King of Hearts: An Arranged Marriage-Mafia Romance (Rake Forge University Series Book 2)

by Ashley Munoz

  “I’m fine…”

  Mal gave me a reserved look but sat back and settled into her chair. “Okay, tell me what’s going on.”

  I rubbed down the length of my belly, unsure of where to even begin.

  “Did I ever tell you about my birth father?”

  Mal tilted her head, leaning forward to grab her water. “My dad actually told me a bit about him. He sounds scary as hell…”

  That was putting it mildly.

  “When I was growing up, he used to talk about the people who betrayed him paying penance. I had to watch him execute those people…and when it was time for my own lessons, they were taught in a dark warehouse, where blood splattered the walls and animals were brought in and tied up for me to shoot.”

  Mal gasped, putting her hand to her chest. “What the fuck?”

  I blinked, moving forward. “I was a piece of property to my father, a game piece to be moved around as needed…and he determined that he wanted me on my twenty-first birthday. It was how we got away from him for so long…my mom made a deal.”

  My sister’s eyes went wide with surprise, her dark brows hitting her hairline. There was silence while she seemed to slowly connect the dots. “Which is why she married my dad so quick…”

  I nodded, looking out over the lush grass, the fresh scent of it being cut hitting me hard.

  Another gasp from Mal brought my gaze back to her. “Tay…you turn twenty-one in a month.”

  So I told her everything. I explained my father breaking into Juan’s house, how her best friend saved my life, leaving out why he felt so empowered to do so. I told her nothing about Juan’s family, just like he’d asked. I could tell by the way her eyes questioned there were pieces not matching up for her.

  My sister was pacing the patio at this point, her hand at her chest. Decker had looked over at us a few times from where he worked on something with a motor near the garage. Worry lined his face, but he didn’t make a move to come closer, which I appreciated.

  “Holy shit, Tay…just, what the fuck,” she sputtered, jutting her hand toward me.

  I hadn’t disclosed anything that had happened between Juan and me physically. For some reason, I felt like if I said it out loud and to the one person who probably knew him better than even me, our bubble would burst, and he’d be taken away from me.

  “I can’t even…I don’t have words for what I want to say.”

  “You don’t have to say anything. I have an idea of how to get out of this, and how to get Juan free of all of it.”

  Mal stopped pacing and moved until she was crouched in front of me.

  “Look, I don’t know what is going on between you two, but I know him. I know he would never do anything he didn’t think through first. If he did that, Tay, it’s because he wanted to.”

  I wished I could stand and storm off. I mean, I could have, but I’d need her help to get up, and that would sort of defeat the purpose. She didn’t get it. She saw Juan as the nice, sweet guy who had become her best friend. He was a great guy, but she hadn’t seen him as the head of a dangerous gang with a birthright he wanted nothing to do with. She didn’t realize that Juan had had no time to decide if he wanted to claim me; he’d seen it as the only possible way to save my life.

  Which reminded me…

  “There’s something else you should know, and I’ll let you decide if you tell your husband or not, but—”

  “Hey party people! I’m here—you have my permission to have fun now.” A loud voice boomed from inside the house, through the open French doors.

  Decker’s younger brother Kyle walked through, holding a bag of chips in his hand and looking entirely different from the last time I saw him. Instead of the tailored, tight black suit he had donned while standing next to my father, he now wore a loose tank top and board shorts, his hair askew. He looked like a real teenager, and it made my heart ache for what he must have been involved in. At the sight of me, he froze in place, and his face went deathly white as if he’d seen a ghost.

  “Hey.” Mal smiled, but it only took her a few seconds to take in his response to seeing me, and somehow, I knew that she knew. She must have, because her lips thinned while her green eyes bounced between his tall form and mine.

  “What are…” Kyle started, but he stopped once his brother came into view.

  “There you are. You were supposed to fucking help with the lawn over two hours ago. Where have you been?” Decker snapped, and I wondered if Kyle’s hands were soiled like Jakob’s hands used to be. Whenever the older man would hand me a piece of gum, his skin would have red stains inside every crevice and crack.

