by Olivia Ryann
Then his spine stiffens, his eyes rolling back in his head as he thrusts his cock into my mouth. For a second, I can taste the saltiness of his cum before he hisses and pumps it into the back of my throat. I try to breathe through my nose, not fully understanding what has happened.
He slows down, making a satisfied sound. “Ahhhhh.”
Only then does Monster pull himself out of my mouth, leaving me with bunch of salty semen in my mouth. I swill it around, not knowing what is expected of me now.
He looks at me while he’s tucking himself back into his pants. “You’d better swallow that.”
He makes it sound like a threat, so I swallow it, my eyes watering again. His cell phone rings, and he moves toward his desk.
“I have business to attend to,” he says, seeming distracted.
I open my mouth. “But the deal—”
He walks around his desk, pinning me with his gaze. “I haven’t forgotten. Now close the door on your way out.”
I climb to my feet, my face red, and I let myself out of his office.
I smile, even as I wipe my mouth. I did it… I conquered one of my goals. There was a power in it, too. A power in saying yes.
That’s a good lesson to remember.
And soon, I’ll be going horse back riding.
18
Katherine
I wake up early, already vibrating with the knowledge that today is the day I get to go horseback riding. I kill a few hours by staring out my window, pretending to flip through the pages of The Count of Monte Cristo.
I take a long bath, and then pull a fresh dress on over my head. It’s not great riding gear, but I don’t care. I get to go out, that’s all that matters.
As I’m adjusting the comforter so all four edges hang neatly off the bed, I’m surprised to see one of the maids come in with an armful of clothing. She dumps it rather unceremoniously on the bed and leaves in a huff.
When I dig through the pile, I find beige riding jodhpurs, a light pink tee shirt, and even a bra and panties. Sitting there, touching satin undergarments, my eyes start to water.
It’s been so long since I’ve worn anything but the simple red shift dress, I don’t even know what to do with myself. And of course, when I’m crying, Monster appears.
He’s wearing dark riding pants and a navy blue tee, and looking a little too devastatingly handsome for my tastes. That thought makes me want to blush and cry at the same time.
“You found the clothes then,” he says, his face blank. “They’re a reward. Be a good girl, and you’ll get nice things.”
My face crumples, because I’m both very upset by what he’s saying and very thankful for the clothes. He looks at me for a second, as if he’s trying to determine what exactly he is supposed to do with a crying girl.
“Hurry and get dressed before I change my mind,” he says. “I’ll be waiting for you in the stables.”
He turns on his heel and leaves the room.
Trying not to sob, I change into my clothes, savoring the feeling of satin against my skin. It has been too long since I’ve worn normal clothes. Too long since I have lived a normal life.
I try to guess how long I’ve been here.
Weeks? A month? Maybe a little longer? Not much more than that, I think.
After I get dressed, a maid scuttles into my room with a pair of riding boots. Knee high and made of dark leather, their unique scent reminds me of the stables in Audubon Park in New Orleans. Leaning in, I press my face against the cool leather and close my eyes for a second.
For the barest second, I am transported. Back to New Orleans, back in time. A much younger, more innocent version of myself lives there, one whose biggest concern was the fact that her mother had died tragically.
Looking back now, how I long for that kind of life, free from any real worry.
When I have pulled the boots on, I skitter down the stairs, heading for the stables. I find Sin waiting in the yard, and he falls into step with me. He doesn’t say anything or show any expression, which I find odd.
“I’m going riding,” I say as we cross the lawn. “Monster is taking me.”
Sin looks at me with something like reproach. “I’m going too.”
“Oh?” I ask. “I guess he wouldn’t want me to be without a bodyguard, even here…”
Sin shakes his head. “You’re so self involved. Protecting you is the secondary objective. He’s the one with the target on his back.”
My eyes widen and my feet slow. “Wait, then why did he agree to take me riding?”
“I wondered the very same thing. I gathered that you had something to do with it.” He glowers at me. “Come on, we should get moving.”
When we reach the stables, a simple cedar structure, Monster is waiting. The scent of horse manure cloys at my sense of smell, but I don’t mind. Like most horse enthusiasts, I learned to love the sweet-bitter scent of the animals long ago.
Monster holds the reins of two sleek black thoroughbreds, his expression indulgent. I walk up to him, my eyes on the horses. They are huge, big enough to crush me with a mere twitch. Using my most gentle voice, I sidle up to the one on the left.
“Hi, sweetness,” I murmur, holding my hand out for her to sniff. She snorts, scenting my palm. I lean a little closer, inhaling a lungful of her scent.
“That’s an endearment I haven’t been called before,” Monster says, his mouth kicking up into almost a smile.
I roll my eyes, smoothing my hand over the horse’s muzzle. “You wish that I would call you pet names.”
He gives me a droll look. “Is this a thing, now? I take you horseback riding and you give me attitude for it? I’m not sure I like it.”
I bite my tongue, switching topics as I pet her neck and shoulder. “What’s her name?”
Monster’s eyebrows lift. “Her name? I don’t know. Sin?”
