by Piper Stone
A date. The words seemed to hang in the air.
“You are aware of what an NDA means, right?” I laughed softly and on purpose. “Well, of course you are. It means that every single term is required to remain undisclosed to anyone. Including spouses, parents, children. Hell, even a golfing buddy or a two-bit hooker found on the street corner.” I watched as his face fell. The blonde he’d been with only four nights before certainly hadn’t been his wife. While the girl was considered high dollar, coming from a reputable establishment, it was obvious Stephen got my point.
His throat clenched.
Both hands shaking.
And he was suddenly as white as a ghost.
“Absolutely. NDAs are sacred. Everything you and I discussed is private. I promise you that,” he managed, gazing up and down the length of me.
I walked closer, my eyes never leaving his as I continued to enjoy the drink. I always believed I was a good judge of character, although that had been challenged more than once in my life. He was scared, not only of my current actions but of something else. He was holding a secret.
Exhaling, I swirled the amber liquid in the glass as I studied the diplomas he’d displayed proudly on the wall. I continued to crowd his space, taking my time finishing the drink. “That’s good to hear. I value loyalty more than almost anything else, Stephen. It’s important to me both personally as well as professionally. I have far too much to lose. Do you understand?”
“I understand completely.”
“I don’t like people who lie to me or try and take advantage on any level. I’m afraid that you’ve broken the rules, Stephen, and that troubles me significantly.”
“Broken the rules?” he asked, laughing. The fucker actually found amusement in my concern.
Rage boiled within me, creating flashes of light across my field of vision. I smashed the glass against his desk then wrapped my hand around his wrist, dragging it over the sharp edges of the broken crystal. “As you can tell, when things are broken, they often become difficult to handle, even dangerous.”
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he hissed, struggling to pull his arm away but I was much stronger. His breathing became ragged, sweat now trickling down both sides of his face.
“Just reminding you that there are regulations that must be kept intact, or the consequences could be destructive.” I kept the rigorous hold, his hand and open fingers only centimeters away from the shards. “Do we have an understanding?”
When he hesitated, I jerked his arm up several inches, bringing it down both quickly and with significant force.
Stopping less than a centimeter from the shattered edges.
“Oh, Jesus. Oh, fuck. Oh... Yes, Mr. Masters. Yes, we have an understanding!” he half screeched, his entire body shaking.
“Excellent. I thought you would say that.” I released my hold, walking away and buttoning my jacket. I heard him gasping for air as I headed for the door. As I placed my hand on the knob, I stopped once again, not bothering to turn and face him. “Needless to say, Stephen, if I have to make another visit, I’m not entirely certain I can be as... hospitable.”
“Yes, sir. I mean, I understand, sir.”
Nodding, I took a deep breath and walked out. He wouldn’t dare cross me again.
* * *
“Explain this to me again,” Aiden said as he lowered his voice, looking from one side of the club to the other. The posh facility was frequented by the upper echelon of society, but no one I would care to allow to hear the news. “You own a woman based on the last will and testament of a man who stole vital information from you that could potentially ruin you.”
I lifted a single eyebrow before taking another swallow of the same scotch I’d found in Stephen’s office. The taste was extraordinary. “The situation is complicated.”
“I guess so. Just unusual tactics, although I shouldn’t put anything past you. How is this going to help whatever big deal you’re been working on?”
Bobby Rivers had been assigned to watch her, perhaps in case Luis didn’t follow through with whatever deal he made. My guess is that he’d then been told to frame her. Was it possible the information had yet to be delivered and that was the reason, to scare him? A thought to be explored. If that was the case, Alessandra had a target on her back. Had Mr. Toro changed his mind, realizing he was likely to be killed? The thought was realistic, meaning the actual purchaser could believe she’d been given the information. That would make Luis very clever in my mind. “It will keep the wolves at bay until the contract is finalized.”
“Okay, I can see you’re not going to tell me, but I gotta ask. What the hell are you going to do with her?” he chided then sat back as he studied my face. “You can’t be serious that you’re going to keep her with you.”
“That’s my intent.”
“Is that what she wants?”
“It doesn’t matter what she wants,” I said in passing as I dragged my tongue across the glass. I wanted nothing more than to bury my face in her sweet wetness, feasting on every inch.
“That’s also illegal,” he muttered. “I’m no attorney but Jesus Christ, Gabriel, you just can’t do that. She’s not a slave.” When I said nothing, he whistled.
“She signed on the dotted line.”
“Yeah, likely under duress. Do you even like this woman?”
I bristled, shifting in my seat. I hadn’t been able to get her off my mind, which bothered the hell out of me. “She’s like her father, hardheaded. She had an attitude a mile wide and the kind of mouth that needs to be stuffed with...” My cock. I brushed my hand through my hair, loathing the way my shaft was already expanding, my balls tightening. I needed to be inside, driving into her very core. I doubted I could hold back from taking her.
Tasting her.
Fucking her.
I was out of my mind.
“Go on,” he said. “She a looker?”
A smile crossed my face as I envisioned her dazzling face. “Beautiful and sensual, an hourglass figure and long legs.”
