by René, Dani
“You’re in love with him?” she asks, but it feels as if she’s making a statement.
“No,” I answer quickly, causing her to turn her attention on me. “I mean… He’s just someone I’m with for a short time.”
“Listen to me,” she says, before setting her glass down and giving me her undivided attention. “A man like Victor Cordero doesn’t just bring a girl to dinner with one of his closest associates.” She lowers her voice further, “And Victor also doesn’t speak possessively of any woman he’s ever had in his bed.”
“I’ve never been in his bed,” I retort, cringing the moment the words fall from my lips. “I’m sorry. I’m just not used to this. I grew up believing he was a bad person, and now…” My words taper into nothing, and I know she’s watching me, waiting for me to admit what I already know. But I can’t. I cannot bring myself to admit my feelings for Victor have changed.
Not yet anyway.
“Aren’t all men bad in some way?” Giuliana challenges me. “My father runs an organization called the Cavalieri Della Morte, Lance is one of his soldiers. They hunt, they maim, and they kill. But he comes home to me and he’s the man I love.”
“And how do you deal with knowing he’s a killer?”
“The people he does murder are criminals,” she tells me. “And hey, who knows why he and Victor are friends, but they are. I can’t deny that, at times, I’m fearful he won’t return to me. But I have to believe that my love for him will bring him home.”
“Always, baby girl,” Lance says from the doorway, as he eats up the distance to his wife in a few long strides and pulls her into his arms.
“Get a fucking room,” Victor complains, as he finishes his whiskey. We laugh at that, and soon, the tension that was twisting in my gut is gone. The drinks are refilled, and soon enough, we’re all seated at a beautifully set table with food steaming from the serving bowls.
The smiles that we share are genuine. The laughs are filled with happiness.
And for a moment, I feel normal.
22
Victor
The dinner went well. Lance needed my help, and I would do anything for him. I met him as a young boy, working for Arthur, and even then, I saw his potential. Now that we’re still working on opposite sides of Arthur’s rule, I know he’s the contact I need in my corner.
The Cavalieri don’t normally deal in my territory, so if something needs sorting out on this side, I’ll help. But only if Lance is the one to bring it to my attention. The shipments arriving in two days are illegal girls being brought over from Europe, and the Cavalieri need to get onto the docks that I control.
All they need are a few hours to get the girls out, and soon enough, the asshole who thinks he can encroach on my land will face the consequences. My men will stand as back up. Even though I know Arthur’s men can handle it, my team will always be on standby.
The moment we pull up to the house, I can feel the tension radiating from Sofía. I want to talk to her, to find out what she and Giuliana spoke about, but when I step out of the car, my phone rings, and I have to take the call.
Javier escorts her inside, and I answer, “What?”
“Your whore needs to be delivered, Victor.” I sigh, knowing his demands are unfounded. I should’ve taken her to him tonight, but Javier’s words sunk into my heart, deeply rooted, and I reconsidered.
“She’s claimed,” I inform him. “You want revenge on someone, come for me, asshole, because you’re not getting Sofía.” I hang up, knowing I’ve just pissed the fucker off, but he can’t have her. I’ve decided she’s mine, and tonight, I’m going to claim her.
Making my way into the house, I pass my office and head right for her bedroom. I find her pulling on a small tank top that does nothing to hide her ample tits and those pointed nipples that are hard.
I move toward her without a word. The moment I’m inches from her, I cup her cheeks in my hands and hold her head steady. “You’re mine. I’m done trying to figure this shit out,” I tell her and crash my mouth to hers.
When she doesn’t push me away, my hands trail down to the hem of the top she’s just pulled on and I tug her free of the material. Next to disappear are her sweatpants, and her panties follow.
“Sit on that bed and spread your pretty legs for me,” I tell her, as I shrug off my jacket. She obeys without hesitation, and my cock throbs. He’s ready for the party, and soon enough, I’m standing in front of her with only my boxer briefs on. She watches me as I step closer to her.
