I’ll Burn Anyone (The Challenge Night Series Book 2)

by K. L Mann

  The enter building of men comes to a quiet stop as we stride into the front door. Minus Lorenzo, the entire Vitale Hierarchy just walked into the warehouse. Respect and fear pool into the air as we all step inside, lined up like your worst fucking nightmare. Dax locks eyes with Gio and nods, giving quiet permission to take over. Despite the fact that Gio is 4th in line, it’s Dax who’s in charge of the recruits at the moment. Respect is something we offer him in return for everything he does.

  “Recruits,” Gio starts, his voice booming so that everyone can hear him. “Earlier today, Luca Caruso issued a private challenge. The illusive Vitale son is here to take that challenge on. Marco Vitale is perhaps one of the stealthiest men I’ve had the pleasure to train. He specializes in archery, spear throwing and torture and he’s a threat I wouldn’t enjoy taking on. Tonight, the Vitale archer will be pitted against the Vitale Sniper, Virbius.” The introduction of the goddamn century continues and I can see a small bit of pride come from Marco as Gio openly praises him. Gio explains that I won’t have a scope, only old-fashioned iron sights. Dax set up a range with various angles and distances. “In proper tradition, the youngest goes first. Watch carefully, men.”

  Marco steps into the range. The recruits all flood behind us. Papa Vitale and Mr. Colombo are both at my side, and Gio stands at his father’s side. Dax shakes hands with Marco and points out the ten targets, all of them are silhouettes of men of course.

  Once Dax takes his place next to Gio, he calls out, counting down from 3, implying when the timer will begin. As soon as the click of the stopwatch chirps, he takes off. Rapid firing arrows into each silhouettes heart, dead-on.

  40 seconds. He hits every target perfectly in 40 seconds. Applause erupts around us, echoing loudly as he spins around with a cocky grin. Fuck it feels good to see it to. Dax starts to leave to collect the arrows but I stop him, giving Marco my own smile.

  “Don't strain yourself Dax, the arrows aren’t in my way,” I promise, taking my M95 from Gio.

  Marco crosses his arms over his chest. “You’re not going to beat my time.”

  “Hadn’t planned on it,” I admit, loving the confusion it causes.

  He steps out of my way and after the countdown ends, I get to work. Shooting is what I’m best at. I’m a great fighter of course, having been fighting all my life, but I’m a sniper through and through.

  I’m not rushing to beat his time. I plan on tying with the fucker, beating out his accuracy in the most show–off asshole way. I split every single one of his arrows down the middle with my bullets. As the last crack of success rings out, more applause rings in my ears.

  Marco is the first to step closer, bridging the gap between me and the crowd. I expected a bit of animosity but I’m greeted with amusement. “You wanted to tie,” he accuses with a smart-ass smile. “You did this to get me back here, and to show off of course.”

  “What can I say? I like attention. I like your sister more though. Meaning you're stuck with me caring about you because that girl would die for you. Therefore, you need to be the man I know you are so she’ll never have to.”

  “You’re alright, Luca,” he commends, reaching out his hand to shake mine. “You should start wearing the ring. You never were a Caruso, you belong here.”

  “So do you man, so do you.”

  Arianna

  After successfully finishing every damn assignment I have, I’m exhausted but also restless. I have an idea and though I’m nervous about acting it out, I’ve decided to be brave. I want to do everything with Luca and Gio. I want to blow their fucking minds. I haven’t given myself nearly enough time to practice or plan it, but here goes nothing.

  Pulling out my phone to text Marco, I shove back my insecure thought.

  Arianna: Hey, we’re close enough that I can ask you for something without you getting grossed out by it, right?

  Marco: Uhhh, idk A. What’s the question?

  Arianna: Can you bring me something from the house?

  Marco: I swear to God if you’re asking me to bring you a vibrator because you somehow pissed off your boy toys, I’ll never speak to you again.

  Arianna: HAHAHAHA

  Arianna: Ew.

  Arianna: Nah, I need my old cheer uniform, it’s in my closet.

  Marco: The blue and silver one?

  Arianna: Yep.

  Marco: Sure, but if you imply that it’s for anything other than nostalgia, I’ll burn it.

