Staking His Claim

by Winter Sloane

  Ryker took her hand in his, his mere touch making her heart race. Seeing him in a tailored suit of midnight blue, so dark it was almost black, made her smile. Her groom cleaned up very nicely. He looked so handsome, especially since at home he usually wore more casual clothes.

  Despite the rushed arrangements she and the other women had made that morning, Sky liked the wedding dress she and Ada had found in a second-hand wedding dress store—a simple gown with a lace detail on top and matching lace sleeves. Despite the sheer fabric, Sky didn’t even care one bit about her old scars showing.

  Today, Ryker made her the happiest woman in the world, and she was among family and friends. Sky was home. She couldn’t stop smiling.

  Judging by the feral look Ryker flashed her, she could tell he liked how the dress fit on her as well. He looked ready to rip it off her, and she could feel a blush creeping up her cheeks.

  The priest continued to speak, but she could hardly hear the words. After Giovanni found out they planned to head to city hall, he insisted on a traditional wedding. The next thing Sky knew, she’d been spirited to a small and charming Catholic church on the city’s outskirts.

  “Do you take Ryker as your lawful husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish until death do you part?”

  “I do,” she answered without hesitation.

  The priest turned to Ryker and hadn’t even finished when Ryker said the same.

  “You may kiss the bride.”

  Ryker encircled his arms around her, cupped her cheek, and zeroed in for a possessive and rough kiss, thrusting his tongue down her throat. Ryker moved his hands up and down her dress, not caring about who was watching. Someone hooted. She wanted to feel Ryker’s bare hands on her skin, to get the annoying fabric out of the way. He always had that effect on her.

  Then she remembered they had an audience, guests who came to witness the most important moment of her life. They parted, and finally, she looked at the Familia members gathered there. Giovanni inclined his head towards her. He’d been the one to walk her down her aisle, which only seemed appropriate given he’d been kind of a father figure to them both.

  Uncle Gino grinned at her.

  “If he yells photo session I’m going to strangle him,” Ryker muttered under his breath.

  “Photos with the bride and groom,” Gino said in a cheerful voice, making Ryker snarl under his breath.

  She laughed and gave his hand a squeeze. “Baby, just for today, be nice. Okay?”

  “Only for you, I’ll be patient.” Ryker pressed his lips to the shell of her ear and whispered, “I can’t wait to undress you and have my way with you, wife. I bet you miss having my cock in you.”

  She blushed deeper, but she couldn’t deny it, even though they just had sex last night. Today was different though. Yesterday, they weren’t man and wife yet.

  “I am,” she agreed. “Now please, behave, husband. Giovanni’s making his way to us.”

  ****

  They drove from the reception at Paolo’s straight to the Amethyst, a luxurious five-star hotel the Familia owned. Giovanni made some calls and managed to get them the suite on the top floor, usually reserved for celebrities or politicians. Ryker got out of the car and tossed his keys to the waiting valet, before opening the door for his wife.

  She took his offered hand, beaming up at him. He wouldn’t be able to forget the way she lit up the entire church and the restaurant like a bright ray of sunshine. Ryker had never been one for small chat, but Sky had been gracious, all smiles and laughs to every single Familia member and guests who wished them well.

  The hotel manager approached them as they entered the hotel lobby. “Your room is ready, sir, and here are your keys. If you need anything, please let us know.”

  Tucking the keys in the pocket of his trousers, Ryker led to the elevator. Once inside, he planted his hands on her waist.

  “Ryker, what—” Sky began, gasping as he lifted her in his arms and closed in for a kiss. He savored the taste of her in his tongue. Finally his. All his.

  “Reception took a lot longer than I expected,” Ryker complained after the kiss.

  “It’s wonderful to have everyone there,” she answered. “I didn’t expect so many people to come.”

