by Penelope Sky
“Are you sure it wasn’t an accident?”
“Yes.”
“So if I piss you off, are you going to throw me in the ring too?” she asked hesitantly.
“No, Beautiful. Women aren’t members of the casino.”
“That’s sexist.”
I gave her a dark look, giving her another warning.
This time, she went quiet.
“Go back to bed.” I turned away and headed down the hallway.
Her footsteps sounded behind me as she followed me.
I grabbed my jacket from the coatrack, along with my phone and wallet. I hit the button for the elevator and typed in the code so the gated doors would open.
“Bosco.”
I turned around, still wearing a scowl.
She moved into me and wrapped her arms around my neck. She rose on her tiptoes and kissed me goodbye, giving me the softest embrace with those full lips. It wasn’t a kiss intended to drag me back to bed, but it was a kiss that told me she was worried about me. “Be careful.”
All the rage I felt for the situation disappeared when I looked at her. A soft grin spread over my lips, seeing the way she was slowly becoming attached me, the way she wanted me to come back in the same condition I left. “Beautiful, are you worried about me?” My hand slid into her hair as I cradled her face, seeing a new side to her that she’d tried to keep hidden from me for so long.
She didn’t make a smartass comment to bury the truth. She finally dropped her bullshit attitude and gave it to me straight. “Don’t let it go to your head, alright?”
I grinned wider. “It already has.”
11
Carmen
I didn’t sleep well while he was gone. Normally, I was out like a light, the night passing within a heartbeat. But now, I tossed and turned, slightly conscious as I felt his cool sheets freezing my skin. The heater was on and it was at least twenty degrees warmer inside than it was outside, but I was still frozen to the bone.
I was starting to become dependent on his heat.
When his heavy footsteps pounded against the hardwood floor again, I finally felt comfortable for the first time since he’d left. I heard his clothes drop to the floor, and then his heavy weight hit the bed.
Already knowing exactly what he wanted, I lay on my back and opened my legs, giving him ample room to move over my body and position himself on top of me.
Without uttering a single word, he folded my knees toward my chest and thrust himself hard inside me with one movement.
“Oh…” My hand dug into his hair, and my arm hooked around his back.
He buried his face in my neck as he started to fuck me, giving me a quick but lazy screw. He breathed hard against my skin as he pounded into me hard, driving me into a climax as quickly as he could so he could finish.
It was a great way for him to announce his presence.
After he shoved every drop of his come inside me, he turned over and lay on his back, his eyes immediately closed like he was ready to go to sleep immediately. His muscular frame heated the sheets instantly, making me feel warm now that he’d chased away the cold.
It hit me then that I was sleeping beside the dictator of the city, a man who possessed more wealth than anyone else I’d ever heard of. He went down to his casino in the middle of the night to sentence a man to death.
That was an immense kind of power.
And I was sleeping with him.
I moved into his side and wrapped my arm around his muscular waist. My head rested on his shoulder, and I hooked my leg between his.
He wrapped his thick arm around me, his lips resting against my hairline.
“So…someone died tonight?”
“Yes.” He said it without remorse, the calmest he’d ever been.
“And you watched it?”
“I always watch. You can’t sentence a man to death without watching the execution. It’s a requirement of any leader.”
I had a cast-iron stomach, but I wouldn’t be able to swallow that. “So they just…beat each other with their fists?”
“If they’re smart, they’ll break an arm or a leg first so they can crush their skull.” Bosco said it simply, like we were discussing what to make for dinner.
The heat provided suddenly wasn’t enough, and I felt ice-cold. Bosco wasn’t the man making the killing blow, but he ordered death just like he ordered a drink—as if it was of no consequence. His lust for violence and lack of empathy terrified me because they were traits of a psychopath. My body automatically moved away from him, my instinct for survival kicking in. I pulled the sheets back then sat up, the adrenaline heavy in my veins. “I want to go home.”
He sighed quietly from his place on the bed, absolutely still like he had no intention of moving.
I grabbed my clothes off the floor and hurriedly pulled them on, eager to get out of there as quickly as possible. I hated waiting for him to give me permission, but since I didn’t have the code to the elevator, I was at his mercy.
I was powerless.
He finally sat up in bed and looked at me. “I would never hurt you.”
Those words meant nothing to me. “I want to leave.” I stayed at the foot of the bed so I wasn’t within arm’s reach.
“Beautiful—”
“Why won’t you let me leave?” I demanded. “I’m not a dog that you own. I’m a fucking human being, and you have no right to keep me locked in here. When a lady says she wants to go home, you do what she says. Now let me out, or I’ll break through the window.” My courage stemmed from my fear, along with a rush of the adrenaline. I feared I would never get out of there, that I’d lost my rights a long time ago.
He continued to sit there, watching me with disappointment.
I lost my patience and stormed into his living room and picked up the chair from the dining table. I prepared to throw it through the window and watch it shatter into a million pieces. We were at least a dozen stories high, but there had to be a fire escape somewhere.
“Beautiful.” He snatched the chair out of my hands and put it back on the floor. “Knock it off.”
