Stuck With You

Chapter Twenty Three

WARNING: Abuse

Iliana's POV

Two years ago

"I'm tired of your antics Joshua!"

"My antics?! Why don't you go ahead and enlight me with what those are!"

"You act like a jealous prick! Do I have to remind you that you do not own me?" I yelled.

I never saw it coming. I couldn't even believe it when it happened, I would have thought it was an hallucination if it wasn't for the burning sting on my cheek.

I regained myself enough to turn to look at him. I hoped to find remorse and regret on his face, but I was met with nothing. Not an ounce of guilt on his face. He was just stone cold and uncaring.

Josh had never put a hand on me before so I was having a hard time processing what just happened.

"You're going to learn to respect me," he said venomously.

I was in shock but I was also angry. Fuming that he thought he could just do that and control me.

"I don't have to do anything because from now on we are nothing Joshua. Nothing." I bit back and walked past him to go home. Only to be pushed back and roughly thrown to the nearest wall.

"You are not going anywhere and you definitely are not leaving me." He squeezed my neck harshly - not allowing me to breathe. "Because if you do or even think of doing it I'll ruin you Iliana. One email to the press of one or maybe some of the sex tapes I have of you and you're over. You can even choose which one to send."

The what?

He lessened his hold on my throat enough for me to breathe and speak. "I don't fucking care you bastard," I spat.

My reputation to the public was not worth this.

"So stubborn..." he mumbled and wiped some blood off my lip that he had torn with the slap. "You try to leave me and I won't just do that, no, I will also kill that little slut you call wife."

My blood ran cold at that. He seemed to be content with my reaction.

"So here's what's going to happen, you won't talk to her unless absolutely necessary, you won't look at her, text her or anything. I don't want her name coming out of your mouth. Are we clear babe?" I felt repulsed by the name.

In defeat I only nodded. All I wanted to do now was cry in a corner.

"Don't cry now," Josh wiped a tear off my cheek that I didn't notice I spilled or that I was crying at all. "You know I never wanted to show you this side of me, I tried so hard not to. But you pushed me to my limit. Now, where were we?"

The days after that were hell, cutting off Kai was harder than I thought it would be. It pained me shut her out. I knew I was hurting her but it was for the best.

She knew something was wrong, she tried to make me tell her what it was. But eventually after shutting her out each time, she gave up and I don't blame her.

I thought Josh would stop there, that after I did what he said he will be happy. And I guess in his own twisted way he was. But the beatings didn't stop, they got worse as time passed by.

I didn't recognize him.

No one knew about it. Not April, not my mom and definitely not Kai. No one could know.

I felt like I was walking on eggshells ever since.

My only comfort was when I was on the safety of my room. I knew he wouldn't dare come to the penthouse. He was scared of Kai, and he should be.

I missed Kai. I wanted to apologize, to tell her everything but I couldn't. The closest I felt to her was when I wore the hoodie she had borrowed me the time we went to swim in the woods, I forgot to give it back and she never asked me to, so I just kept it.

I hate this.

Why did this happened to me.

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A/N - this was hard to write :/