Chapter 5 I'll Keep You Forever

My fingers tightened without warning, as if my heart had been caught in a steel vice. The sudden pressure stole my breath, leaving me gasping in a slow, suffocating wave.

It took me a long moment before I could find my voice. "You want a divorce? Why?"

"You wanted freedom. I'm giving it to you. You don't have to sleep with me just to please me anymore." Clifford lit a cigar, dragging on it several times in quick succession.

He only smoked when his thoughts were in chaos.

I knew this wasn't what he truly wanted, but the sting in my chest was sharp enough to make my nose ache.

Not even the servants' whispers, not even the curses from those people had made me feel this humiliated.

"Clifford Gutierrez! You're a bastard!" My voice broke into a shout as I tore the divorce agreement in my hands, shredding it into pieces before hurling them at him.

Paper fragments fluttered in the air between us, drifting like snow in a storm.

I lunged toward him, stepping across the space until my knee pressed against his leg. My hands cupped his face as I crushed my mouth to his.

The kiss was wild, desperate… my tears mixing with the metallic taste of blood. When I felt his stillness, his refusal to respond, I pulled back slowly.

His eyes were flat, unreadable. "Violet, enough…"

"Not enough!" My voice cracked into a raw cry as tears surged down my cheeks. "I haven't loved you the way I should. I haven't given you a child. I haven't grown old with you…" My words collapsed into sobs as I dropped my forehead onto his shoulder. "You promised you'd never leave me. Why are you breaking your vow?"

"Violet, do you even know what you're saying?"

His kiss hit me without warning—sudden, violent, the kind of force that steals your breath and leaves you reeling.

It wasn't gentle. It wasn't patient. It was possession, pure and unrelenting, as if he wanted to fuse me into himself until I couldn't tell where I ended and he began.

"Violet," he said, voice rough against my mouth, "remember this—this time I gave you freedom, and you threw it away. From now on, even if you don't love me, I'll keep you. Until you take your last breath."

I tried to speak, but his hand caught my wrist, forcing it above my head, pinning me to the desk. The wood was cold against my back, papers scattering to the floor as his body pressed into mine.

In a single motion, he stripped me bare, his eyes darkening as they swept over me.

The heat between us was suffocating, my pulse hammering in my ears.

"Want it?" he asked, a dangerous smile curling his lips as he guided my hand to him.

The hard shape beneath the fabric left no doubt, and the memory of last night flickered in my mind, sending a flush racing across my cheeks.

"Move, sweetheart."

My fingers obeyed, tracing him, feeling the tension coil tighter with every touch. His belt came undone, clothes falling away, and suddenly there was nothing between us but the raw electricity in the air.

He pulled me down, my lips brushing the place where his heartbeat thundered, tasting the heat of his skin. His breath caught, a low sound escaping him—half growl, half plea.

Then he was over me, driving me back into the desk, into the floor, into the bed in the next room, each place another battlefield. His pace was relentless, claiming me again and again until my body was no longer mine.

When the wave finally broke, I clung to him, trembling, my fingers tangled in his hair. The world had narrowed to the sound of our breathing and the echo of everything we had just done.

He pressed a soft kiss to my ear, his voice a whisper meant only for me. "Violet… you're mine."

We didn't stop at once. Clifford's intensity was relentless, but eventually he eased, worried I wouldn't be able to take more.

I curled into the bed, watching him dress. He fastened his buttons with deliberate care, glancing at me from under his lashes.

"What's so funny?" he asked, his voice low, almost curious.

I tilted my head, eyes narrowing. "Has anyone else ever seen you like that? That side of you?"

His mouth curved, slow and deliberate, into a faint smile. "I'm not some desperate mutt chasing a scent."

A sharp laugh escaped me before I could stop it. I caught his tie in my fist and yanked him closer, close enough to feel the warmth of his breath. "Then listen carefully—if you ever walk away from me again, I'll make sure they all see it. Every single one of them. The great Godfather… stripped bare. Not the man they fear, but the man who loses control."

Clifford's chuckle was low, rich, and edged with danger. It wrapped around me like smoke. "No wonder you're my Little Rose," he murmured. "You've got thorns."

He brushed his lips over mine in a brief kiss. "I have things to take care of. Wait here for me."

"Alright." I smoothed his clothes before watching him walk out.

Not long after, the door opened again.

Rosa stepped in, carrying clothes. I tilted my head slightly, letting the marks on my neck show.

I'd always been jealous of Rosa, and I wanted her to see exactly where I stood with Clifford.

But with him gone, she didn't bother pretending. She tossed the clothes into my face.

"Violet, you homewrecker. What are you so proud of?"

I turned my head, smiling faintly as I dressed without hurry.

Then I walked up to her and slapped her hard across the face.

"Homewrecker? If I'm not mistaken, you should be calling me Mrs. Gutierrez."

Color flooded her cheeks, her eyes burning with rage so sharp it felt like it could tear me apart.

"Mrs. Gutierrez? You think you deserve that title?"

"If it weren't for your father begging Clifford to marry you on his knees, do you think he would have?"

My steps faltered. My brows drew together. "What do you mean?"

I'd always believed Clifford had stolen me away from Lucas, breaking off our engagement. I thought he'd dragged me into the Gutierrez Mansion and declared me his wife against my will.

I'd hated him for it.

But now Rosa was telling me my father, Robbie, had asked Clifford to marry me.

"Rosa, explain yourself!" My hands gripped her arm, my voice shaking.

She let out a cold, sharp laugh. "Violet, I've known Clifford since we were kids, long before he ever became a leader. We went hungry together, fought side by side. He swore he'd protect me for the rest of my life. But then you showed up, and everything shifted.

"You venomous woman… Clifford has bled for you. He's stood against the entire Gutierrez family because of you. If he hadn't been there to shield you, there wouldn't have been enough left of you to bury. And still, you take him for granted."

Her words sliced through me, cold and sudden. I'd heard them before—once, in another lifetime.

Back then, I told her, "What he does is his choice. I never asked for any of it. If you love him so much, then let him love you. Just don't let him hold on to me."

I'd even stepped aside, giving her and Clifford time alone, hoping he'd lose interest in me.

I'd been such a fool—pushing away the only man who had ever truly loved me.

Dragging myself back to the present, I met Rosa's eyes. "I wronged him before. But I'm not the woman I used to be. I won't let you goad me into walking away from him."

He had taken on the world for me. I would never let him go again.

But one question still burned in me—why had my father begged Clifford to marry me?

"Rosa—"

Pain ripped through my wrist before I could finish. Rosa's fingers clamped down on my injured arm.

I shoved her away instinctively.

She stumbled back, clutching her chest, her face twisting in pain. "Violet… Clifford loves you. If you don't love him, at least don't hurt him."

"What are you talking about?"

Blood seeped through her fingers, staining them red.

"Is your wound opening up?" I stepped forward to check, but she retreated.

"Violet, you know Clifford trusts me most. How could you ask me to help you run away with Lucas? Even if you kill me today, I won't betray him."

Her words had barely left her lips when a tall figure appeared behind her.

It was Clifford.