  “Sorry, got tied up.” Kyle’s gaze flicked to mine once more, and this time everyone caught it.

  Decker’s face was a stone mask as his eyes drifted down to me, back up to his brother, and then over to his wife. Mal did the same thing, and Kyle’s jaw tensed, his eyes on the floor.

  Decker snapped his fingers and curtly demanded, “Sit.” Kyle made some muttered objection, but Decker only doubled down. “I said to fucking sit.”

  “Hey Kyle, where’s Rylie?” Mal asked, bracing her elbows on her knees.

  “Haven’t seen her in a while.”

  Decker scoffed. “You haven’t seen your best friend in a while? That’s not exactly normal for you, is it?”

  Kyle shrugged one shoulder. I continued rubbing a hand down my belly as a new cramping sensation started up, similar to what I’d felt earlier.

  Decker lowered to his haunches in front of his brother. “What have you gotten yourself into?”

  “What do you mean?” Kyle tilted his head as if he and Decker were playing or joking around.

  “I mean, what has Scotty gotten you mixed up with?”

  “Nothing…I told you…” His light green eyes moved to me again as his dark brows caved in. “Why? What did she tell you?”

  I chuckled, because now it was all over for him, and I hadn’t even said a thing.

  “Nope. Fucking. No.” Mallory stood and walked over to Kyle. It happened in a blink. Faster than a single breath, she slapped Kyle across the face. “Did you or did you not have something to do with the break-in and attempted kidnapping of my sister?”

  My heart swelled at the rage in Mallory’s voice, at the way her fists shook. To have someone love me, care about me in that way still completely undid me.

  Decker’s jaw clenched tight while his fists curled. “Answer the fucking question.”

  Kyle held his face still while glaring at each of us, until finally he let out a measured breath. “I can’t tell you. I—”

  Mal’s hand flew again, this time on the other side of his face.

  “Jesus Christ! Will you stop?” Kyle’s palm came up to cradle his other cheek.

  She pointed at me. “Tell me you had nothing to do with that psycho breaking into Juan’s house and pulling her up by her hair while his men watched. She’s pregnant, Kyle. Fucking PREGNANT!”

  I flinched at how loudly she screamed. Kyle’s red face only worsened as Decker stepped up to stand behind his wife. She was crying; somehow I’d missed it, but tears streamed down her face.

  “Scotty told me we had to go…it was a way to secure our place. I didn’t know it was Juan’s house, or that Taylor would be there.”

  Decker let out a few muttered curse words while running a hand through his hair. “Why were you with Scotty at all? Do you have any idea how dangerous it is to get involved with that shit?”

  Mallory’s arms were a band of tight steel in front of her chest. Her lips thinned, and her gaze bounced between her husband and Kyle.

  “Sorry if I’m not exactly worried about your safety at the moment, Kyle. You put my sister and her child at risk. If Juan hadn’t been there, what would have happened to her?”

  Kyle winced, ducking his head. “We had no idea she was pregnant, or that the kid was his…we wouldn’t have broken in if we knew who he was. He would have come for us…”

  “What is that sup
posed to mean…” Mallory’s dark brows wrinkled while she glanced at Decker then looked back at Kyle. “What do you mean about not knowing who Juan was?”

  Shit. I absently rubbed my forehead, wishing I was positioned right to kick Kyle so he didn’t say anything.

  Kyle glanced at Mallory then me.

  “Juan is the son of Manny Vasquez.”

  Decker’s face twisted in confusion, and Mal looked anxiously between them.

  “Who is that? What does that mean?”

  My heart rate tripled, my panic flaring out of control. He wanted to protect them, and I’d fucked it up.

  “Manny was the leader of the largest gang this side of the country. It started as a cartel down in Mexico, and it’s called El Peligro. They’re more dangerous than any outfit this side of the Atlantic Ocean, save for ours.”

  “Why the fuck do you keep saying that? It isn’t yours,” Decker snapped, smacking his brother in the back of the head.