I look over my shoulder, to where the bodyguard stands. He clears his throat.
“I believe that she is called Reina. The other one is Rey.” He shifts his stance, looking uncomfortable.
“Reina,” I coo to the horse. “You are beautiful.”
She snorts again, nuzzling my palm in search of treats that I don’t have. I just pet her instead, lightly scratching her muzzle.
“Alright, I have other things to do, so we should get going. Where is that man who keeps the horses?” Monster asks, looking around behind him.
It takes about fifteen minutes for us to get seated and settled on horseback, Sin included. I notice that Sin is pretty handy at riding, while Monster is stiff and unyielding.
I want to tell Monster that the way he’s mounted will cause him a world of pain later, but I don’t. Somehow, I don’t think that he would take the criticism well and I won’t have this ruined for me.
The old man guides us out of the stables, outside the tall fence that runs around the entire mansion. Clinging to my mount, I ride out into a densely forested jungle. There is a stream running somewhere nearby, and there are two paths that have been worn into the jungle, leading opposite directions.
I close my eyes, inhaling. The horse is placid below me, her patience evident. I get a lungful of horse and a hint of the verdant greenery all around me. The world seems to open up to me, and for a minute I am really, truly happy.
Then I am struck by a lightning bolt of sadness, because I forgot where I am for a moment. When I open my eyes, I realize that both Monster and Sin are waiting on me. I blush.
“Sorry,” I apologize automatically. “I just… I’ve been cooped up inside the house…”
Monster scowls. “This is your excursion. You’ve got an hour. Take us somewhere interesting.”
My heart starts to race when I realize that he means for me to lead the way. Clucking to Reina, I start off down the path to the right.
The path starts off narrow, so there is only enough room for one horse to proceed at a time. The ground underneath is grassy but there are some rocks hidden here and there.
; I keep my horse’s pace in check, and she seems to know just how to proceed. She heads down the path, and the green jungle envelopes us. Soon, there is no trace of the stables behind us.
Looking up at the canopy is incredible. As we go down the path, I look around; almost everywhere, I can see some kind of life. Brightly colored birds call out to each other, iguanas and strange lizards creep along the branches of trees, crickets chirp from everywhere.
The path widens, growing broad enough for two horses. As I rein in my horse, Monster pulls his horse up beside mine. I look at him, giving him a brief smile.
“You ride well,” he says, eyeing my posture.
“Oh? You’ll have to thank my mother for that. She insisted that I get lessons, even though my father said it was a waste of money.”
He cocks a brow. “And he just gave in like that?”
I squint off into the forest. “You didn’t know my mother. She was… she could be strong willed, to put it mildly.”
He’s quiet for a time. “I was under the impression that you didn’t have any female relatives.”
What, was I not enough? Would Monster seize the chance to snatch any female relations off the damn street?
My smile falls away. “She died when I was a little girl.”
If I expected him to tell me how sorry he is that I have a dead parent, I am to be disappointed. He merely nods, squaring his broad shoulders.
I don’t know quite what to say. If ever there was a time to ask him questions about himself, this is it. Silence reigns between us for several minutes, until I speak again.
“Do you just have the one brother, then?” is the best I can come up with.
He slides me a look. “No. I have two brothers, Damen and Dryas.”
I absorb that slowly. “Do you all have names that start with D?”
Monster scowls. “No.”
“Are you the oldest?” I skirt the issue, trying to keep my tone lighthearted.
“No.” He sighs.
“And your family? Do you have a lot of aunts and uncles and cousins?” I am desperate to keep conversation flowing, and I think that seeps into my tone.
He shakes his head. “Is this an interrogation?”
“No, just…. you know, making conversation.”
The pointed look he sends my way says that he’s not interested in my awkward attempts at being social. Retreating into silence, I feel like a fool. When the path narrows to make it impossible for two of us to ride side by side, I’m relieved.
I drop back and let him take the lead. After all, this is his land.
The sound of water grows louder and louder. The air turns so humid that I can feel it as I ride. Then Monster stops, looking down the path.
Just ahead, there is a small river, its bank all sharp rocks. Monster looks back at me, raising his brows. “Do you want to see it?”
I’m already sliding down off my horse, eager to see anything new and different. What I’m not prepared for is the rocky ground, though.
I stumble and start to fall, looking up at Monster’s face. Then I feel a pair of arms wrap me up, enveloping me and helping me find my balance.
Sin is right there, apparently anticipating my fall. I look up at him, feeling a burst of gratitude. When I look back at Monster, his expression has turned foul and black.
I step out of Sin’s arms as soon as I can, straightening my spine. Turning to Monster, I put on my brightest smile.
“Ready to see the river?”
As if the moment when Sin caught me was nothing for him to worry about. Which it isn’t, but I don’t trust Monster to see it that way.
Monster looks between me and Sin. I can almost feel the gears turning, feel him connecting the dots. Just because the dots aren’t there doesn’t mean anything to a man like Monster.
