I hung up with the bank. Rubbed a hand down over my face a couple times. A knock sounded at the door. I groaned at the cessation of my brief reprieve. "Come."Edi opened the door. His face was thunderous. "I've got news from Jimmy and Fran."The bottom of my stomach dropped out. "Bring them in here." Shit. He stepped back and let two of his soldiers come in. Jimmy and Fran were brothers who looked nothing alike. They were the same height, and that was where the familial resemblance ended. Jimmy was a lanky guy with long dark hair and piercing blue eyes. Fran Never call me Francis,' on the other hand, was stocky, built like a fucking train, and had a shaved head with light brown eyes. They were also my best tail team. Jimmy nudged his brother. Fran rolled his eyes. "Where do you want me to start in the timeline?" he asked me, his voice low and raspy. "Wherever you think is relevant."He nodded. "Jimmy was on last night. But I think you know what went down then."
"Fucking men," I muttered as I hiked my gym bag strap higher on my shoulder, shoving the phone in my gear bag. Who the crap did he think he was? You have something you need to tell me? His sexy, husky voice rolled through my mind again. Asshole. I'd been willing to get all hot and sweaty with him, hadn't I? What more could a man want?I pushed it all from my mind as I turned the final corner on my way to the gym. I started my deep breathing as my happy place came into view. Here, I was the master of my world. Here, I was able to pummel and pound my enemies into dust and tears. Here, I was strong and brave and kickass and awesome. Such a difference from my years growing up. Living out of a trash bag until I finally ran away the last time. Then it had been my choice to live out of a holey duffle. My choice to sleep in abandoned buildings instead of a warm bed with a foster dad who had wandering hands. Every single choice had been mine. I would do almost anything to keep from h
I knew I shouldn't be here. I did have other things to do. Important things. Family things. But just like a moth to the flame, I was helpless to stay away. And I had officially passed into creeper territory as I watched Nik walk down the street. In the heated warmth of my black car that I had hidden in the shadows, I stalked her. But the woman herself wouldn't talk to me. How the hell else was I supposed to get valuable information about her? So, really, it was her fault that I had stooped to being nothing more than a Peeping Tom. The only difference I could see was that I wasn't currently getting my jollies from watching her. Eyeing the movement of her tight ass in those leggings made a liar of me. Hell, everything about her made a liar of me. And for that reason alone, I hated her just a little. I was honest with myself. Always. One thing I knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, was that I wanted to drown myself in her. But I also wanted to fuck with her head a little bit. Just l
Smiling like the Cheshire Cat, I heard him drive away from the curb. The man was scared of me. Like, quaking in his boots, scared of me. I laughed. Big mafia man himself was afraid of little ol' me. I started stripping as I made my way to my bedroom. He'd been watching me from the shadows. It should freak me out. Make me give him a piece of my mind. And I would. But it would be more fun to tweak his tail than to berate him. I was going on a manfast, but I wasn't above a good game of teasing. Make him desperate for me. Make him sorry he passed on my offer. Then, when he was ready to rock and roll, I'd break my fast...with a different partner. Shove his face in it. Yes, I might still be a little bitter about the whole thing. My body felt loose and heavy at the thought of Arturo Amatucci caught in my web. I was going to torture that man in the most delicious ways possible, and he'd have no one but himself to blame. Curls of heat licked through my core. By the time I got
I set the phone on my desk carefully because I wanted to throw it across the room and watch it smash into a million glittery pieces. But I was better than that. I had more control than that. My dick throbbed in my pants. A nagging ache that told me I'd been too long without anything more than just my hand for relief. I was going to paddle her ass. I groaned as a picture formed in my mind. Closing my eyes, I saw Nik spread wide in front of me, her ass up and rosy under the bright lights of my bedroom. Her gleaming pale skin a blank canvas for my hand prints. I felt my cock twitch, a bead of pre-cum leaking from the tip. Shit. I needed to fix this before my entire family showed up for a serious discussion. Easing up from my chair, I went to the bathroom attached to my office. Shut the door, locked it. I gritted my teeth. She was going to pay for this.Undoing my pants, I pulled my rigid dick from under the fabric. Getting a tight grip, I started pumping my hand up and down