“What happened to your body?” she asks sadly, as her eyes drink in every scar I have marring my torso. The silver reminders of fights I’ve been in are just another thing I don’t want to talk about tonight.
“Not now, juguete,” I tell her. “It’s time for me to finally claim you.” It’s a promise. I shove my boxers down and fist my dick. I’m so hard, it’s as if I’m holding onto solid steel. Her eyes widen, her mouth pops open, and I smile. “On your knees, I want those lips swallowing my dick first,” I tell her.
A soft blush turns her cheeks dark, but she obeys with a smile on her face, and the moment her mouth engulfs me, I have to bite down on my lower lip to keep from coming too soon. She’s perfection. Sofía works my dick, moving back and forth over the shaft, as she gags when I hit the back of her throat.
I’m tempted to fuck her harder, but I fist my hands to keep from hurting her. For the first time in a long while, I allow a woman to take control. Every flick of her tongue makes my body shudder with desire so fierce that I feel it right down to my very fucking soul.
I feel my balls draw up, and I have to pull her off my cock before I fill her mouth with my release. “Enough. You’re far too good at that.” I speak in a low voice, and she blushes at my compliment.
I don’t know what this woman is doing to me, but I can’t let her go now. At first, I wanted her for a short time to toy with her, but right now, I want to bind her to my bed.
“Lie back, sweetheart,” I tell her. “It’s time my dick made acquaintance with your pretty pussy.” She slides onto the mattress, and I stalk her, crawling up her body until my mouth is hovering over her cunt.
My fingers taunt her gently, stroking up and down her smooth entrance, and I use my thumb and forefinger to open her to my gaze. Leaning in, I lap at her, my tongue darting into her wet heat, and I devour her as if she were my dessert and it was the last thing that I’d ever be able to eat.
Her hands fist in my hair, pulling and tugging me closer. Soft whimpers and mewls are my soundtrack as I lick her sweet cunt until she’s spasming around my tongue and her thighs shake as she screams out her orgasm.
I allow my fingers to enter her slowly, opening her, as I fuck her with my fingers until she’s on the edge again. Her core is soaked, and I know she’s finally ready. I know I fucking am. I crawl up her body, hovering over her, I hold myself up on my forearms, and I reach down with one hand and line myself up with her entrance.
“Uhm…” she mumbles, causing me to still for a moment, my gaze locked on hers. “I’ve… Do you...?” Her cheeks darken, but I know what she’s asking.
“I’ve never been with a woman without a condom,” I confess to her. “This,” — I smile at her — “Is the first time I will feel the warmth without anything between us.”
She nods slowly. “I want to trust you, but...” Her words slam me right in the chest, a pang so hard, so brutal, it steals the breath right from my lungs. I’ve never wanted a woman to trust me more than her, but I understand her worry.
I move over her, reaching for the drawer in the nightstand, I pull out the foil packet. Ripping it open with my teeth, I take the rubber and sheath myself. One day, I’ll take her bare, and until then, I’ll give her what she needs.
“Are you ready, juguete?”
“Yes, Diablo.” She smiles, a shy, seductive grin that makes every nerve in my body come alive. I slide in slowly, her body opening to accommodate my size. She’s so fucking tight, it’s like fucki
ng her virginity away all over again.
I sink into her heat, feeling every pulse of her slick walls as I dip into her. Once I’m fully seated, I still for a moment and watch her face as it contorts in pain, then pleasure, when I circle her clit.
“Can I… Can I feel you without…?” Once again, Sofía’s shyness doesn’t turn me off, not even an ounce. My dick is harder than it’s ever been.
I slide out of her, watching the wince on her face, and I tug the condom off. “Are you sure?” I ask her, knowing she was apprehensive before.
Her wide eyes lock on mine, and she nods. “Yes, I want to feel you.” I don’t know why she’s putting her trust in me right now, but I don’t argue. I slide back in, gritting my teeth so hard, I’m sure they’re about to crack.
