KillianMorning sunlight split the room into long shadows. Several of my men were in the room, all of them leaning against walls or sitting with their legs splayed in the scattered armchairs in my office. Mikey twirled a pen over his fingers, which Francesco snatched out of his hands with an irritated growl. “I think it’s pointless,” Francesco said, tossing the pen onto my desk. “Giuseppe is an infant, Boss.”I shrugged, turning my coffee mug in a circle. “He may be young but he’s not stupid,” I replied firmly. “We’re going to teach him a very valuable lesson. He’s not untouchable. He’s under the impression he inherited his father’s legacy, when in reality, every other family is gunning for the opportunity to end the de Lucas now that he’s in power. I want to be the one to wipe them off the map.” I wanted to play with Giuseppe first and see how far I could push the man. Every man had a breaking point. I would take my time finding his. “We’ll raid his compound. That’s final.”I eyed F
SeraAnother day of confinement.I spent the first hour of my day trying to pick the lock in the sitting room, to no avail. I ran out of bobby pins eventually and resorted to using a makeup brush to try to pry the locks on the windows open, snapping the brush in two. Even though I knew every attempt would fail, it helped me pass the time.Olivia brought in breakfast and I did my best to be friendly, which only made her suspicious. She left, and I picked at eggs and toast like a bird at frosty soil.I did everything in my power to remain sharp, but I was slowly losing my mind as the days passed and blurred together.The morning sunlight turned overcast, and rain began to trickle down the windows. I lay down on the carpet and watched the shadows play over the ceiling, doing my best to focus on escape and not think of Killian. What I would have done for a worthy distraction. I needed a TV in here. Then again, that could spell disaster. If I had a TV I’d slip into a void of nothingness, s
Sera“You misunderstood her,” Tommaso told Delaney without a single shred of kindness. “Sera’s been locked up like you have. She wouldn’t have known if anyone came here. Your father isn’t here and hasn’t been here.”Delaney pressed on, her eyes wide. “But she said—”“No,” I cut in quickly. “Tommaso is right. I’ve been locked up for so long. I think I’m just hearing things.”Delaney sucked her lower lip and looked from me to Tommaso.“If your father comes here, you’ll be brought to see him. We’ll get all of this hashed out.” Tommaso pressed what looked like a call button.A second passed before an unfamiliar man stepped into the room.“You go eat, Delaney,” Tommaso commanded, his voice dropping into that icy, manipulative tone that always reminded me of what he really was and who he worked for.The man stepped inside and took Delaney by the arm, escorting her out of the room. He left the door open like I was meant to follow but Tommaso held out a hand, pointing to the door.“Shut it,”
KillianThe de Luca’s warehouses were numerous. I could see the port from where we stood along the tree line. Men milled about, walking between the metal buildings, their bodies shadowed by heavy equipment and trucks loaded with goods.Luxury goods. Stolen cars ready to be exported overseas. Drugs. Cash. Guns. Everything Gabriele had built to maintain his standing.I would take it all. Tonight.“How many men does he have on guard?” I asked Mikey, who primed his pistol.“Forty,” he whispered. “He’s scared, I think. Beefed up his guards on patrol.”I glanced at the dozen or so soldiers behind me, all of them waiting for my command. We had the place surrounded. The two roads that connected the lot to the highway were blocked off. There would be no escape.“I want the warehouses burned down before we leave. All of the cars need to be loaded, and everything inside needs to be packed up and ready to go.”Mikey nodded and turned to relay my orders to the men waiting behind us.I watched the
SeraHow dare they?My hot shower did nothing to ease the rage chewing me up on the inside. Killian and Tommaso were playing games. Everyone in this seedy, depraved, sinful world knew nothing of kindness or mercy. They only dealt in pain and blood. And lies.I couldn’t organize my anger into a coherent line of thought as I shrugged into my nightgown and robe. I’d known I was part of some cruel game, but seeing Delaney’s grief and confusion cut me to the core.I wished I could tell Killian exactly how I felt about it when given the chance, but he still intimidated the hell out of me. I slid into bed, the silky sheets whispering against my bare legs, and nuzzled my face into the pillow. Closing my eyes, I imagined all the things I would say to Killian if he didn’t hold my life in the palm of his hand.I hate you.I want you.Stay away from me.Take me.“Get it together, girl,” I breathed, rolling onto my back and blinking up at the ceiling. Fire burned inside me, angry and tempted. How
SeraKillian picked me up and I wrapped my legs around him, the nightgown gathering around my waist and leaving my ass and legs bare to the slight chill in the room. But Killian was hot, damn near fevered, as he laid me on the bed and pulled the straps of the nightgown off my shoulders. His eyes didn’t leave mine until I lay completely naked. Then his gaze traveled down the length of my body, coming to stop at the apex of my thighs.I fought for breath as he put one knee on the bed and towered over me, his hand gripping my thigh and pulling my legs apart.I should have told him I was a virgin, but the words didn’t form on my tongue. I just watched him looking at me as he teased my clit.Every shred of fear and despair evaporated, replaced by that ache I hadn’t been able to satisfy on my own.He silently stroked a finger between my folds, then pressed it inside me. He moved slowly, tenderly, and I sucked in a breath and squeezed my eyes shut at the touch and the rigid fullness that str