  Ryker hadn’t either. Even the men who had assigned jobs earlier that morning dropped by during the wedding reception. Seeing her in her element, interacting even with the scruffiest, scarred, and tatted-up Familia member, he realized that Sky’s place was here, with him. The other men in the Familia had a hard time finding women strong enough to stomach their way of living, but in a way, he’d been lucky Fate put Sky in his path.

  He studied his thoughtful bride in his arms. Sky looked gorgeous with her golden hair unbound, her expression unguarded. She was still in the white wedding dress Ryker couldn’t wait to get her out of. The elevator pinged, and they got out. Ryker opened the door to their suite and carried her in, barely seeing the room. He set her down on the massive bed.

  “This room is amazing. I should remember to thank Giovanni,” she said.

  “Yeah, today was perfect, but there’s just one problem.”

  She raised one eyebrow. “Oh?”

  “You’re still wearing that dress.” His dick strained against the zipper of his trousers. Ryker couldn’t wait to bury himself so deep inside her, she’d forget to breathe. “Ever since I spotted you walking down the aisle, I wanted to rip it off you. I could have taken you on that altar.”

  “Thank you, for holding yourself back,” she said in a teasing voice.

  Fuck, but his cock felt like a steel pipe between his legs. Ryker needed to be inside her soon.

  He cocked a finger at her. “Come here, wife, or I’ll crawl into bed and literally rip that dress off you.”

  She slid from the bed, turning so he could unzip her back. The fabric seemed to sigh as he peeled it off her. How she and Ada found a dress that fitted her like a second skin, he didn’t know. Ryker was proud of her today. Not once had Sky been self-conscious about the old scars on her arms.

  He kissed the top of her shoulders, skimming his hands down her curves. Ryker spun her by her shoulders, so they faced each other. He slipped a hand between her legs, at the same time tipping her chin for a merciless and deep kiss.

  She clutched at his shoulders, and he loved the press of her bare tits against his clothes. Ryker left more kisses on her cheek, down the side of her neck. He lowered his head and nuzzled her breasts. He grazed his teeth over her tits, licking at them. She whimpered for him.

  He rubbed his hand back and forth, gathering her need on his fingers while she moaned and rubbed herself all over him. Ryker chuckled. Needy wife. He didn’t know how long he could last before he plunged his cock inside her and rutted her. He lifted his fingers to her lips, satisfied when she licked her cum off them.

  “Good girl,” he said.

  Color rose to her cheeks and neck. “You still have your clothes on. It’s not fair.”

  Ryker let her peel off his jacket, followed by the unbuttoning of his shirt. He planted a hand on her hip, rubbing the skin there. A rumble tore out of him as she placed a kiss on his bare chest, right where her name was. His dick hardened as she dropped to her knees in front of him.

  “Show me how badly you want my cock inside you.” Ryker slid his fingers into her hair, tugging it close to his groin.

  She surprised him by unzipping him with her teeth. He pulled his dick out, groaning when she slipped out her clever little tongue and swiped at the pre-cum gathered there. Sky seemingly took her time, licking his prick from tip to base, not neglecting his balls. These she took into her mouth, sucking at them. He should ask her to give him blowjobs more often.

  He groaned as she finally began taking his length into her mouth. Sky gagged at first, but she hollowed out her cheeks and tried again. Once the tip of his dick hit the back of her throat, she slid bac
k gracefully.

  “You’re getting good at this, sweetheart,” he murmured in approval.

  She gave him a blowjob, bobbing her head up and down until he nearly came in her mouth. Ryker gave her hair a gentle tug as she pulled away, gazing up at him. From this angle he could see the tempting swell of her breasts, her pebbled tits, and he bet if he slipped a hand between her legs, he’d find her pussy drenched for him.

  “I want to finish inside you,” he said, offering her a hand up.

  She took it and he hauled her to her feet. “How do you want me?”

  “On your hands and knees. Get on the bed. I want to go deep, make sure my seed’s planted inside you.”