“Hmmm... You actually like this girl. I’m impressed. The only women I’ve seen you with were pretty figures and nothing more. This woman must be special.”
“She’s just an object. A part of a contract.”
“Then it’s one drawn up in blood.” He shook his head, exhaling with an exaggerated deep breath. “This just isn’t like you. I think you’re in way over your head.”
“This is what is necessary in order to get my former life back,” I said, snarling under my breath.
Aiden gave me a hard look. “What about your life here? After ten years, do you really want to go back to Ireland and pretend you can pick up where you left off? Is stripping away everything your brothers rightfully deserve going to give you that satisfaction I’ve heard about for two years? Is revenge that sweet?”
“My brothers deserve shit. You know exactly how I feel!” I smacked my hand on the table, snarling as several of the other members glanced in our direction. While I’d never been close with my four brothers, they weren’t the ones to blame for what had occurred, even though only one had come to my defense, risking my father’s wrath.
“Awfully entitled of you,” Aiden stated. “I’m curious. Are you planning on taking her with you?”
I fiddled with the glass, trying to keep my anger in check. I don’t know why the man had the ability to get under my skin, but he did. “We will see.”
An awkward tension settled in.
“You’ve changed recently. Is it about the death of your father? Is that why you’re edgier than ever, making decisions that you’re going to regret?”
“It’s about making certain Masters Enterprises continues to run smoothly.”
He cocked his head, shifting the glass back and forth in half circles. “I don’t buy that shit at all. It’s about revenge that you weren’t allowed to enjoy acting on. You need to be careful with this, Gabriel. You have everything you’ve ever wanted in this country. Let
go of your former life. Enjoy the wealth and power you have. Hell, maybe you can actually find someone to spend your time with instead of being all alone in that fancy house of yours. Maybe this girl you’ve captured is exactly what you need. You deserve to be happy just like everyone else.”
I finished my drink, moving to a standing position. I’d had enough of his helpful suggestions. When he grabbed my arm, I sucked in my breath. “This girl is my possession.” Even as I said the words, they sounded ridiculous.
“Said like a true Neanderthal. Goddamn it. I don’t know you any longer. You were always ruthless as well as coldhearted, but this is way out of your league.” He shook his head, shoving his drink aside.
“All I want from you is information if you hear it. You know almost everyone in this town. Just pay attention to what’s being said so I can find out who purchased the computer drive from Luis. Nothing more. You don’t have to approve, Aiden. That’s not why we’re friends.”
“Sometimes I wonder why we are friends,” he said as he locked eyes with mine. “I know you better than anybody, yet whatever secret you have regarding your past is eating you alive. You need to find salvation or it’s going to destroy you. Just shut the door on it. Haven’t you atoned enough for whatever it is you did?”
My heart racing, I shifted my gaze. What he’d never known was that the very past I’d locked away was threatening to burst through the carefully padlocked black box I’d placed it in. Maybe I’d grown into the same kind of man my father had been—a barbarian.
There would never be enough atonement for my horrific actions. Not to my country. Not to my family.
And certainly not to myself.
However, the day of reckoning was coming, and I wasn’t entirely certain I was prepared for the harsh reality or the significant fall.
* * *
Even the long drive I’d taken hadn’t cleared my head, the cobwebs and memories far too difficult, although I cherished every one of them. Bittersweet. The word was exasperating, almost as much as the harsh truth Aiden had spouted off.
As if he knew me.
Or the pain and guilt I’d suffered for ten long years. Maybe I had already shut that very door, choosing to live as I saw fit.
I shifted the gear into fifth, rolling around the tight curves, the beautiful Lamborghini handling the mountains and my excessive use of speed well. I planted both hands on the wheel, my grip tight, my jaw clenched. The rage remained, a level of anger I’d refused to allow myself to feel for one hell of a long time.
Why now? Why at this moment when everything was so close?
Possible redemption.
Reconciliation.
Lights flashed in front of my mind as I pressed down on the accelerator, able to hear the squeal of the tires over the blast of the surround sound. Drums booming. Guitar licks screaming. Nothing was able to soothe the beast inside, the one that had been locked inside a wretched cage for far too long.
I knew the answer. I knew why I was rattled, the darkness no longer comforting.
Desire.
My unbridled yearning had spilled over, yanking at my sadistic needs, hunger that knew no bounds. I craved the feel of leather, the slight creak as I wound it around my hand and the delicious scent filtering into my nostrils. A thick strap ready to provide the perfect punishment.
My mouth watered and my skin crawled as the need became overwhelming, more powerful than anything I’d ever experienced.
All because of her.
The beautiful woman who belonged to me.
Mine to cage.
Mine to stroke.
Mine to punish.
Mine to fuck.
My heart racing, I smiled as I rounded one last curve, the car swerving dangerously close to the edge, the drop-off one I knew well. Any miscalculations, even a single inch and I’d lose control, the car plummeting several hundred feet to my death.
How many times had I wished for the courage to make a mistake?