I took my seat, thankful most of my portion for the night was over. Standing under the watchful gaze of Turo had just about killed me. I kind of regretted my outfit tonight, especially with his parents there. Ryker nodded. "Okay, so I talked to Daphne on the way over. My mom said that she's still waiting on results from Mas' DNA sample. Or rather, waiting on something to compare it to. His results are fine, but without Amara's to test against, it's essentially useless information." He looked at Mas. "Sorry."Mas shook his head. Didn't say anything. Of all the Amatucci family siblings, I found him the most complex. He treated Corrie, Ryker's sister, with care and love. But was able to flash to full violence in the blink of an eye. I wondered what he carried around with him that made that kind of vacillation necessary. "Where are we on finding any viable DNA of Amara's?" Rafe asked. No one answered. Turo looked at me. Raised a brow. I sighed. "From everything that I can
I hit the refresh button on my computer the next morning. Nope. Nothing had changed. It was still the same information from Nik that she'd given me last night. Nothing new. No little quip or comment about my bossy ways. Just a businesslike email that felt like the social equivalent of fuck off.'I gritted my teeth. Would have kicked my own ass if I hadn't been sitting. I really needed to stop antagonizing her. Especially if I was going to get her in my bed. I might be into some power exchange, but kidnapping Nik was just asking her to kill me slowly. A knock sounded. I glanced at the clock. Wondered why Edi was up this early. "Come."Nik came strolling in. Her long legs were accentuated by a pair of sky high stilettos, a short skirt, a tight top, and a pair of long pigtails that dangled just over her tits on either side. She shut the door behind herself, locked it. "I've been thinking." She leaned against it, her tits thrust out, her back arched in a curve that made my mo
I slapped the phone against my forehead a couple times. What the hell had I been thinking? You okay?' Blech. I wanted to vomit. Something in the man's voice changed, gotten softer, sexier, and I'd been all over it like white on rice. Get your shit together, woman. You don't fall at the feet of men. They fall at yours. I nodded. Darn straight they do. I stomped into my kitchen, snarled at the falling snow. I was not in the mood for more of the white stuff today. I got my French press out, grabbed the beans. Walking through my morning ritual, I pushed everything else from my brain. Focused on the daily affirmations Momma's call had distracted me from. Today is my bitch. I will make it call me Mistress Nik. Today, I will do my best. Nothing less than my best will be accepted. Today, I will rely only on myself. Others can't be trusted for too long. Today, I will not take advantage of the awesome life I've been given. I pushed down the plunger on the French press sl
I crept along the rooftop. The target was staying in the long term suites across the road. It was our first night, and it felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders the farther we got from New Trenadie. The next moment, I crashed to the roof's floor. "Damn it." She snickered. "Still a sucky spy, Raphael." She slid her body over mine.I sucked in a breath. Nodded. Hell, I practically begged her for it. But without words. When she got that tone, my words were not necessary. She smiled. "I'm not going to beat you to death. Nor am I going to stuff you into a padded room." She bent down, flicked her tongue over my lips. "But I will tie you up, spank you, flog you, fuck you, and then make you do it all over again. My dick went to iron between her legs. Her laugh was husky. "I'm keeping you, Raphael. Do you understand me?"My heart settled. Skipped a beat. "Yes, Mistress."The end.
My phone dinged with a new incoming text message. Considering my phone had been going off since the wee hours of the morning with Willow and Ryker announcing the baby was finally coming, I was tempted to just shut it off. But it could be something important. And since Angelo and I were at home with the other babies, it fell to us to make sure we kept everything running as it should. I grabbed the phone. Unlocked the screen. A video message popped up. Raphael and his girl, Nia. Their heads mushed together to get into frame. "Momma, I have to leave. But I wanted to tell you I love you. And thank you for everything. I will let you know when I get back." Nia smiled. "I'll keep him safe, Momma. I swear it.""Bye, Momma," they said together before they ended the call.I smiled even as tears filled my eyes. Angelo looked up at me from his spot on the bed. He was restrained, a ball gag in his mouth. I held the crop up high. "Our last baby is finally happy, Angelo." I s
Two weeks later I glared at the woman on the table. "I still don't know why I have to be here. I barely know you."Willow snorted. "Because you're scarier than anyone else in my family. And I don't want those doctors trying to get all bitchyyyyyyyy." Another contraction hit her. She clamped down on my hand hard enough that I thought I was going to need surgery to remove the bones from each other. And this little firecracker had more strength inside her than her grip would show. Raphael had told me some of her story. She'd told me the rest of it. A ritual the Amatucci women apparently indulged in was something called Girls' Night. Really it was a bunch of drinking, talking about sex, and watching movies while we ate enough of Willow's confectionaries to give ourselves diabetes. Willow blew out a breath. "Ryker can't handle seeing me in this kind of pain, so he has to stay out in the lobby with the rest of them. You're second chair." She panted. Demanded some ice chips.