“You can go,” he says to Sin, very slowly. “Go back to the house. Leave us alone.”
I move toward Monster, my head held high, determined not to let the moment linger. Hopefully if I act like nothing happened, soon enough Monster will decide that it’s nothing.
I want very badly to look back, to check on Sin, but I don’t. Instead, I just head toward the river.
“Do you think there are like… snakes and crocodiles?” I ask Monster, pulling his attention away from Sin. “God, I hope not. I don’t think that these boots are really made for running.”
Monster looks toward the river, his hand coming up to the small of my back. “I don’t know.”
I smile at him, trying to ease our mutual discomfort. All I can do is pray that it worked.
19
Arsen
“See, the projections for next year are important because…”
The uptight-sounding guy on call I’m part of drones on. Normally, I don’t believe in conference calls. But when someone connected to the Madrigal cartel calls, I can make time for that. They’re one of the most powerful cartels in the whole world, and they run the better part of North America.
When they call, I’ll listen.
Today, though, they are really disappointing me. I’m one of five big bosses that they’re talking to. It looks less and less likely that I’m going to get the contract to distribute all their product in the Southern U.S.
And seeing how the boss that they favor is related to them by blood, there isn’t really anything I can do to increase my odds. Aside from murdering mob bosses, that is.
That thought is not off the table, not by a long shot. I crack my knuckles, agitated. The guy is still going on and on about his reasoning behind picking someone related, and I’m about to lose it.
I lean in, interrupting. “So basically, you are going with the Chicago guys?”
There is a pause on the other end. I look down at my cell phone, sitting next to my laptop. I’ve made the guy uncomfortable, that’s obvious enough.
“It’s really all a matter of fiscal responsibility—”
I end the call, incensed. Looking out the window at the courtyard, I try to tamp down the rage, but it just builds and builds inside.
Feelings of impotence and dissatisfaction with myself echo inside my head.
Useless.
Waste of space.
Why do I even try?
Frustrated, I sweep my hands across my desk, sending my laptop and my phone crashing to the floor. But that’s not enough for me…
No, I need to take my rage out on a person.
And not just any person. Fiore is front and center in my mind already, taking up too much space in my brain. She’s been on my mind the whole time I have tried to work out this deal with the cartel, distracting me.
Detracting from my business, my money.
It’s like she didn’t want me to succeed.
Well, she’s about to find out what it means to her personally when I don’t get my way. My fury is only growing and rising with every moment I wait. Even I know that.
I prowl down the hallway toward her room, singleminded in my determination to reach Fiore. She will have me when I get there; there will be no denying me.
Not anymore. No more pretending like she doesn’t want it.
When I reach her bedroom doorway, I find her on her bed, reading. She’s laying on her stomach, her legs bent up in the air, a strand of her blonde hair twisted around one of her fingers.
If this were a different world, a different place, she would be an innocent girl just reading a book. But the world is wicked, cruel enough to have put Fiore in the same stratosphere as me.
I wanted her from before I ever saw her, desired her screams and moans. Wanted to know how it would feel when I finally took her virginity.
Now, I’m about to find out.
She turns her head to look at me, her eyes widening when she realizes she is not alone. My nickname bubbles to her lips. “Monster?”
Egged on by the thoughts in my own head, I stride toward her. She sits up, folding one foot under her body and tucking a strand of her hair back behind her ear. She looks apprehensive
.
“Do you—”
I cut her off, yanking her by the arm up off the bed. I spin her around, raking her hair off her neck, so I can taste her skin there. She locks up, surprised.
“I—” she starts, but I silence her with a growl. I twist one of her arms behind her, keeping her in place with a painful hold. “Ah!”
I bite the nape of her neck and step closer, bringing my big body into contact with her smaller one. The difference between our sizes turns me on, as does the fact that I could ravage her body if I wanted to.
And part of me? Part of me wants to.
Shoving her on the bed roughly, I start to unbuckle my belt. She recovers, turning herself over and glaring at me. “What is wrong with you right now?”
I untuck my shirt, my belt still in my hand. “You are my problem, Fiore.”
She watches me, her chest rising and falling as she breathes harder. “What is that supposed to mean?”
I grab her ankle, dragging her to the edge of the bed. “Shut the fuck up and get naked.”
Doubling the belt, I pull it taut between my hands so that it cracks like a whip. Her eyes track me nervously as she begins pulling her thin dress up over her head.
She reveals miles and miles of creamy, pale skin and taut curves that my hands itch to explore. Better, she’s shivering, shaking.
Her nipples are hard, her breasts heaving, her eyes wide. My breath is stolen by the look in her eyes, the terror mixed with lust.
Yeah, she wants this too. Of that I have no doubt.
She would have me believe that it’s all out of fear, but I know the truth. I know that she wants me, almost as badly as I want her.
Considering her for a moment, I play with the belt in my hands. What do I want the most?
Scratch that, I’ve already answered that enough times. I want everything that she has to give.
But what do I want first?
“Turn over,” I say, my words slow and sure. “Get on your hands and knees.”