I slowly thrust, in, out, and in again. Her smoothness, her heat, her slick walls hug my cock, pulling me into her, deeper, until I’m hissing through clenched teeth. “Stop fucking pulsing,” I bite out, even though I know she can’t help it, but I’m so close to coming, and I want to savor this for as long as I can.
“I-I-I can’t, Victor,” she moans, as I pull out and slide back in. Her body is sucking me in much like her mouth did moments ago, and I have to breathe deeply to calm my raging orgasm. I’m on the precipice, but I can’t come yet.
My mouth latches onto her nipple, and I suck it hard, biting down until she’s squealing, which only makes her cunt tighten around my cock even more, and I groan as pleasure zips up and down my spine.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she mumbles incoherently, as I attack her other nipple and bite down, earning me her nails digging into my shoulders as I bring her to a toe-curling orgasm. Once she’s soaked my dick in her juices, I fuck her hard.
My hips move so fast, I lose track of how many times I pull out and slam back in. I can’t hold back. Her body feels so good.
“Yes, yes, please, Victor,” she calls out, as I slam back in one last time and empty myself deep inside her. It’s the first time in my life I’ve fucked someone without protection. If it were any other woman, I would be racing to buy the morning after pill. But with Sofía, I don’t want to.
* * *
She lies on the bed, ruffled within the sheets, looking innocent. But that’s because she is. I took the one thing she’s held onto all this time, with my fingers, then with my cock. I’ve claimed her, and I don’t feel an ounce of guilt. I’m an asshole, and I want her to only want me.
The room is thick with tension when she scoots up, her body covered. I wish I could rip the sheets away from her and stare at her all night. To take in every inch of her caramel skin, to lick and taste her, but I merely stand at the foot of her bed, staring at her wide eyes.
There are so many things I want to do to her right now—bind her to my bed, explore her curves, suck on her nipples, make them hard as I graze my teeth along the buds, and taste her sweet cunt once more.
“I want you,” I tell her with raw honesty. It flays me open, baring my very heart and soul to her, both are black as night, filled with demons from my past.
“What happened between us was a mistake,” she tells me. “I can’t… I mean, that can’t happen again.” The conviction in her tone makes me chuckle. It’s as if she thinks she has a choice. She doesn’t.
“Listen to me, juguete,” I utter. “You belong to me. And if you think for one moment, after I’ve tasted your sweet virtue, that I’m letting you go,” I pause, tipping my head to the side as I regard her. “Then you’re sorely mistaken.”
Spinning on my heel, I head out the door, shutting it behind me, I lock it and make my way down to the office. She bangs on the bedroom door, calling my name, but I ignore her. With every step I take, the sound gets fainter, and soon, I can’t hear her any more.
I need a smoke. Time to think about what I’m going to do with my little Sofía.
“Victor,” Javi utters, when I stalk into my office. He’s sitting on the sofa, his cigar filling the room with the scent of cherries. I don’t know why he smokes when all he enjoys are those fucking flavored sorry excuses for cigars.
“What are you doing here?”
“We have a job to go to,” he informs me.
Glancing at the clock, I note the time. “It’s midnight, Javi,” I tell him, flopping into my chair, pinning him with glare.
“Is that code for you want to stay home and fuck your princepessa?” he chuckles, the sound grating on my nerves, not because it’s him, but because of what he just said. There’s another reason that’s turning me into a raging asshole right now and it all has to do with the woman I just fucked and owned. The fact that she thinks I’m about to let her walk out of here, that I’m not already enamored, and stupidly so.
I want her.
“You were right,” I tell Javier, “she’s under my skin, she’s so deeply rooted, I’m not sure I can get her out. Not anymore.” My words still him, and I know I should’ve kept it to myself until I figured out what the fuck I’m doing, but Javi is my sanity.
“There’s nothing wrong with feeling something for somebody, Boss,” he tells me, forcing me to turn to him and regard his honesty like it’s a beacon in the night. As much as I want to admit that he’s right, something niggles at me. I’m not sure what it is.