  She scrambled to the bed, positioning herself at the edge. Ryker walked behind her and ran his hands possessively down the curve of her ass, before trailing them down her puckered entrance, the slick folds of her pussy. She wagged her ass at him. Temptation. He gave her a few playful smacks, eventually giving in to her pleas and sweet cries.

  “You’re ready for me,” he said, sliding his hand between her legs and rubbing circles around her clit.

  “Ryker, please.”

  He gripped her hips and slid his cock deep inside of her. Ryker began to pound in and out of her, balls slapping against her ass as she moaned and squirmed. He reached for her left breast, tugging and pulling at the nipple. She gasped as he found her G-spot. Ryker focused on that sensitive spot, all the while making sure that with each thrust he hit her clit.

  She clutched at the sheets as he quickened his pace, going faster, deeper, seemingly breaching her most intimate places. His dick felt close to bursting. His balls tightened against his body.

  “Ryker, I’m close.”

  “Me too.” His next plunge sent her over the edge. Hearing his wife screaming out his name as she came sounded like music to his ears. Ryker plunged in and out of her a few more times, before he exploded, filling her cunt with his load.

  “I’ll be back,” he said, pulling out his softening prick. Ryker made a quick trip to the bathroom to grab towels and returned to find his wife, all curled up in bed, looking satiated.

  She smiled up at him as he cleaned them both up. Ryker discarded the towel and slipped into bed next to her, bringing her close to him. He tucked her head under her chin, liking how she automatically placed her slender arms around his body, like she always belonged there.

  “Don’t get all comfortable yet, wife. I plan to ravish you plenty more times before the night is over,” he told her, planting a kiss on her forehead.

  She flashed him a wicked smile that made his pulse race. “I’m counting on it, husband.”

  The End

  www.evernightpublishing.com/winter-sloane

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  BONUS SAMPLE CHAPTER

  TAKEN BY THE KINGPIN

  Winter Sloane

  Copyright © 2018

  Chapter One

  Present

  “This meeting will be quick, I promise you, sweetheart,” her father commented.

  Yasmin glanced at his trembling hands on the steering wheel and let out a sigh. He deserved another tongue-lashing, but starting an argument now wouldn’t help either of them. She bit her lip and stared out the windows, her stomach knotting. She wiped her sweaty palms over her dress.

  When she moved in back with him a month ago, what did she expect? That he’d change after all this time? Once an addict, always an addict. Yasmin had been helping him pay off his gambling debts since high school. No surprise he’d managed to dig himself another hole so soon.

  “Don’t you have work today?” he asked.

  Larry was extra chatty today. For conversation’s sake maybe, but it was a laughable attempt. He’d never been around when she needed him.

  “I got laid off my job, remember?” Yasmin didn’t add she’d lost her job at the diner thanks to him.

  Larry knew she had a hard-ass boss who didn’t tolerate any of his staff being late, but he’d use his one phone call from the local jail, begging her to bail him out. Again. When she moved out to a different city with her then-boyfriend, she’d thought the days of getting Larry out of jail were over. In the end, she returned full circle, back to the crappy apartment she grew up with, jobless and still nursing a broken heart. I can do better than a fat bitch like you, were the hurtful words her ex hurled at her. Even now, they still stung. She’d spent her entire life feeling uncomfortable with her body shape. Brad had told her he didn't care, but that just proved what a slick liar he was.

  “Ah. Right. I could use a drink right now. Hand me that bottle inside the compartment in front of you.”

  Yasmin stared at him in disbelief, then pursed her lips. “No. We both need to be sober, alert. Jesus. Do you have any idea how much trouble we’re in? We can’t call the police because we’re meeting the friggin’ kingpin who has them in his pockets.”

  She practically yelled out the last words. Her heart beat so fast, it threatened to burst out of her chest. Whoever said keeping emotions inside was helpful? Yasmin thought if she could go in with a cool head, a plan, then they might just sort out this mess in a logical manner. She was wrong. It took all of her self-control not to puke in the car.