Three days laterWalking into my parents house when they didn't know I was alive was a risky thing. A multitude of crappy things could happen. Not the least of which was Momma killing me for real this time. Or Papa crying. Or either of them fainting."Go on," Nia said as she shoved me forward gently. "You're already here. Just go into the kitchen. Nik said she told them to wait for her in the kitchen."I nodded, felt my palms go clammy as my breath backed up in my lungs. This could go terribly wrong. So fucking horribly wrong. Man up, Si, that no longer too small voice said inside me. Since I'd been actively listening to it more, he wasn't so easy to shut up. Even when I wanted to. Thankfully, the nasty bitch who lived inside me was getting fainter. Although he could still throw a temper tantrum to beat a two year old. "I'm right here. And I'll be right here the whole time. They've waited long enough, Raphael." She nudged me again. Even as bile rushed up the back o
We all stood in the kitchen, guzzling water by the gallon. I hadn't been this dehydrated since the last time I got in trouble at Petter Manor. But at least this time it was due to happy tears and reunification. Raphael sat and watched it all. Just absorbed it. But he never got so far away I couldn't touch him. That I even needed to touch him still blew my mind. But I wasn't going to question it. He helped steady me when it felt like everything inside me and around me was bending and flexing too fast for me to catch up. "What are your plans for tomorrow?" Liam asked as he finished his third glass of water. "Tomorrow is the gala. I'm going to string Anders up-the guy who had you kidnapped again. I'm going to tell everyone the Petters have been blackmailing and abusing and paying off that the Petters are dead and gone. That they're all on watch." I studied Liam and Lilly. It blew my mind that they had gone into the government side of this dirty world. That they willingly put t
Nia came over to me while I was helping drag some bodies away. "Hey Raphael, can you come with me, please?"Foster grunted at me as we got the body up on the catering cart. "Go. I've got this." I nodded, turned back to Nia. "Sure, Nia." She took my hand and we walked from the room. Her hand was trembling in mine. It was only the slightest degree, but it might as well have registered on the seismic scale. "You good?" I asked her softly as we walked down a set of stairs. She said nothing, made no movements except to keep walking. I pulled her to a stop. Made her look at me. "Are you good?" I asked again. Her eyes were wide, as if she were trying to stave off the tears. "Amelie and Anton..." she blew out a breath. "They're t-""The only two people you love in this world." I smiled sadly. "I know, Nia."Her eyelids fluttered shut as a tear escaped down her cheek. Her breath was shaky as she exhaled. "I got them away from here. Put them in with a good woman with a hu
Day before the gala "Charlie team in position," the man's voice came through the little earbud I wore in my right ear. I kept a tight hold on my fear. My relief. My heart. All of the planning, all of the tears, all of the arguments. It all came down to this. "Delta team in position," Raphael said through my ear. "Foxtrot team in position," another voice said. I still wasn't quite sure who was who by their voice, but I'd done an okayish job of remembering names and faces. The fact that I had a team full of women with me made me like the Amatuccis even more. They didn't discriminate. If someone had the skill and the drive to join the security teams, they were given a position. "Estrogen team in position," I said. A series of clicks came through the earbud. I'd made a single joke about Echo team being full of vaginas. They called us the Estro team now. Since we were collectively badass, I didn't really care what they called us as long as it wasn't disrespectful. "A
Her babies? She had kids? I shook my head. Knew there had to be a different story, but I needed to get her back with me to learn it. I set her down on the chair. Pushed her head down between her knees. "Breathe, Nia." I made my voice hard. As hard as I dared when all I wanted to do was cuddle her up and carry her away. Nowhere was my fierce and strong Dominant. Right now, she was a broken, hurting woman. I would hold her together until she could find herself again. Ivan came rushing into the room, his gun drawn. He lifted it to the ceiling when he saw what was going on. One of his brows rose in question.I gave him a brief rundown of what I knew. Which was damn little. I shrugged when I was out of information to share. Mas came hopping in behind Ivan. He didn't have a weapon, but he did have concern etched on his face. "Who the hell are you?" a voice said from behind me. I whirled around, putting Nia behind my body as I faced the threat that shouldn't be there. A
After rushing through the shower and the delicious meal that Raphael put together for breakfast, I walked into the space Ivan and Klara had set up for me. Everything was as I left it, but that didn't mean a whole lot. Especially in a place I didn't control one hundred percent. Brushing the weird vibe away, I walked to the computer. Booted everything up. Once it was up and running, I went through my process of accessing my cloud accounts. Jasper had set some up for me that weren't the typical commercial kind. Luckily, I'd memorized the process, or I'd be up a creek with zero paddle at the moment. A ReadMe file was highlighted when I got all the way into my account. I right clicked, read through the metadata how Jasper showed me. Recognizing his signature, I opened the file. Ms. Flower~I've attached all of the information I could find re Cucumber Butt and Pretty Mean. You'll find them in the associated files.I snickered at Jasper's sense of humor. That kid was a genius and