  “Because whether you like it or not, I am part of it. I’m a part of him,” Kyle yelled back, his throat straining to contain the rage he had rolling through him.

  I yelled back before anyone else could. “No, I’m a part of him. You have no idea what you’re doing, or how far into this you really are, or what is going to happen the first time you choose not to kill a child, or kill a mother…have you ever killed before, Kyle? I promise if you haven’t, you will, and that sort of damage to your brain, to your heart…it won’t ever go away.”

  I stared at Kyle, my fists clenched tight in my lap, my baby kicking furiously at my abdomen. One of the kicks was so hard I nearly lost my breath, but I gritted my teeth and kept a straight face. Decker shook his head, stalking off toward a different part of the patio. Mallory glared at Kyle before following after her husband, leaving the two of us alone.

  The sun was out, shining down in a way that made the awkward silence stretching between the boy next to me and myself not as horrible. Still, it didn’t change the fact that there were some unspoken things between us that needed to be cleared up.

  “So, are you going to tell him I’m here?”

  Kyle leaned forward on his elbows, resting them on the tips of his knees, then he tilted his head until he was peering over his wide, round shoulder.

  “You’re my family, Taylor. I wouldn’t hurt you…I know you can’t ever know if I’m telling the truth, but if Juan hadn’t shown up, I would have stepped in. There’s no way I would have let Ivan hurt you.”

  That made me feel better. A marginal amount, but at least it was something. I turned in my seat, ignoring the cramping in my stomach.

  “Then help me…I need to set up a meeting, and I need to do it without my fiancé knowing.”

  Kyle smiled, laughing as if I had told a joke.

  My brows caved at what might be so funny. Maybe it was the mention of fiancé in light of the swap with Markos and Juan.

  I was too curious not to know.

  “Why are you laughing?”

  Kyle leaned closer, seeing that Mal and Decker were threading their fingers together and turning back toward us.

  “Because your boy just had a meeting with your dad, claiming you two have already tied the knot.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Taylor was off today; I could sense it. Maybe that was why I had demanded her touch, her lips…that fucking space between her legs. She had no clue it was the organ in her chest I craved the most. It was something I knew she’d never part with, and still I wanted it.

  The fact that she wanted to go home without me, without protection meant she was planning something. I could feel it in my bones, so I may have taken the opportunity to cut her off at the head and make a deal without her. She’d be pissed, but if she had any plans whatsoever about doing this herself or doing something heroic, she was wrong.

  The front door slamming was the only warning I had that my beautiful, fake bride had returned and somehow learned of our artificial nuptials. My guess was that she’d somehow run into Decker’s little brother, a loose end I needed to tie up.

  Her flip-flops slapped against the marble as she charged toward the kitchen. I had asked the men to start doing rotations outside the house, giving us more privacy, especially after how hard we’d fucked that morning. There was zero percent chance we weren’t doing that again.

  I leaned against the kitchen island, crossing my arms, just waiting for her wrath. If I was lucky, she’d end up wanting to take it out on my dick with her mouth.

  “Juan,” she snapped, coming into view. Her golden hair was down in loose waves, and tiny freckles were splattered like paint across the bridge of her nose. She wore a loose-fitting dress, which meant she had to have changed from our little romp that morning. She was all boobs and perfect, round belly, and my chest ached at her overwhelming beauty.

  “Babe,” I replied casually. I wondered if I should cook her something. She always seemed to be hungry these days.

  “Was there something you forgot to tell me?”

  I smiled, deciding if we were going to eat, it would just be better if we feasted on each other.

  “What do you mean?”

  She stepped closer, her blue eyes narrowing. “Are you kidding me? Why did Kyle say you told my father we are already married?”

  Knew that fucker had told her. The fact that he had been close to her today didn’t sit right with me, and I likely would be requiring a private conversation with the little idiot soon.