This emotion is foreign to me.
I feel as if I’m back in high school, ruling over the cafeteria, and a new girl walks in, trying to steal the limelight, and I gladly allow her to have it. But this time, I don’t want her to leave, I want her to stay by my side.
“Please tell me you have someone I can kill,” I plead with my best friend. If there’s one thing I know that can save me even for a short while, it’s taking the life of an asshole who deserves it.
“New dealer in town, attempted an attack on one of our guys,” Javi tells me.
Smiling at the thought, I tell him, “I think it’s time we made a spectacle of the asshole. I need the violence to distract me from the feelings that are coursing through me right now.”
He’s right, we need to make sure others don’t attempt the same thing. Our streets are just that—ours. “Sounds like a plan. Give me ten minutes, I’ll meet you at the garage.” He nods and leaves. I consider going to Sofía, telling her I’m leaving, but instead, I call on Valentina and ask her to take some tea and coffee to my girl with a note.
I think we need space for now. At least, I know I do.
But when I return, we will talk.
23
Sofía
After Valentina left the tray on my vanity, I sipped the tea while sitting at the window. Victor’s note was scrawled in his beautiful script, and I wondered just what we needed to talk about. I’m fighting my emotions, there’s a war raging inside me, and I don’t know who’s about to win.
I lower my feet to the soft, plush carpet and make my way to the door, expecting to find it locked. When it isn’t, I pull it open and step out into the hallway. The house is so big, it could be a castle.
My feet pad over the softness that leads me down the hallways, and into various rooms. I push every door open, taking in the bedrooms that are all furnished beautifully, with dark woods and cherry carpets.
The king ruling a kingdom.
A home fit for royalty.
And I’m one of the mere subjects.
I find one room on the far end of the house that’s breathtaking in its beauty. There are low hanging chandeliers made of black glass. The full moon shines through the floor-to-ceiling window, allowing a dim illumination to bathe the area in silvery light.
Against one wall is a baby grand, the same piano that stood in the store I worked in. And my heart thuds against my rib cage when I recall the moment I first laid eyes on Victor. It feels like it was months ago now, but it was merely a week ago.
How things can change over the course of a few days.
How can a man go from being beautiful, to evil, to attractive again in such a short amount of time? My heart feels as if it’s swinging on a pendulum, back a
nd forth. Between my hate and newfound attraction, I’m torn. I want nothing more to do with him, but then I think about how he feels inside me, how he makes me feel when he’s around me, and I can’t deny there’s something between us.
I’m magnetized by the man who seems to want me as well. I didn’t expect it. I thought he would’ve sent me away after our evening together. He finally got what he wanted; he stole the one thing I promised myself I wouldn’t offer—my heart—and he doesn’t even know it yet.
I settle on the small bench seat, my fingers hovering over the keys, as I close my eyes and allow them to dance over the ebony and ivory. The tinkling sounds of a melody take shape as I recall a song from memory.
The room swirls around me, I feel as if I’m on a spinning coaster that’s never going to stop. I hear nothing but the keys as they taunt me with the ghost of my mother, of how she used to sit beside me at the store and play.
She was my everything.
She taught me all I knew, and now that she’s gone, my papá is all I have left. I move with the song, as soon as it comes to an end, a new one starts. Again and again, I play and play until my fingers are numb and I can no longer keep my tears at bay.
The moment silence enters the room once more, it’s broken by the clapping from the doorway. Victor stands, leaning against the door frame, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows, blood splattered on his shirt, but he doesn’t seem to care.
He looks equal parts man and monster. But I can’t deny he’s handsome in his violence. His angular jaw is dark with two-day old stubble, his eyes glow with satisfaction and danger, and his mouth curls handsomely into a grin that makes me squirm where I’m seated.
He closes the distance between us and stops the moment he reaches the piano. Golden orbs pin me to the spot, and I can’t move as Victor watches me. I don’t know where he’s been, but it looks like vengeance was exacted.