Bound Hearts: My Vows to My Disabled Spouse

Joanna Was Caught

Jayden was incredibly skilled at shutting people up.

Theo was a possessive man. Even though Elyse had left him, a part of him would always think of her as his. In that vein, he would always desire her, to a degree.

The only reason why he hadn't acted upon those desires was his belief that Jayden was a cripple, which meant that he could never perform his spousal duties with Elyse.

Elyse might be someone else's wife now, but her body would always belong to Theo. At least,

Theo thought so.

Being a man himself, Jayden could see through Theo's deepest thoughts fairly easily. But he had no plans to relay this information to Elyse.

Why in the world would he?

Elyse was his wife. She was his alone.

"I heard your mother is on the hunt for your future wife," Jayden remarked. "I must admit that I am rather curious about the kind of woman you deem deserving of the title."

Theo's hands clenched into fists at his sides. He couldn't understand why, but he seemed to fly into a rage every time he faced Jayden.

He hated feeling this way, like he was teetering on the edge and could lose control at any moment. "One thing I can say for sure is that she will come from a better background than Elyse." Theo

retorted before stomping away.

Elyse said nothing, but this time, there was a hint of melancholy to her silence.

Jayden took her hand. "Everything Theo said is pure and utter bullshit. Don't take them to heart.

All you need to do is trust me, okay?"

Elyse looked at him, and found herself comparing him to a prince from some fairy tale, come to

save her. "Hmm, I have faith in you."

They left shortly after and went home.

As soon as they entered the villa, Jayden spotted Vinny Bailey standing quietly on the far side of

the living room. They made a brief eye contact, and then Vinny disappeared into the study.

"Head upstairs and change," Jayden said to Elyse. "I'll be in the study for a while."

She suspected nothing, as Jayden often retired to the study for afternoon tea or a few hours of light reading.

"Okay, I'll go to my room, then."

Jayden watched her turn the corner up the stairs before going into the study.

"Mr. Owen," Vinny greeted him as he sheepishly passed his hand over his bald head. "It's the first time I've seen your wife. She is quite a sight to behold."

Jayden ignored the pleasantries and locked the door behind him. "Just say what you have to say." "We caught Joanna and brought her back. We initially took her to her family as you ordered, but they refused to take her in. They said that she is now a member of your family, and we should deal with her ourselves."

"Where is she right now?"

"In the villa's storage room. She really gave us a hard time. Someone must have helped her hide."

"I do know that someone helped her leave in the first place."

Vinny awkwardly cleared his throat. "The thing is, we haven't found her accomplice yet."

"It's fine. I'll give you two names. I need you to look into them and report back as soon as possible. It's Rickey Owen and Janet Lawrence."

Vinny was visibly confused. Why was his boss changing targets? He had never heard those names before, who could they be?

But he still nodded and said, "Understood. Are you going to see Joanna? She keeps shouting for you. I had to gag her mouth with a rag."

Jayden considered it for a few seconds before nodding. "All right. I'll go and have a look." They exited the study and walked to the storage room toward the back of the villa.

Two bodyguards stood vigil on either side of the door. When they saw Jayden, they gave him a respectful bow.

The moment the door was opened, the smell of something rotten wafted from inside the storage room. They stepped forward and found a figure slumped in a dark corner. Although her face was clean, her hair was disheveled, and her dress were covered with dust.

Joanna flinched at the sound of people coming, and she held up her hands as if to shield herself. She seemed to be afraid for some reason.

Jayden glanced at her mouth and briefly wondered where Vinny got the rag. "I want to talk to her." Vinny reached out and took the rag from her mouth. He had actually picked it up from somewhere in this very room. Joanna had been hysterical. He couldn't have her alerting Jayden's wife. The first thing that Joanna did was beg for mercy. She rubbed her palms together, paying no mind to the filth on her tongue or the terrible room she was trapped in.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Owen! I'm sorry! I won't do run away again. I'm willing to be your wife now. Please don't kill me. I promise, I will do everything you ask!"

Her voice grated at Vinny's ears. She was being too loud again. He didn't hesitate to kick her in

the stomach. "Bitch, I told you to keep your voice down. What if Mrs. Owen finds out that you're here?"

Joanna grimaced and put her arms over her belly. Vinny hadn't even reduced the force he used on her.