Pain erupted from deep within, not from injury or disease. This was the kind that could never be healed. There was no one capable to perform a miracle.
Not even the gorgeous woman with the soulful eyes.
However, I’d never felt so entirely alive, the electric stimulation exactly what I required.
I maneuvered along the driveway, unable to get her face out of my mind, my arms shaking from the wretched tension.
After pulling into the garage and slamming on the brakes, I dropped my head onto the steering wheel, the pain exploding into agony.
I wanted her.
I would have her.
Now.
My cock throbbed, blood pumping wildly through my veins. I was crazed with need, unable to think of anything but thrusting my shaft deep inside, claiming her as mine.
Filling her with my seed.
She was a precious jewel.
The rush of adrenaline crushed down on my muscles, cutting off my blood supply. I stopped in the kitchen, smashing my fists on the edge of the counter. She was off limits at least for now.
I enjoyed the darkness, the ugly shadows filling the perfectly designed space; the most expensive appliances, the finest marble and granite. Yet everything was cold, uninviting. Just like my life.
Laughing, I dragged the jacket off my shoulders, tossing it across one of the chairs. Then I ripped at the tie, the material nothing but a noose. As I unfastened the holster, I could no more control my breathing than the dire need for the woman who called to me even in her silence.
I was losing my sense of rationality, my hold on the tightly woven reins I’d taken pride in crafting.
Her.
Even as I closed my eyes, rubbing my temple, I couldn’t get her out of my mind. She’d ripped away a portion of my soul without even trying. No. This was insane. She was mine to do with what I wanted. One taste and I’d toss her away.
I tore through the house, taking the stairs two at a time, blinded by the rapture of need. I stood outside her door, trying to catch my breath, the same vibrant spots morphing into shapes and shadows. No amount of blinking would erase them. She would accept me as her master. She would surrender.
Growling, I tumbled backwards. No. I wasn’t this kind of man. I couldn’t do this to her. After a few seconds, I eased against the wall, listening for any sign that she remained awake. There was nothing but the quiet.
And the darkness.
I rolled my hands through my hair, finally able to control my breathing. As I walked to the door next to hers, I hesitated only a few seconds before walking inside. I kept the light off as I inched toward the window, the two-way glass allowing me to catch a glimpse of her.
My prize.
My possession.
All the hunger drifted away, the light of the moon cascading an almost perfect halo around her sleeping form. She was curled on her side, her long hair was fanned out across the pillows. She seemed almost serene, as if accepting her surroundings.
Except for the tears trickling down her cheek.
I would forever be a monster.
Chapter Seven
Alessandra
He’s watching you...
Gabriel.
Master.
Monster.
Sir.
A laugh bubbled to my throat. Sir. Sir. Sir. Asshole. Bastard. Prick. That was more like it.
I felt his presence, my heart skipping even as an odd sense of pressure crushed against my chest. I knew he was studying me, hungering for me, the woman caged and waiting for his arrival. I could almost feel his hot breath cascading across my skin, the wetness of his lips as he pressed them against my neck. If I closed my eyes again, I had no doubt I would see his face, the beauty and the beast that encompassed him, ripping through muscle and bone.
As I rose into a sitting position, I stared at the mirror, fisting the thin blanket I’d been given. With only a splash of moonlight, the shadows in the room were foreboding. I was prepared for creatures to step out of the corners, finishing the deed
started by their master. There was nothing but the blackness, haunting feelings of sadness.
Anger and despair. The two emotions were almost undiscernible, leaving me unable to sleep. Even when I’d closed my eyes, I hadn’t been able to rid myself of his face. As I climbed out of bed, a chill swept through me. He didn’t want me to know he was there.
Watching me.
Waiting.
Was he biding his time? How long before he’d drag me to the altar? How long before there would be no escape, legal or otherwise? He was oppressive, even in his silence, a master manipulator of his own emotions. Well, he couldn’t have mine. I would lock them away no matter the circumstances. I took a deep breath, shoving back the covers.
The wooden floor was only cool beneath my feet, yet as I padded closer, I could no longer feel my toes. Very slowly I walked toward the mirror and even in the darkness, I was certain I could just make out his silhouette, intense eyes penetrating the shadows.
Forever studying his caged pet.
I had no idea how long I stood in silence, but I could no longer stand it.
“Why are you doing this?” I whispered, as if my question would garner an answer. “This can’t be about money. What did my father do that was so horrible? If that’s the truth, he must have hated you for a very important reason. He was a good man, a wonderful father. He would never intentionally hurt anyone.” I hesitated, fighting the anger, the ugly truths I knew were crawling under the surface. “If he took money from you, there has to be a way I can repay you other than being an indentured servant. There has to be something to...” Why bother finishing the words? What would it matter?
I laughed, shifting my back to the surface and leaning against it. This had already become so much more, a vendetta of sorts. I shuddered, folding my arms in a crazy effort to stop my nipples from hardening. I couldn’t understand my reaction to Gabriel. I’d known him less than a day, a single freaking day, although time had already stopped.
There was nothing but additional silence, although a ticking metronome sounded off in my head.