Killian“Killian.” Sera breathed my name into the darkness. Her voice oozed with pleasure and contentment. I’d never heard her speak my name like that.I hovered over her, my breath ragged in my lungs, my cock still inside her. She made no effort to move. Instead, she lay there dreamily, a small smile curling the corners of her perfect lips. When her eyes fluttered open, they shone like gems in the darkness.Her gaze cut me.I pushed off the bed, leaving her empty and grasping at the blankets to replace my warmth.“Killian?” This time, my name held a note of confusion. Unease.That was more like it.She propped herself up on her elbows and watched as I zipped up my fly and moved to the door. “Where are you going?”“I have business to attend to,” I said flatly, pausing before I opened the door.“Oh. Are you coming back after?”I should have at least told her goodnight or said something—anything—but I simply walked out the door and locked it behind me, trapping her inside once again.Al
SeraThree days passed, and if Killian slipping out of my room after taking my virginity hadn’t been enough, he’d kept me locked in here since that night. Three days with no word from anyone about what was going on in the outside world. Three days of sitting on my hands wondering if I’d done something wrong. After he’d claimed me, he’d looked at me like he hated me. No.Like he hated himself.Then he’d left me here to lose my mind.Asshole.Olivia had been my only source of human contact since then, and her chipper demeanor did nothing to improve my mood. If anything, it made it worse. She was always that way, no matter what happened or to whom. Even Tommaso getting a bullet through the chest hadn’t changed her disposition.I watched her yank the sheets from my bed as I lurked near the window.“No blood the last few days,” she sang to herself, which made my cheeks go a fiery red. “Off your period, then?”I wasn’t sure it was possible to turn redder than I already was. The blood she’d
PaigeI stood in the vestibule outside of the chapel, clutching my flowers, my heart hammering in my chest. Organ music belted through the doors, and I was just waiting for my cue.We all were. My two bridesmaids, in simple maroon dresses, stood ahead of me. Like she could feel my eyes, Lauren turned back and winked. I smiled. The dress looked spectacular on her, and I’d promised up and down that Tom would invite enough handsome men for her to go home with a date. This, of course, had been complicated by Tom choosing Killian and Stan as his two groomsmen. While I liked the older man, and he kept Lauren laughing, I didn’t exactly see the two of them as a couple.Mom stepped up next to me with a smile. Her mother-of-the-bride dress, a deep burgundy gown with gold accents, caught the light and sent it dancing. “Are you excited?”I inhaled sharply. “I kind of can’t stop thinking about the seating chart for the reception. Who have I become?”She laughed. “Your father.”Tears beaded in my e
KillianI sat behind my desk and looked out over my men. Tommaso took his usual seat. Adrian hovered in the corner like he wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself yet, just like he had at the beginning. Patrick was still laughing about spilling his wine. Just like old times. I stood and started pouring everyone drinks.“So,” I said, “do you have an update on the warehouses, Adrian?”He started toward my desk, then paused. An odd moment passed. It wasn’t really my desk anymore. I’d left the hunk of wood behind because I had no need for it on the island, and he’d loaded it down with computers in my absence. Despite that, I’d never seen anyone sit behind it but my father besides me.I offered Adrian a drink. “Sit.”He nodded. “Didn’t want to step on your toes. The situation is pretty simple, all told, but I can tell there’s a certain amount of grace I’m supposed to be handling this foreman with, and I don’t—”Tommaso joined me at the bar to pour. “Do you remember that foreman in the so
PaigeI tucked my arm through Tom’s and straightened my long, floral romper. He kissed me on the cheek, then knocked on the door. Joyce swung it open.“Hello!” She welcomed us both in with hugs. “Mr. and Mrs. Ricci are in the drawing room. Please, come in.”We let ourselves be bustled through the door, the wine we’d brought carried off to the kitchen, and our coats taken to some closet somewhere in the mansion. Adrian used it as a base of operations when Killian and Sera weren’t home, so I’d been here a few times since the wedding, but I’d never felt comfortable here. Finally, we were led to the closed doors of the drawing room, and Tom opened them with a smile.Inside, we found not only “Mr. and Mrs. Ricci,” but also Olivia and Patrick, Adrian and Penny—who still wouldn’t even talk about their dance at the wedding—and Sera’s mother and brother, as well as Lauren. Sera leapt up to greet us, and Killian followed a few paces behind. I threw myself into the hug just as much as Sera did—I
