ErosI sit in the back of the car with Eros, the divider between us and the driver firmly in place. "Are you sure this is a good idea?" I ask him as we glide through downtown."A very good idea," he says, his hand on my thigh. I'm in a dark blue dress with a slit up my thigh and a low-cut front, and he keeps peeking at my tits and my leg. It sends a thrill into my guts, the way he looks at me in this revealing dress, so totally not my style, but he seems to love it. Which is good enough for me."It's just, you keep talking about how dangerous it's been in the city and how I shouldn't go to the diner—""Trust me." His fingers dig into my thigh and there's a smile on his lips. "The Italians are too busy to bother with us tonight."He takes me to an upscale Asian fusion restaurant. We're seated right away by a pretty girl in all black at a good table right in the middle of the vast, open space. The music is loud, and every table is packed, but Eros looks at me like there's nobody else in
CaraHe spreads my legs roughly, on his knees in front of me in the back of the car. "Are you sure Alonzo can't hear us?" I hiss at him. My bodyguard's behind the wheel tonight."Soundproof," he confirms."And he won't stop? The windows are totally tinted?""Yes and yes." His lips work up my inner thigh as my fingers twist into his hair. "Stop talking.""It's hard to shut my mouth with you touching me like that, and we're in the freaking car, with like a hundred—oh, fuck." He pushes my panties aside and licks my clit in slow circles. "Ah, okay, I think, yeah, I can try to ignore all that other stuff.""Good girl." He slides his fingers slowly inside of me. "I want you to do nothing but feel me enjoying you, your taste, your moans, everything about your lovely little pussy.""Okay, I can do that." He spreads me wider, fingers moving in and out, curling devilishly, driving me insane. "That definitely helps." He licks my clit, sucking me, driving me insane. "You're really hell-bent on sp
CaraI wake up feeling refreshed and happy. There's a pleasant glow that hangs around for a while after a night of really good sex—and last night was really good. I'm guessing my post-orgasm floaty-feeling is going to last all day, and if I'm lucky, Eros might keep that going into tomorrow.Except he's not in bed with me. I touch his pillow—it's cold. Which means he must've left a while ago. That man works too damn much.I close my eyes, smiling slightly, unwilling to let this little wrinkle ruin my solid vibes.Last night was absolutely fantastic. He wasn't kidding when he said he wanted to treat me like this wife. That beast was absolutely insatiable in a way he hadn't been before. It was like one taste and he needed to devour me, toes to teeth. Orgasm after orgasm for both of us, and when I thought he was through, his cock somehow got hard again and he was fucking me into sweet oblivion.I yawn and stretch. Some men are freaks of nature. Eros might be a sex freak of nature. It shou
ErosI hear the scream as I come up the steps, a bag of breakfast sandwiches in one hand and a carrier with two coffees in the other. I'm humming to myself, floating on a cloud. I figured I'd treat Cara to breakfast from my favorite local spot not too far away and wanted to take the drive myself to clear my head.Last night's debauchery still lingers like a comforting blanket.But that scream has my body pounding with adrenaline.I know that sound. I know that tone. It's a scream of pure, utter horror, of an animal trapped in a life-or-death struggle.And it's coming from my room.I drop the coffee and sandwiches as I sprint down the hall. My heart's racing, my brain working. I released Alonzo early this morning, told the kid to get some rest—which means Cara is alone.Nobody else would go near my wing of the house, not this early in the morning.She's alone, all alone, with no weapons, no protection, nothing.Fuck, I shouldn't have left her, but I thought my enemies were busy fightin
ErosI stand behind my desk in the office of the Lord of the Khazan Family. To my left, Cara leans against the bookshelf, looking exhausted. Her eyes are bloodshot from the struggle of staying alive and there's an ugly yellow bruise forming on her cheek. Dr. Kalivas says she'll be okay—she doesn't seem to have any permanent damage, which was a relief beyond measure.To my right is my mother. She's in all black like always, her face cold and passive, showing no emotion. She stares straight ahead, unwilling to look at me.That's okay. I can't blame her. This won't be easy for my mother. She's lost so much already, but now there's more to lose.Straight ahead, Anissa and Sophia kneel on the floor, their hands tied behind their backs. Sophia doesn't look great—apparently, she tried to fight when Lycus caught her, screaming obscenities, halfway to the dock and the jet skis, and the guards might've gone a little overboard when they captured her. Aunt Anissa came peacefully though, and her h
ErosI sit alone in the steam room, no towel around my waist, my arms on the bench behind me, my head leaning back against the wall. My eyes are closed, and the heavy, damp air sits on my skin, pulling sweat from my pores.I'm exhausted. I'm more tired than I've been in a long, long time. The steam room helps relax me after an extremely trying day, but even this isn't bringing me back.It's like everything in my life is conspiring to break me, and if I don't find some hidden reserves of energy, I fear it'll work.But I'm so close. Bosco is dead along with his underboss, and word is the Pavone Famiglia quickly fell into chaos and infighting, just like I wanted. They're squabbling with each other over who will take command of the remains of their fractured organization, and I'm hoping that by the time a strong leader takes control, they'll be so diminished that I can either destroy them outright or demand absurd concessions in exchange for peace.Killing them with the Yakuzas' help will
CaraIt feels strange being back at the diner. Even weirder since I'm not in uniform."Please, can I get you anything else, Mrs. Khazan?" Demetrios asks me, wringing his hands together."You have to stop calling me that," I say with a big smile. "I'm still just Cara.""Yes, of course, Mrs. Khazan—I mean, Cara." He returns my warm smile. "It's good to see you again.""It's good to see you too."He pats my hand and walks off to help his wife in the back.I drink coffee alone at the counter. Greek soldiers come and go, the place packed with them. Alonzo lurks nearby, laughing with some of the boys. He gets along with everyone so well—it surprises me that he got twisted up into the crew that tried to betray Eros. But so far, Alonzo has done nothing but show loyalty and respect. It helps that I like him."You look different." Phel leans against the counter in front of me. "Something about you changed.""I don't know what you mean," I say innocently."Hm. You're wearing the wedding ring. Th
CaraI poke my head into the kitchen to say bye to Demetrios before taking the back way into the alley. Once I'm outside, I stare at the ground, trying to work out what I just learned.Eros didn't tell me about killing Don Pavone, but I don't want to jump to any conclusions. I can see how that might've slipped his mind, what with his cousin nearly smothering me with a pillow. He came home that night looking like something big happened, looking more relaxed than he had in a while, and we spent all evening having sex. And in the morning, Sophia tried to kill me, then that whole trial-banishment-whatever thing happened, then more sex in the steam room, and more sex all night—I can understand how he never got around to telling me.But what does this mean?Is the war totally over?Am I safe?My head's in a million places, and I don't notice the person watching me until he speaks up."Cara. Hey. Don't freak out."I look up sharply and take a step back.Christopher's standing near the end o