The Bishop (The Holy Trinity Duet Book 1)

by M. E. Clayton

  Sienna~

  Before Leonardo Benetti came into my life, chemistry was only something I’d read about in books or had seen portrayed in steamy movies. I’d experience plenty of attraction in my life, but uncontrollable chemistry? Not so much.

  When Leo had stalked towards me-and that’s what it had been-with the offer to help change my tire, my mind had gone temporarily numb with how stunning the man was. With hair as black as night and green eyes bright as emeralds, the six-foot-plus god had turned me stupid for a few seconds.

  His face looked like it had been carved in perfection. With those black brows and black lashes making those green orbs pop, his straight nose, plumped lips, and strong jaw, all coming together to create a mess in my panties, I’d been spellbound. And let’s not forget the dimples. The man had dimples.

  Leo’s voice also added another layer of lust to his appearance. It was rough, deep, and promising. And when he had asked if I needed help with my tire, my ears had heard him offering to take me up against my car, there on the street, for anyone to see.

  Of course, that’s not what happened. Leo had changed my tire, put everything away, introduced himself, and had asked me to dinner. My hormones had said yes, and dinner had been perfect. Like a true gentleman, Leo had let me talk about myself, insisting that he had wanted to learn everything there was about me. He’d even done the standing up thing every time I’d risen from my seat. And when we’d gone back to my place for a nightcap, we’d both known the real reason I had invited him back to my apartment.

  And holy shit, it was a night that will forever be imprinted in my mind and on my body.

  After a few minutes of playing coy, Leo had called me on my shit, and I had shamelessly thrown myself at him. With my permission, Leo had introduced me to what it was like to let chemistry consume you. He’d given me experiences I’d never imagined before and it had taken me begging him to stop before he had finally granted me rest.

  And the sex has been just as explosive ever since then.

  Because my job was hectic and unpredictable, and Leo’s days were filled with business meetings and whatever it was that CEOs did, we didn’t get to spend a whole lot of quality time together. Still, the time we did spend together was so sexually charge, I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to recover if this ever ended. And the very real in-over-my-head part hoped this would never end.

  Leo’s large body covering mine, his weight trapping me to the bed, was now a familiar sensation I longed to keep experiencing. And opening my legs wider, I grabbed the condom off the nightstand and handed it to him. Smirking, he took it and I waited impatiently for him to put it on.

  Once he made sure we were both protected, Leo braced his weight on his elbows and slid his thick length inside my eager body.

  My body arching with the sting of his invasion, I hissed out his name. “Leo…”

  “That’s right, baby,” he rasped in my ear. “Say my name. Tell me you know exactly who’s fucking your tight pussy.”

  My arms wrapped tighter around his back, desperate to hold on to what this man made me feel. While I believed in the security of monogamy, I also saw nothing wrong with exploring all the possibilities you could with that one person. I loved Leo’s dirty talk. I loved his aggressiveness. I loved the way he commanded and took control. I loved how he drove me out of my mind with carnal pleasure.

  I loved it all.

  “Oh, God…

  His hips were crashing against mine and the sounds of the bed shifting, along with our harsh breaths, fought with the sounds of his growls and my moans. Every sound in the room was like a soundtrack to the hottest porn ever produced. With Leo stretching me wide and his teeth in my neck, my body accepted whatever he wanted to do to it.

  That familiar feeling of ecstasy was beginning to form, but before I could grab hold of it, Leo pulled out and flipped my body over, positioning me on all fours.

  With my fists tangled in the sheets and my face buried in one of the pillows, Leo slammed his cock back into my body and the pillow did very little to muffle my screams.

  His fingers were digging into my hips, preventing me from escaping, as he rammed every thick inch of his cock deep inside my body. Women dream and wish for a man with a big dick, but when it’s bottoming out against your cervix, it’s not always pleasurable. Lots of the time, it was a painful pleasure you couldn’t help but just endure.

  Lifting my head, I cried out, “I’m cumming…” Leo’s thrusts became rougher and more painful, but they did the job. My entire body exploded in a kaleidoscope of intense pleasure.