“You knock it off.”
“You want to leave? Fine.” He grabbed me by the wrist and pulled me to the elevator. “Here’s the code. Five. Seven. Four. Three. Eight. Five. That’s the master code. You can come and go whenever you want.” He hit the numbers on the pad, and the doors opened to the elevator.
I finally stopped panicking.
He stared at me with a clenched jaw, clearly furious at my explosion. “You can take the elevator to the lobby and tell one of my men to take you home. Or you can calm down and come back to bed with me. I would never hurt you, Carmen. Ever.”
I looked away, unable to meet his fiery gaze anymore.
His chest continued to rise and fall rapidly, barely able to hold on to his rage. He was livid, judging by the way his closed fists caused the thick cords to strain. “I’ve never raised a hand to a woman my entire life.”
“But you have no problem killing someone because they took a single chip.”
“It doesn’t matter how much they stole. They took something that belonged to me—and they face the consequences. If they cared that much about their mortality, they would keep their hands in their pockets. It’s pretty simple. I don’t comb the streets looking for victims to slaughter. I lay out my rules perfectly clearly to every member of my casino. The consequences are the same for everyone—regardless of the extent of the crime. It’s earned me great respect, which keeps everyone in line. You can criticize my decisions all you want, but only a truly powerful man can sit in my seat and rule a kingdom smoothly.”
I still wouldn’t look at him.
He sighed again. “I won’t apologize for being the man that I am. You come around my dick because you can feel the power in my veins. You get wet knowing you’re fucking the most powerful man in this city. Don’t pretend otherwise. But with great power comes great responsibility. If you aren’t woman enough to handle
that, then maybe you aren’t woman enough to handle me.” He slammed his hand onto the button, making the doors open again because they’d closed at some point during our conversation.
He turned away and marched back to his bedroom, the sound of his footsteps growing fainter as he disappeared down the hallway and back to bed.
Now I had the security code so I could leave whenever I wanted. He gave me a form of freedom, proving to me that I had some kind of power over him. But then his power dominated mine because I was still standing there.
All I had to do was walk inside the elevator and go home.
But I stood there, watching the doors shut for a second time. I could be on my way home right now, but I lingered, thinking about that warm bed with that hot man between the sheets. One moment, I hated him, and then the next, I wanted him even more than I did before. I was repulsed by his power but also drawn to it at the same time. I told myself I didn’t need a man for anything, but now I was getting comfortable with his strength. I liked knowing I was invincible because he had control of everyone in this city. It gave me a sense of safety I hadn’t even felt at my childhood home. I was raised by a strong man, and I was used to that luxury. Maybe deep down inside, I wanted that in a man…someone with unquestionable strength.
I turned around and did my greatest walk of shame, heading back to the bedroom where he was waiting for me. I was a slave without a chain. I was obedient without punishment. My brain told me to run for the hills, but the rest of my body knew this was the safest place I would ever be.
In his arms.
He was sitting up in bed waiting for me, the sheets pulled to his waist. He wore a dark expression, like my return wasn’t enough to please him. His broad shoulders were tense with his anger, his biceps chiseled and defined. His arms rested by his sides, and despite his calm posture, he seemed inherently dangerous.
I slowly crept toward the bed, moving slowly like he was a wild dog that might bite me.
His eyes followed me the entire time.
I stopped by the bedside and undressed, dropping my sweater, jeans, and then my undergarments.
He watched every single move.
Despite all the shame inside my chest, I pulled back the sheets and got back into bed beside him. He was the most dangerous person in this city, but I somehow felt safer once his body was beside mine. My head hit the pillow and I looked at the ceiling, feeling his rough gaze on my cheek.
He suddenly moved, like he’d been waiting for the perfect moment to trap me. He maneuvered his heavy body on top of mine, and even though we’d just screwed twenty minutes ago, his cock was hard and inside me instantly.
I clawed at him, instantly feeling safe once we were combined together.
He held his face above mine, possession in his eyes. “I knew you wouldn’t leave.”
I was working at the shop when Griffin and Vanessa walked inside. I was grateful that Bosco didn’t make his surprise visits anymore, because if these two men were in the same room together, no one would survive.
I knew Vanessa hadn’t told Griffin anything because he didn’t look remotely angry.
I knew I could trust her.
“Hey, what are you guys doing here?” I smiled from behind the counter, seeing Vanessa show off her small baby bump in her long-sleeved shirt. She wore a jacket on top, but it was open, revealing the slight extension. She was almost early in her second trimester, but she was showing so well because she had such a petite frame.
Griffin stayed behind her, always having her in front of him so he could keep an eye on her.
“We had a doctor’s appointment,” Vanessa said. “Griffin took the day off so he could take me.”
“Hope everything went well,” I said.
“Yeah, everything is great,” Vanessa said. “The baby is doing well. Just had a routine checkup. Nothing to worry about. So we wanted to see if you had time to get lunch.” Vanessa pretended our last conversation never happened, like I didn’t tell her I was sleeping with the most notorious criminal in southern Italy.