  Arianna: Nostalgia, totally.

  Marco: Fine. I can bring it in a few hours, I’m hungover.

  Arianna: What else is new?

  Marco: Har–har

  I decide to pamper myself while I wait and give myself time to get used to my idea. Bubble bath, shaving, moisturizing every inch of my body and relaxing until he shows up.

  Gio

  “Hey, did you get a text from our girl too?” Luca asks as he strolls into the kitchen.

  We came home a few minutes ago, and he went to the garage to check on his cars. I swear sometimes he just needs to look at them or he can’t focus on anything else. I haven’t had the chance to go see Arianna yet, having just sat down to get a drink. On cue, my phone vibrates against the counter top.

  Arianna: I want to play around. Just go with it.

  Interesting.

  “What do you think she’s up to?”

  “Not sure, but Marco came by here earlier with a bag for her before we got home. Saw it on the cameras.”

  Marco had left before us, claiming to have final school stuff to finish up. I don’t doubt he had time to swing by here before we even left the warehouse. The show he and Luca put on was pretty crazy considering it lasted under two minutes. My father was especially impressed with Marco given how out of practice we assumed he might be. I don’t doubt that he’s been keeping in shape privately.

  “That’s concerning.”

  “Maybe, maybe not. He’s good to her, you know? You two can’t always be at each other’s throats.”

  I gave him high praise at the demonstration earlier because I don’t lie. Marco is extremely impressive and since we’re helping him, he needs to know that. Still, I doubt we’ll ever stop fucking with each other completely. It’s muscle memory at this point to talk shit to him.

  A small gasp comes from the hallway at the entrance of the kitchen. Our heads spin around in unison and I feel myself smiling as I take her in. She’s in her damn cheer uniform from her senior year of high school. It’s royal blue and silver and way too skimpy for a teenager to wear. Her hair and face are decorated with glitter and she has shiny lip gloss on. What an interesting little game she’s set up for us.

  “Um, hi guys. I didn’t think anyone would be home.” She clears her throat and continues into the kitchen, passing us to get to the fridge.

  She’s pretending she didn’t know we’d be here.

  How cute.

  “Why aren’t you at home?” Luca is the first to jump into conversation, watching her every move as I am.

  “The game ended at 9, my curfew isn’t until 11… sometimes I come here after.” She shrugs, sipping on a bottle of water. Her lips glisten with a small drop of moisture as she pulls it from her mouth. I want that bit of water on my tongue. Now.

  “What game did you cheer for tonight?”

  She looks outrageous in her tight little getup. I should seriously be concerned with how arousing this is. Leave it to my girl to make me feel like a goddamn old perv.

  I find myself pushing that thought away quickly. I’m a bad man, might as well just add this to the list of indiscretions.

  “Basketball, my new b–boyfriend, he’s the shooting guard for our school. He scored the winning basket and he was so happy he said he wanted to come over later...”

  “Is that right?” Luca chimes in with a curious look.

  “Uh huh.” She smiles innocently, blinking at us. That mascara is going to be gliding down her face so beautifully soon, coating her cheeks with charcoal like stains.

 
“So you thought you’d sneak over here with him because you didn’t know we’d be home?” I accuse.

  Her cheeks flush. “Maybe,” she says in a breath.

  “You’re not allowed to date, brat. Lorenzo is going to be pissed when we call him, you know?” Luca tsks, clicking his tongue.

  “That’s not fair,” she pouts. “I’m eighteen now, mamma says I can even kiss boys if I want.”

  Oh, you’re eighteen in this scenario, are you?

  I’m not sure that Arianna will ever get over the idea that I should have swooped her up as soon as she hit the monumental age. Though, I do also think she realizes if I did, things would be different. For one, I wouldn’t feel good about it. As much as I could see myself falling madly for her at the time, she needed to experience life before I consumed her. And that’s what I would have done. I would have fucking consumed her.

  I didn’t want it to feel wrong and outsiders would make it feel wrong. Wandering eyes would think I groomed her or some shit or that her dad was messed up enough to raise her for me. Disgusting of course, but it happens in this fucked up dark world. And mostly, I can’t regret waiting because now she has Luca too.

