask
myself that every day ... ”
    I left the plate
on the counter and Janice led me through the back doors. All traces
of the wedding had been swept away. Gone were all the tables, the
dance floor, the bar and the plethora of gifts. As we faltered
toward the beach, I saw that the large white tent that Luke rented
in case of inclement weather still stood. It could have
accommodated everything the back of the house held for the
reception.
    “ For
what’s about to happen, forgive me,” Janice said.
    “ What
does that mean?” I said. Fear gripped me and I found it hard to
fill my lungs. I knew in that moment that eating was the last thing
I should’ve done.
    “ Shhhhh. They can hear us now,” she whispered.
    We entered the
tent. Right in the center where the polls crossed, two ropes hung
down, each ending in a strap. They looked like a set. I could see
that I was going to be the main attraction.
    Dread had coated
me in a fine sheen of perspiration. It didn’t help that the day was
unusually warm and humid.
    With a radiant
warm smile Luke enfolded me in his arms and said, “I love you,
Jane, but this is a reminder that you should always be reverent
toward my friends.”
    I paced to the
center of the tent and held my arms above my head. The sooner I
could get this punishment over with, the better.
    Marcello strode
to where I stood and loomed over me menacingly. Gripping my face
with harsh fingers, he said, “You must stay silent. Do you
understand me? We do not want to draw a crowd.”
    With some
difficulty I shook my head in assent, as he was still