“I’m always free for lunch.” I grabbed my jacket and purse, and we left the shop to head to a bistro just a few blocks away. Vanessa was craving pasta, and since she got to choose whatever she wanted, that’s where we stopped.
The three of us sat together at a table and ordered.
Griffin wasn’t talkative, but then again, he never was. He wasn’t indifferent toward me or cold. He just didn’t have a lot to say.
“I can’t believe Carter and Mia are finally getting married,” Vanessa said. “She told me she picked up her dress.”
“Yeah, I picked up Luca while they were in Milan. It’s weird seeing my brother so grown up. He was such a selfish jerk before, and now he’s a whole new man. It took some time getting used to, but now I’ve finally come to accept it. He’s matured a lot.”
“Mia definitely made him into a better man,” Vanessa said. “A good woman will do that.” She glanced at Griffin.
He held her gaze with such intensity that he could burn the whole place down.
I looked away, feeling like I was intruding on something intimate.
“Anyway,” Vanessa said. “I’m excited for them. Seems like your parents really like Mia.”
“They do. She’s very sweet. I also think my parents are just relieved Carter found someone.”
Vanessa chuckled. “Come on, he’s not that bad.”
“We both know he can be a pain sometimes.”
“Sometimes,” she said. “But not often.”
The food arrived, and we ate quietly. Griffin still hadn’t said anything, but that wasn’t unusual for him.
I knew Vanessa was eager to talk about Bosco, but she wouldn’t mention it in front of her husband. I wasn’t stupid enough to admit it either.
After we finished eating, Griffin excused himself from the table. “I’ll be waiting outside. I know when I’m not wanted.” He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead before he stepped outside and stood near the window, wearing nothing but a t-shirt and jeans. The cold had no effect on him at all—a lot like Bosco.
Vanessa glanced at him through the window then turned back to me. “For a man, he’s highly intuitive.”
“Thanks for not telling him.”
“You know me. I can keep a secret. So…what’s going on with him? Did you end things?”
I was stuck even deeper than I was before. “No…”
“Oh no. What happened?”
“I don’t know… Every time I pull away, I get sucked back in. Just last night, I stormed out of his bedroom and demanded to leave. He typed in the security code so I could take the elevator…but then I went back to bed.”
She shook her head slightly. “Girl, you have it bad.”
“I don’t understand it. I know he’s not the right man for me…but I can’t leave.”
“The sex must be unbelievable.”
“It’s so good that I don’t think I could have sex with anyone else anyway.” The idea of meeting a new man and taking him back to my place sounded pointless. He would get off, and then I would touch myself after he left because he couldn’t get the job done. Then I would think about Bosco, missing him while my fingers worked my clit. “He told me one of the men at his casino stole a single chip, so he put him in the ring and made him fight some other guy to the death. He lost…and Bosco acts like this is perfectly normal.”
“It’s crazy.”
“It just terrifies me. He told me he would never hurt me…and I feel stupid for believing him.”
“He never has, right?” she asked.
“Never.” I never even suspected he might. Sometimes, he became angry, but the most he ever did was press me into a wall and kiss me so hard that I forgot why I was pissed in the first place. “We have this chemistry… I can’t explain it.”
“You don’t need to explain it.” She glanced at Griffin out the window, where he continued to stand there and survey the street as people came and went. “Trust me,
I get it. But if you really don’t see a future with this guy, you have to get out now. It’s only going to get worse.”
I agreed with everything she said. The longer I waited, the more difficult it would be. It’d only been a few weeks, and I was in so deep already. I was calling him and asking to see him. I was coming by his apartment and riding him on the couch. I was telling him I missed him…and meant it. I was sleeping with him every night and actually enjoying it. “I know…”
“I’m sorry, girl.”
“I know you are. Being around Luca just reminds me how much I want a family. It doesn’t need to happen tomorrow or next year. But it’ll never happen with Bosco, and I never want it to. I’m stuck sleeping with a man when I should be looking for my husband.”
“I agree. But I think finding Mr. Right is the least of your problems right now. Right now, you’re dating the scariest man in this city. This guy is so strong that our family is powerless to stand up to him. If he wanted to take you and never give you back, we wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. Even Griffin can’t do anything. No matter if Griffin rounded up all his contacts, Bosco still has this entire city under his thumb.”
“I know…”
“So, end it. Do it quickly, and don’t look back.”
Easier said than done.
“Do you think he’ll let you go?” she asked, a hint of fear in her voice.
I really had no idea. “He said he would never hurt me.”
“He may not think keeping you against your will falls into that category.”
She was right. “When I asked to leave the other night, he gave me the security code and walked away. I could take the elevator to the lobby and have one of his men drive me home.”
“That’s not the same thing, Carmen.”
I knew it wasn’t, but I hoped that momentary taste of freedom was an indicator.
“What are you going to do if he doesn’t cooperate?”
I’d turned him down a few times in the beginning, but that only seemed to make him want me more. If I walked away altogether, that might ignite his lust in a dangerous way. It might make him possess me harder, make his grip so tight that I would never know freedom ever again. “I don’t think there’s anything I can do.”