  Leo rode me through my climax, and soon, he was joining me. “Fuck,” he hissed, his body pressed against mine, locked up as he shot his release into the condom inside my body.

  I must have nodded off, because the next thing I knew, Leo was spooning me close, his warmth the best blanket on the planet. Snuggling closer, I let out a satisfied sigh.

  He chuckled behind me. “Miss me?”

  “Our schedules suck,” I murmured.

  “They pay the bills, though,” he murmured back.

  “Keep me warm during the winter, I wouldn’t mind being homeless,” I joked.

  Leo laughed, his chest vibrating against my back. “I missed you, too, baby,” he said, and I tried not to freak out.

  This was the first time he’s ever said anything affectionate enough to suggest he was interested in more than just sex and I was trying to calm my frantic heartbeat and keep my cool. There’s been no talk about exclusivity or labels or a future, so Leo saying he missed me, too, was big.

  I tried to keep my voice even. “Can…can I ask you something?”

  His arm tightened around my waist. “Sure.”

  I had no idea how to phrase my question without sounding like ‘that girl’ and coming across like a clinging drama queen, but it’s been over a month and I thought clarification might be a good thing. If Leo said we could date other people, I was probably going to feel the swift kick of it, but I wasn’t the type of woman to try to force a man’s hand. Nothing was more self-belittling than trying to force a man to commit to you when he wasn’t ready. If Leo didn’t care for me enough for exclusivity, then that just meant I still had the opportunity to explore my options for the man who was right for me.

  “Ho…how…uhm, exclusive is this…thing between us?” I worked to exhale normally, but the question was doing a number on me. Especially, when I felt Leo stiffen behind me. And whatever answer I had expected, I hadn’t expected what he did next.

  Grabbing my arm, Leo flipped me onto my back and his hand was squeezing my jaw tight as he settled his body over mine.

  Green eyes blazing, he stared down at me and said, “You let another man touch you and I’ll fucking kill him.” I could feel my eyes widen at the seriousness in his tone. I knew it was just an expression, but he sounded like he meant it. Shaking my head with the grip he had on my chin, he asked, “Am I understood, Sienna?”

  I nodded as best I could, but he must not have believed me because his hold tightened. “Leo…” I rasped out.

  “Am I fucking understood?” he practically snarled.

  “Yes,” I cried out quickly. “Yes.”

  Those emerald eyes of his raced over my face, searching for a hint of deception, but he must have finally believed me because he released my jaw, giving me a tight nod. “Good.”

  Maybe, but that wasn’t good enough for me.

  “What about you,” I asked, because if I was expected to be monogamous, then I expected him to be as well.

  “What about me?” he asked as his hips spread my legs open for him again.

  “Does…do the same rules apply?”

  His eyes took on a hard glint and I was sure he was going to get up and leave me to stew in my female insecurities, but that’s not what happened.

  Locking my brown eyes to his green ones, he said, “Do you seriously believe I’d want another woman when I have you?”

  “Leo…” I whispered.


  “Baby, you’re out of your mind if you think I’d be tempted by other pussy when yours is made for me.” He followed that up by reaching over to the nightstand for another condom.

  “I…I just wanted to be…clear…” I mumbled, slightly embarrassed.

  He stopped to look at me again. “Then let me be clear,” he said. “You’re mine, Sienna. You’re mine and it’ll get ugly if another man makes the mistake of thinking you aren’t.”

  I nodded. “And you’re mine,” I said for reassurance.

  Leo nodded. “And I’m yours.”

  Chapter 7

  Leonardo~

  After leaving Sienna spent and passed out again, I left her apartment, making sure everything was locked up tight, and headed over to The Funhouse.

  Ciro Mancini had a few abandoned warehouses where he did his business, but The Funhouse was the one place equipped with everything his torturous little heart desired. The Funhouse was reserved for the worst of the worst and Benetti betrayers. Ciro had some serious medieval contraptions housed there and it was one of Sal’s favorite places to work over his prey. Not many people had access to the place, but then not many people needed access to The Funhouse. We all had our roles, and Ciro was the torturer, Phoenix was the killer, Sal was the clean-up guy, I was the money manager, and Luca was all of us combined. Frankie was business, Robbie was properties, and Remy was security, and we didn’t need anything or anyone more added. But then that got me thinking about Sienna.