  I never thought I would be the kind of man that wasn’t jealous when his girl shared affection with someone other than himself, but this is something different entirely. We’re better as a whole. We’re us.

  “And have you kissed him?”

  “What’s it to you?” She arches a brow in my direction, crossing her legs nervously.

  “Oh, she’s totally kissed him. I keep telling you, she’s spoiled. I bet she’s done more than kiss him,” Luca taunts, using his little bully routine she loves so much.

  “I am not spoiled,” she sighs, rolling her eyes at him. “You guys are so mean. I just want to have a little fun. It’s none of your business what I do with Angelo.”

  You little minx.

  “Angelo huh? Marco’s friend?”

  Is she trying to make me kill him?

  “I’m not telling you anything. I’m pleading the fifth.”

  “You learn that in your American history class?” Luca scoffs. “News flash, in Italy, we are the law, brat.”

  Arianna giggles and flips him off.

  Naughty, naughty. She’ll pay for that.

  “We’ll make you a deal, princess,” I muse. “Tell us what happens when you’re alone with your boyfriend and maybe we won’t tell Lorenzo about this.”

  “It’s personal,” she hisses. Arianna twists her fingers together, pretending to be nervous.

  She likes this innocent act, and I can’t say that I don’t. Maybe that makes me screwed in the head, but I’ve been called worse. I’m a fucking mafia bound mercenary. No, a fucking royal mercenary. An heir. A King. The fact that I like the idea of my girlfriend pretending to be an innocent cheerleader is hardly my biggest flaw.

  “You said he was so happy that he won, that he wanted to come over. So, when your boyfriend wins basketball games, what do you do for him, Arianna?”

  She laughs softly, “Not much.”

  “Do you lay down for him?” Luca asks.

  She gasps, her eyes going wide and her chest jumping. “No way!”

  “No?” he challenges. “What do you do when he asks you to part those little legs and give it up to ‘em, princess?”

  Her eyebrows shoot up in the sweetest way. “I– I tell him I’m too nervous for that part, but I offer to use my hand on him like I’ve done before…”

  Luca chuckles. “Oh yeah? How do you use your hand on him?”

  “I–” she struggles to answer.

  “You can tell us, we’re your friends, right? We won’t tell Lorenzo… just this time.”

  “Well, I… I stick my hand in his pants and pull out his,” she trails off and looks around nervously. “I stroke it up and down in my fist. He likes when I squeeze it pretty tight and then he always explodes into my hand when I give the top part kisses.”

  Luca looks at her like he’s fucking floored with her acting ability, but plays along. “His what, brat? What is it called?”

  “He… he says to call it his cock but that’s a naughty word.”

  “It’s not a naughty word, princess. It’s just a body part. Every man has one, right?”

  Her eyes travel to our pants obviously and she licks her lips as if she doesn’t know she’s doing it. “I guess so…” she tucks a loose piece of hair behind her ear. “He says it’s supposed to go inside of me, but I’m too scared.”

  “Spoiled and shy,” Luca murmurs. “Tell me Arianna, did you actually think we wouldn’t be here? Hm?”

  “Or were you hoping we’d catch you sneaking around with some boy? Hoping we’d punish you for it.”

  “N–no… I wouldn’t do that,” she lies, shaking her head. “But, if I was, what would you do to punish me?”

  “If we caught your boyfriend trying to fuck you, what would we do?” I echo, giving her a sly smile and she nods, biting her pretty plump lip. “Why don’t we show her what we do to misbehaved little girls?”

  “I doubt she could handle that,” Luca says with a grin, licking his lips. “Spoiled little girls like her are all talk, isn’t that right Arianna?”

  “I can handle anything,” she retorts with a frown.

  “Yeah? Prove it,” Luca taunts, stalking toward her.

  “H–how?”

  My response is immediate. “Clothes off, eyes closed.”

  “What? N–no.” Her bottom lip is trapped under her top teeth, drawing my gaze back to her pretty mouth again.

  I’m gonna fuck that mouth.

  “I’ll just call Lorenzo to bring you home then, yeah?” Ruefully, Luca slides his phone out of his pocket and waits for her to give in.