  The sky was darkening. She’d left early in the morning, and now it was nearly dusk. I hated that my chest ached, questions dancing on the tip of my tongue about her day. I wanted to know how she was feeling, what she’d had for lunch. I wanted to show her the new baby swing I’d bought for her with the help of her friend from the store.

  “Because I did tell your dad we are already married. Are you hungry—have you eaten?” I turned away, heading for the fridge. I could order us dinner; I could even eat some of it off her body. I was about as horny as a fucking middle schooler right now, and I needed to calm down.

  “But why would you tell him that?” Taylor followed me around the kitchen, holding one hand out.

  “Because it changed the game board.” I ducked, looking in the fridge. My mom had made enchiladas.

  Taylor crowded the stool closest to the fridge and gingerly slid onto it.

  “I’m so confused. So, now you’re…what?” She pressed her palms into her eye sockets. “My fake husband?”

  I stood up straight, grabbing a water bottle. “There’s nothing fake about it. You’re mine until I say you’re not.”

  A pink flush overcame her face while she shook her head. “This is crazy.”

  “What would be crazy is if you tried to cut me out of this…I’m half tempted to marry you for real, just so you can’t.”

  She looked up from under her lashes. “Marry me for real?”

  Was that shock in her voice?

  I stalked closer. “Yeah, you know, you and me, baby girl…why not?” I shrugged, feeling a fluttering sense of hope begin to spread through my chest. I tried to stop it before it crushed me, but I wasn’t fast enough.

  Her scoff was like a knife against my chest, cutting with a serrated edge.

  “Because we hated each other not very long ago, we’re not good together, you have an entire life ahead of you with a beautiful wife and kids, and I have unfulfilling single mom sex with the single dads from school in my future. My highest hope right now is that I end up like my mom and find some Charlie out there who will take pity on me, Juan. Pity. My only future relationship will be one birthed from pity, and that sure as hell won’t be with you.”

  A thick ball of pain swelled in my throat. It felt like I was going to cry or some shit. I cleared the sensation with a quick cough. Of course, it was just a joke to her; I’d known that even when I had stood in front of Ivan and told him I had already taken his daughter, told him he’d need to figure out his shit if he wanted anything from me.

 
; “Well regardless, your dad thinks it’s real, so just fucking roll with it, if that won’t be too much trouble for you.”

  I stalked out of the kitchen before she could reply.

  A sound from outside in the hall woke me in the middle of the night. I threw the covers off, hating the feel of the shitty thread count, and maybe just hating the fact that it wasn’t mine. After my argument with Taylor, I had ended up taking a bottle of whiskey with me up to the guest room and then proceeded to pass the fuck out.

  I had washed down my presumptions with the burn of the alcohol and let my self-hate surface in hopes that it would drown. That was hours ago, though, and I hadn’t even had dinner with her. I’d just left her standing there with that fucking comment she’d made. I had locked the door too, so there was no chance of her coming in and using me to get off.

  I was bitter knowing that the only pleasure she had in me at all was that I was a convenient fuck, an easy way to get off without any drama or strings attached.

  The sound rumbled from the hall once more as I moved, pushing one palm into my eye socket and grappling with the locked door with the other. I swung it open, grateful that most of the lights were out, except for the one at the end of the hall.

  “That’s my bedroom light,” I muttered out loud…or probably, more accurately, I mumbled it. I wasn’t drunk anymore, which meant it was likely in the wee hours of the morning, but I sure as fuck didn’t feel well.

  I stumbled down the hall until my room came into view, and the sight before me sobered me immediately.

  “Taylor? What’s wrong—what happened?” I ran to her crumpled form on the floor. She had her phone in one hand and gripped the sheet with the other. There, tangled around her thighs, were the rest of my white sheets, like she’d fallen out of bed…but… “Fuck. Why is there blood? What’s going on?”

  I pulled her face back so I could see if she was coherent, but all I could see were her eyes tightly closed and her jaw clenched shut.

  She was making some kind of low whining sound, so I at least knew she was conscious.

  “Taylor, baby? What’s going on?” I moved my hand to her belly, and it was hard as a rock.