  I tried not to feel like an asshole when I thought about how her nursing skills would benefit us. We had dirty doctors loyal to us but having someone we trusted completely on the payroll would be a huge plus for us. And after our talk tonight, there was no doubt that this thing between us was getting serious enough to tell Sal and Luca about her. Sal, of course, would run a background check on her and Luca would, undoubtedly, read it cover-to-cover.

  However, I wasn’t too worried about it. I’d done my own background check on her before we’d gone to dinner and it had all lined up with what she had told me during dinner. Her and her sister had been abandoned by her parents, raised by their father’s sister, and they each had put themselves through school for her sister to become a teacher and for Sienna to become a nurse.

  I pulled into the underground parking and fired a text off to my guard, Romeo, letting him know where I was. Sienna’s apartment was the only place he didn’t follow me to, and I knew he’d be at my car when I left here.

  Opening the door and walking down the staircase to the ground floor, I saw Ciro at his tray of instruments doing whatever it was that he did.

  When I reached the ground floor, I looked over and saw Carmine Brentwood hanging from some chains in the middle of the room. He looked bad, but unfortunately for him, nowhere near close to death.

  “Is this why you texted me?” I asked Ciro, coming up behind him.

  Ciro turned his head to look back at me, those yellow eyes of his gleaming with pure joy. “Sal’s sharing in the love,” he said. “Wants us to all have a chance at him since it was Carlita he fucked over.” Ciro shrugged. “I thought you might want to partake.”

  While I wasn’t a stranger to killing and torturing, it wasn’t my thing. It’s never been my thing. I’ve killed out of necessity and I’ve tortured only when blinded by anger. I could count on one hand how many times I’ve tortured someone, though I’ve killed plenty. And I say killed because that’s what we were; we were killers. Murderers were people who murdered other people, while killers were anything that killed. And at the heart of it all, us Benetti were animals when it came to protecting what was ours. Sal more so than the rest of us. Humanity left our bloodline a long time ago. However, I still possessed a little bit of mine.

  “Are Phoenix and Luca stopping by?” I asked, glancing over at Carmine’s strung up body.

  “Luca is, though Nix can’t,” Ciro answered. “Vincent might be coming down with a cold.”

  I chuckled. The man had no problem putting a bullet between someone’s eyes, but he worried over his son possibly having a cold. We were all a chapter in the classic Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

  “Does he still have his tongue?”

  “Nah,” Ciro answered easily. “Luca hates to hear them beg and I figured you wouldn’t want to hear him try to explain how it was all just one big, unfortunate misunderstanding.”

  I walked over to stand in front of Carmine Brentwood and his eyes widened when he saw me, but I was used to it. With Luca, Sal, and I looking so much like one another, people knew when they were faced with a blood Benetti and not just a member of the organization. However, with Luca’s black eyes and his entire body covered in tattoos, everyone knew when they were faced with the Benetti.

  “Bet you wish you’d just gotten a regular job like everyone else, huh, Carmine?” I asked, knowing I wasn’t going to get an answer, considering he had no tongue. “You had to go and hustle your aunt, never imagining that she’d drag Carlita Benetti into your little scam.” I shook my head with false sympathy. “Talk about fucking up.”

  Carmine started thrashing about. “Mm…phmm…mhmp...mgrmmph!”

  I cocked my head to the side, regarding him, remembering everything I’d read in his file. “And never mind that you caught the attention of the Benettis, but to fleece your own aunt? The woman who has done nothing but help and support you? The woman who loved you enough to believe every stupid scam you’ve presented to her? Who the fuck does that shit?”

  “Right?” Ciro called from where he was still setting up his tray of goodies.

  My mind went to Mrs. Ada Brentwood’s file and her picture, and how she did look like someone’s elderly aunt who made you dress up for church on Sundays. Sure, she was going to be filthy rich after we got rid of Carmine, but his untimely death was still going to cause her a lot of pain and that knowledge was rather pissing me off.