  She dug her nails into her palms. The pain helped her think. Yasmin breathed in and out.

  “You’re putting me on edge,” he grumbled. “No one asked you to go with me.”

  “You did, last night,” she told him dryly. “You were probably too drunk to remember.”

  She reached out for the faded photograph on the car dashboard, lost in a sea of old burger wrappers and empty cigarette boxers. Yasmin fingered the edge. Stains covered the picture, but she could still make out three smiling strangers. A happy family looked back at her, before things turned for the worse.

  I’m sorry, Mom, I can’t keep my promise. It’s too hard watching over Dad when he’s hellbent on a path to self-destruction. When you passed away, he died, too, and a stranger took his place.

  Yasmin tucked the photo inside her handbag. Larry didn’t seem to notice. When, she wondered, had she started calling him by his first name? When he stopped giving a fuck about her life and decided he was done being a dad?

  “Fine. Stop the car. I’ll get off and you can deal with Anatoli and his guys,” she said in a hard voice she hardly recognized.

  Silence. Yasmin waited for it, for his tune to change. Larry didn’t slow down the car.

  “Please, sweetheart. Don’t be like that. You know sometimes I say shit I don’t mean. I could really use the emotional support, you know?”

  She crossed her arms across her chest. Outside the car window, she spotted boarded windows, graffiti sprayed over old and abandoned apartment buildings. If Yasmin looked closer, she might even see sharp little eyes, hungry opportunists with quick hands and sharp knives. And she’d thought their old neighborhood was rough.

  “Are you sure this is the right address?” she asked instead.

  Larry didn’t need to act in front of her. She knew his moods. He could turn nasty and vindictive one moment and a pathetic and pleading mess the next.

  “Yup, Anatoli gave clear instructions. You know what to say, right?”

  “Let’s go over this again. We only have a fourth of what they’re asking. We’ll negotiate for more time. We’ll both find a way out of this mess.”

  Yasmin thought saying those words repeatedly would give her strength, some reassurance, but she felt all hollowed out. Despair festered inside of her like a poison, working its way from her innards to the rest of her. Yasmin knew even if Anatoli and the damn crime boss he worked for gave them a chance, Larry wouldn’t do a thing.

  Yasmin knew what would happen again. She’d still be the one working her finge
rs to the bone. Larry would promise to keep away from the gambling dens and casinos, for a few days anyway, before giving in. An endless cycle.

  “We’re here.”

  She jerked in her seat, staring at the empty parking lot of the strip club. The afternoon sun felt hot on her face. It would still be a few hours before the strippers and customers would arrive. For a second, her chest tightened, and it hurt to breathe. Yasmin grabbed the handle and got out on unsteady legs. Her entire life it felt like she’d been drowning, running a rat race with no finish line.

  Why couldn’t she just walk away from her father?

  ****

  “These figures are next month’s financial projections for the Aurora,” Benny said, sliding a tablet across the table.

  Carver finished his beer and nodded, listening with half an ear as Benny droned on about numbers. Fuck, but he was bored out of his mind. Benny had been working for him for five years, and he didn’t hire just anyone to handle the Family’s finances. Besides, anyone in his employ knew what would happen to those who betrayed him. Mercy and forgiveness weren’t in Carver Edward’s dictionary.

  From the corner of his eye, he noticed Anatoli walking in the club, hands shoved in the pockets of his trousers, lazy smile on his face. Carver recognized that look. Anatoli had that smug look when he smelled blood in the water.

  Two other suits strolled in, followed by two figures with slumped shoulders and defeated expressions on their faces.

  Under the club’s dim lights, Carver couldn’t make out their features and didn’t give a damn. Benny mentioned Anatoli would be bringing over some poor sucker whose debt to the Family was due. Most of the time, Carver let Anatoli run their money-lending business. Ruthless and efficient, Anatoli also possessed a surprising head for numbers. Anatoli knew his shit.