Hannah...

Roman and I flew directly into Nassau, an island off the coast of the Bahamas, in his private jet. The flight only took four hours, but the entire time Roman made sure I had all the champagne and food that I wanted. When we arrived at the hangar, there was a car waiting to take us to our resort. I marveled at the beauty of the island as we traveled to our destination. Roman smiled and laughed at my enthusiasm.

"I can’t wait to get out and onto the beach," I said excitedly.

"You can," Roman said. "The beach will be right outside our back door."

I nearly squealed in delight. Moments later, we arrived at an elegant gated resort, and the gates swung open slowly to allow us entry. The driveway was lined with palm trees, flowers, and beautiful birds that flitted from tree to tree. When I caught a glimpse of the sparkling blue ocean, I was in awe. The car pulled around a circular driveway and stopped in front of the resort’s main entrance. Roman checked us in and had the staff grab our luggage while I hurried him off to our private living quarters.

We walked hand in hand through a series of pathways lined with tropical foliage that transitioned into sand. I could hear the ocean waves crashing on the beach before we reached our living quarters, a beautiful cabana with large, open windows and billowing curtains. Roman opened the door and we stepped into a large living space with vaulted ceilings. There was a kitchen to the left of the space and a short corridor to the bedroom with a floor-to-ceiling window view of the beach. I stripped out of my outfit since my two-piece bathing suit was underneath, and I pushed the patio door open, running out onto the sand and into the ocean.

Roman joined me in the water after ensuring that our luggage arrived. We splashed each other and held each other in the water, kissing to our heart’s content. When we were tired and ready for dinner, Roman ordered room service with a few traditional Bahamian food items, like Johnny cakes and pigeon peas and rice, which were delicious. As the sun set, Roman lit the torches on the patio just outside the bedroom and we sat together with fruit wine, watching the beach waves ebb and flow.

"Can we live here?" I asked Roman.

He laughed. "I would love nothing more than to live on the beach here with you, Hannah," he said. "But this isn’t where any of my business headquarters are located."

"I understand," I said. "I was just dreaming out loud." I sipped my wine and closed my eyes as the ocean breeze swept over us. "Where exactly are your parents looking to settle down?" I asked Roman. "You said they’ll be traveling abroad."

Roman nodded. He was sitting with his ankle across his knee, cupping his wine glass in his lap. "That may be a point of contention for them," he said. "My mother is in love with Italy, but my father prefers the Turkish culture."

"At least those two countries aren’t very far apart," I said.

"They’ll likely buy property in both places and split their time between the two," Roman said. He sipped his wine and glanced over at me. "Where would you settle down?" he asked me.

I thought for a moment. My parents had taken us to France, England, and Spain when my siblings and I were just kids, and I had a few memories of fun things we did in each of those countries.

"I really enjoyed Spain," I said. "There was something magical about the culture there."

"I’ve never been," Roman said. "We’ll have to schedule a trip there together."

I smiled at Roman. "I’d like that," I said.

Roman put his wine glass on the table and held his hand out to me. "Come here," he said, and I complied, sitting on his lap. He pulled me toward him and kissed me. Parting our lips, we deepened the kiss as he began to untie my bathing suit. We ended up naked in the bedroom and we made love as the sun set over the beach.

The next morning, Roman took me to a local restaurant for breakfast and then on a boat tour around the island of Nassau. We laughed and joked, kissing whenever we got the chance, like a couple on our honeymoon. Before dinner, we did a bit of shopping, and Roman took me to every store that I wanted to visit. It was as if he and I were the only two people in the world. We were happy, and there wasn’t a moment that we weren’t laughing or holding one another as we stared out onto a beautiful beach scene.

We spent a lot of time at our resort relaxing on the beach and making love. There was a day of aquarium tours and even snorkeling around the island near coral and colorful fish. We visited the main island of the Bahamas and enjoyed more beaches and delicious food. There was nothing Roman denied me, and he seemed genuinely happy to just be with me, kissing me and holding me. It felt as if this was what my life was supposed to be, living life with Roman Thaddeus, as his wife. He was attentive, kind, affectionate, and genuinely happy.

On the last day of our honeymoon, I lay on the beach beneath a huge white umbrella, dozing in the warmth of the sun and the sound of the crashing waves. Roman had gone into the cabana to check his email, and I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew, Roman was sitting beside me on our towel, nudging me awake. He smiled down at me with his blue eyes sparkling. I sat up and kissed him.

"I can’t believe today is our last day here," I said wistfully. "Not that I don’t want to get back home," I added. "This has just been like living in a dream."

"I agree," Roman said. "I’m in no hurry to get back to the office, but duty calls." He pulled me close to him, hugging me. "I also just heard from Lauren," he said.

I gazed up at Roman and he seemed to be more somber than usual. "Is something wrong?" I asked him. I had been texting Lori periodically and she seemed to be loving her time with Lauren, learning the ins and outs of interior design. She had even sent me a few pieces of upholstery design that she and Lauren were working on.

"No, nothing is wrong," Roman said. "She gave me contact information for an FBI agent that can help me take down The Auction House." I stiffened at the mention of that place, and my body suddenly went cold despite the warmth of the Caribbean sun. I pulled away from Roman’s embrace and sat up to face him.

"You really plan on trying to take that place down after what the contract said?" I asked him.

"I feel like I have a duty to stop them," Roman said. "I have this guilt for participating in such a disgusting trade. I got a beautiful wife out of it, but you and those other women should not have been in a place like that at all."

I pressed my lips together and stared out at the ocean. I wanted to take my father down for sure, but I didn’t know if trying to take down the entire operation was the best idea. "A lot of people will be in danger if you do this, Roman, especially our family and friends."

"That’s why I’m working with a professional," Roman said. "The FBI will know exactly what to do to take that place down as safely as possible." 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

I shook my head, but I didn’t know what to say to him. It had taken so long for me to forget about that place and just be with Roman, normalizing our relationship, and now he wanted to dive headfirst into that underground human trafficking ring.

"I had almost forgotten about that place," I said, feeling bile rise into my throat. "I had nearly forgotten that my father chose to sell me to any man who was willing to pay him."

Roman reached out and touched my shoulder, but I didn’t want to be touched. I shifted out of his reach and stood. "I’m sorry, Hannah," Roman said as he got to his feet. "I didn’t mean to upset you. I thought you’d be happy that we have a contact to help us."

"You have a contact," I said. "I just want to see my father go down. I don’t want anything to do with that vile place." I turned away from Roman and walked back to the cabana, seeking out the bathroom as tears burned my eyes.

"Hannah, wait, please," Roman called behind me, but I kept walking and didn’t stop until I was in the bathroom with the door locked behind me. I sat on the floor of the bathroom with my back against the wall, sobbing into my hands. Everything had felt so perfect since the wedding, and now I was back to square one. I was in a forced marriage with a man who had bid for me at a human trafficking auction, and my father was to blame.