  Ignoring Carmine’s thrashing, I headed back to where Ciro was already pulling his tray into the splatter zone. The thing about The Funhouse was that it had showers and locker rooms that we used whenever we got dirty. Luca, Sal, Phoenix, Ciro, and I all had extra clothing here, and so it wasn’t a thing to get messy. However, the splatter zone was clearly outlined on the floor.

  “I gotta make sure he stays with us until Sal can finish him off, so just be careful,” Ciro instructed, and that was another thing about Ciro Mancini. The man was extremely intelligent, and he could probably have a doctorate in medicine for all he knew about the human body. Ciro was a real craftsman, and he could keep someone alive for weeks while torturing the soul from their body. Sal was more impatient when it came to his craft of torture. Where Ciro was calculating and thorough, Sal was violent and passionate about his kills.

  Just then, my phone chimed with an incoming text. Pulling it out, I saw it was from Sienna.

  SC: Hopefully one night u can stay the whole night.

  I fired back a quick text.

  Me: One night, I just might.

  Sticking my phone back in my pocket, I glanced over at Ciro’s tray of instruments, looking at what was available for use. It was then I noticed something new. “What’s this?”

  Ciro smiled and his eyes glowed. “It’s a Scold’s Bridle,” he said, and you’d think he was talking about his daughter with all the joy sounding in his voice. “Though there’s no point in using it tonight, I brought it out to show Luca and Sal when they stopped by.”

  “Why? What’s it used for?”

  Ignoring Carmine’s muffled pleas for help, Ciro happily explained. “It was used during the sixteenth century on women who were thought to be witches or scolds. You attached it to their head and the spiked bridle-bit is inserted into their mouth. The pain keeps a person from trying to speak or move their tongue. And since Luca hates to hear them begging, I thought this little gem would be a great addition to my collection.”

  “One that Luca is sure to appreciate,” I agreed. I looked back at Carmine. “Well, I’m sure there will be plenty other opport
unities to try the thing out.”

  “Undoubtedly.”

  Looking back at the tray, I grabbed the sledgehammer from the tray. “I’m feeling a little Kathy Bates a ’la Misery.” Again, while torture wasn’t my thing, I kept thinking of Mrs. Ada Brentwood and that was fueling my motivation.

  Ciro nodded. “I like it,” he remarked. “It’s simple and no threat of death.”

  An hour later, I was walking back out to my car as Sal was just getting out of his car. Walking up to me, he asked, “Is there still enough of him left over?”

  I nodded. “Plenty.” He grinned. “What happened to Luca’s turn?”

  His grin turned into a smile. “Remy’s not feeling well.”

  “Pregnant?” I asked, hopefully.

  “Let’s hope,” Sal answered, reading my mind.

  Slapping him on the shoulder, I laughed. “Let’s.”

  “See you later, Leo,” he said, and we parted ways.

  Opening the door to the backseat of my car, I got in, Romeo dutifully sitting in the driver’s seat. With the direction to take us home, I was more than ready to call it a night.

  Chapter 8

  Sienna~

  Rousseau’s was a nice restaurant that catered to everything. It was a cozy place to have breakfast. It was a friendly place to have lunch. And it was a nice place to have dinner. It created an ambiance where you never felt underdressed or overdressed. And lucky for us, they had allowed us to call in our orders, so they’d be ready when we arrived, allowing to enjoy our entire lunch hour without rushing.

  Me, Elsie, Ryan, Chelsea, and Parnell were all sitting at one of the larger tables, our lunch already served, one hour of downtime.

  “It’s amazing how three days feel like a full week sometime,” Chelsea grumbled as she picked her chicken salad. And while I wish I had the discipline for a chicken salad, I didn’t. I needed real fuel to get me through my days, so my plate housed a burger and fries.

  “Because the weeks end up adding up to four twelves or five twelves, equaling way past forty hours a week,” Parnell remarked. “The three days off are just an illusion, my friend.”