  Seconds pass where only breathing fills the silence until she gives in. Slowly peeling her long sleeved cropped cheer top off, then kicking off her white sneakers. Hey eyes are sealed shut beautifully and her chest is rising and falling as if she’s scared.

  “Skirt on, bra and panties off,” I demand, crossing my arms, keeping my distance.

  “But… you’ll see me naked,” she pouts.

  “Uh huh. Undress, now Arianna.”

  She gives in, probably exhausted with the slow burn of this game.

  Such an impatient little tease, she is.

  Her bra slides off and hits the floor and her panties are quick to follow. If this were my first time seeing her tits out in the open, I might have a stroke. This fantasy is immersive to say the least. I could actually picture this happening and a big part of me wishes it did. She would have been ours so much sooner.

  Luca circles her like she’s his prey, examining her with a grin. His head jerks back to me in question. “Is it cold in here?”

  “Not even a little bit,” I answer, knowing exactly what he’s playing at.

  “Huh. Then there’s no reason her nipples should be hard enough to cut glass, is there?” He clicks his tongue, and Arianna actually blushes. She’s immersed too, and it’s intoxicating to feed off of her innocence, even if it’s false.

  “Are you excited that we’re looking at you like this Arianna?” I question, cocking my head at her. She frantically shakes her head no, but her lips part like she wants to moan at our mere gazes. “Such a bad liar,” I chastise, shaking my head at her fragile attempt.

  “I feel funny,” she stammers, crossing her legs in an attempt to fidget.

  “I bet you do,” Luca says with a smirk, running a finger across her stomach, making her belly button jewelry sway. “What do you feel like? Explain it, princess.”

  She clears her throat. “My hands are clammy and my neck feels sweaty where my hair ends,” she whispers, fiddling with her fingers. “I feel warm, uh, between my legs.”

  “Do you ever feel like that with Angelo, Arianna?”

  Her head shakes slowly. “What does it mean, Gio?”

  “Move your hand up your skirt, and touch your fingers against your pussy, you’ll understand w
hen you feel it.” Her lower lip trembles at my command but slowly, she obeys. Her hand slips up her thigh and disappears under her skirt. Luca swoops in, guiding her higher up until she hits the spot. “It’s wet, am I correct?”

  “Y–yes, so slick, my fingers glide right through. Is it supposed to be this slippery, Luca?” Her head tilts up to meet his gaze and he nods, using his grip on her arm to pull her hand back, leading it to his mouth.

  She gasps as he captures three of her fingers between his lips, sucking off her arousal with an appreciative groan. “Delicious,” he coos, letting his breath hit her neck.

  “Luca is going to help you with your little problem, Arianna, but only if you listen to everything I say. Can you do that?”

  “I think so,” she shutters.

  “Lay her down on the counter.”

  I didn’t ask Luca to be in charge of this, but we didn’t exactly have time to discuss, so hopefully he just goes with it. He doesn’t usually seem to mind. I think he really likes it sometimes.

  He nods, scooping her up and depositing her on the counter, letting her knees bend so that her feet rest on the marble as she lays back. I venture closer, taking a seat right at the counter, close to her head while Luca stays on the other side.

  My mouth migrates closer to her ear and I hold my breath, allowing anticipation to build. “Tell me you want Luca to help you, Arianna.”

  She only pauses for a moment. “I want Luca’s help.”

  “Show her how to feel better,” I encourage, brushing a stray piece of hair from Arianna’s eyes.

  Luca starts slow, using his tongue to explore her like it’s his first time getting a taste. Arianna squirms and gasps at every touch, her back arching off the counter anytime he swipes her clit. When he sucks it in between his lips, she whispers so beautifully.

  “Fuck the game, treat me like me. Carve your name into me, Gio. Now. Please.”

  Luca groans at her, slipping two fingers inside of her and continuing to assault her pussy with his tongue.

  “You want my blade in your skin baby girl? You know what that means right? You’re never getting away. From either of us. I’ll do exactly what I said I would do. I’ll cut my letters into your flesh and hand Luca my knife to do the same thing. If you get tired of us? Tough fucking luck because I’ll never, ever, let you leave. You ready for that?”