SeraI folded a T-shirt and put it into Killian’s suitcase. “Are you sure we need to leave so soon?”He chuckled and took the T-shirt back out, then replaced it with a suit shirt. “Very, unfortunately. Adrian is in the middle of a difficult situation with one of the warehouses, and he needs a steady hand to guide him through.”My stomach churned at the thought of leaving the villa. We’d only been here for a couple of months, and we’d promised everyone we’d return, but dammit, I wasn’t ready yet. Lazing around the villa and having sex whenever the mood took us was way too fun to stop after only a few months.“But we’ll be back soon, right?” I asked like I didn’t already know.“Cara mia.” Killian took my hands. “What is happening in that head of yours?”I sighed. “I don’t know. The thought of leaving just make me kind of sick. We just got away from all that. I don’t want to be scared again.”He studied me for a long moment. “You do look a little pale. How sick is this making you exactly
PaigeI squeezed Tom’s hand in the car on the way to the airport.“Sad to be leaving?” he asked.I smiled. “Always. It’s so magical here.”He laughed. “Not just saying that because we’ve spent most of the vacation in bed?”I ran my free hand up his leg. “No, we have weekends for that at home.”“Fair enough.” He kissed the back of my hand. “I do like going on these little vacations, though. It’s a nice escape for a few days.”I nodded. I really was going to miss Paris, but I wouldn’t have wanted to stay much longer anyway. Lauren had been texting me updates about the shelter, especially the new one as women settled in. I kept thinking about how much I was missing, how much they needed me there. And I knew Tom was feeling the same. Apparently, Lyle had his sights set on someone new, and Tom was itching to pull the trigger. Anybody else would probably think we were freaks, desperate to leave a luxury vacation to get back to our grueling jobs. But those people didn’t realize just how much
TommasoWhen I told Paige I’d set everything up for another two days in Paris, she’d immediately insisted we spend a day shopping. I put up a cursory front of complaints, but in truth, I was perfectly happy following her from store to store and carrying her bags. Even better, she loved it when I made jokes about some of the worst, frilliest, most French things we came across. She laughed and joined in. For years, I’d heard men complaining about shopping with their girlfriends—fiancées—saying it was the most boring thing in the world, but even if we weren’t laughing up a storm as we paid our way through the most expensive boutiques in Paris, I still would’ve been having a ball. The sun was shining, she kept looking at the ring I’d put on her finger with a soft wonderment I’d never seen in her eyes anymore, and my face hurt from smiling. Paige and I could’ve made a hell of an afternoon out of reading the phone book.“Stop!” she said.I froze, my free hand twitching toward the gun I’d hi
PaigeI didn’t know how long Tom and I lay there, listening to the fireworks and seeing the very top of their arcs through the sliver of windows accessible from the floor. I pillowed my head on his chest and enjoyed the steady beat of his heart. Engaged. The last time I was here, I’d been on the cusp of recovery, just starting to make strides toward the person I was today. Now, I wasn’t done—I didn’t know if there was a done for traumatized people or people in general—but I was so much better, stronger, happier than I had been.The last time Tom and I were in Paris, I’d thrown myself at him and chickened out. As much as I could stay at a private view of the Eiffel Tower, I wanted to show him just how much had changed. Just how much I meant the “yes” that had fallen so easily from my lips. I rolled on top of him.“What do you say we take this back to that hotel room you picked out?”Tom grinned and pulled me down for a kiss. I pressed myself against him, feeling every line of his body.
PaigeI sat across from Tom in an empty, stunning restaurant in the middle of the Eiffel Tower with my head spinning like the three sips of wine I’d had with the appetizer were enough to make me drunk. He’d really rented out the Eiffel Tower. And not one floor, the whole thing. We’d ridden an empty elevator, the two-Michelin-star chef kept coming out to tell us why he’d selected particular dishes based on the information Tom had given him about our preferences, and I couldn’t hear anything but the soft classical music over the speakers. It felt like a dream.Tom took my hand. “So?”“So what?” I asked.“Was the surprise worth it?” He grinned.I looked over his suit, a forest green that brought out his eyes, worn without a tie. His dark curls tumbled into his face. I’d never seen him look so perfectly put together and so casual. He looked…well, he looked exactly like the man I’d fallen in love with. Nothing like the one who’d scared me so badly all those months ago in Cairo.“I get the
TommasoDespite how much I wanted Paige to keep that little black dress on, we had a few hours before the Tower officially emptied out for our use. I talked her into putting on something a little more walkable and keeping the lingerie on. As if to punish me for my restraint, she picked a pair of tiny, wide-legged shorts that showed the tops of the garters attached to her stockings every time she moved and a fitted blouse. I changed and somehow convinced myself to leave the hotel room instead of stripping everything off her and spending the hours in bed.She took my hand as we stepped into the lobby. “I should’ve known. When you plan a surprise, it’s never just one thing. Where are we off to first?”“So nosy.” I smiled.“You’re right, I’ll stop asking.” She slid the room key out of her pocket and fiddled with it for a second, then dropped it. With a small smile, she bent at the waist to pick it up, exposing those garter straps again.I grabbed her waist and hurried her the final few st