Corrupt Empire Series: A Dark Romance Boxset

by Sarah Bailey

  He shifted back. I didn’t want to stop. We’d come this far. He pressed more lube inside me before I felt his cock. He gripped my hip with one hand and pressed against me. My body locked up against the intrusion.

  “Avery, you need to breathe.”

  I hadn’t realised I was holding my breath. When I released it, everything happened at once. The sharp sting as he slipped inside me. His grunt a mixture of pleasure and pain. And my yelp as I gripped the covers.

  I gulped down oxygen.

  Holy hell.

  “It feels weird,” I whispered.

  “Are you in pain?”

  “No.”

  It didn’t hurt, not really. I always expected it to, but he’d taken care of me. Made sure I was ready first. His breath fanned across my face as he moved closer and kissed my cheek.

  “Thank you, princess.”

  “For what?”

  “For letting me fuck you here. For coming home. For caring for me and most of all, for loving me.”

  My heart felt so tight. All my emotions threatened to burst out. I reached down and put my hand over where his was on my hip.

  “We belong together.”

  He kissed my cheek again, pressing a little deeper inside me. He let me adjust to it each time as he gave me more. I felt so full. Aiden wasn’t exactly small. I had no idea if I could take it all.

  “You’re so fucking tight.”

  He pulled back a little before thrusting in again and starting to build a slow, steady pace. My hand and his fell between my legs. His fingers circled my clit, eliciting a moan from me.

  Whilst the sensation of him fucking me there was still a little strange, I couldn’t help but press back.

  “Aiden,” I groaned. “Fuck me harder.”

  I could feel his cock pressing deeper as he did as I asked. The pleasure began to overtake everything else. I thrust back against him, needing more.

  “Do you like this?”

  “Yes. Don’t stop.”

  “Mmm, look at you taking it so well. You feel incredible.”

  His fingers left my clit and instead, he plunged them inside my pussy. I bucked against him.

  “So fucking wet. I can tell you’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

  I moaned. His cock pressed deeper and harder along with his fingers.

  “Tell me.”

  My voice stuck in my throat.

  “Tell me, princess. I want to hear how much you love this.”

  “Aiden…”

  “Say it.”

  “I love you fucking me there. Please don’t stop.”

  He growled, biting down on my earlobe. The heel of Aiden’s palm rubbed against my clit as he fucked my pussy with his fingers.

  It all exploded inside me at once. I cried out. He cursed. I rode the wave of pleasure, clenching around him. It fizzled in my blood, spreading through my veins.

  Holy fuck.

  The overload of sensations made it impossible to breathe. I could’ve sworn sparks formed in my vision. It was almost like an out of body experience except I could feel every single one of my nerves tingling.

  He grunted. I felt his cock pulsating and him press deeper as he came too.

  My world changed in that moment. Our hearts beat as one. Our souls bonded together. All of our feelings exposed and raw. Perhaps it was the alcohol or maybe it was just happiness, I didn’t really care. All I knew is Aiden gave me something no one else had. Freedom and acceptance for who I really was inside. The girl who needed to give the man she loved everything because she’d chosen to submit herself entirely to him. Aiden saw me before I knew who I really was. And I fell deeper in love with him. He was a permanent mark on my heart. One I’d never be free of.

  When I finally took a breath, my heart raced out of control and if I hadn’t already been lying down, I would’ve collapsed. My body felt like jelly. I could hear his harsh breath on my ear as he panted.

  “That was…”

  “Fucking amazing,” he finished for me.

  Despite how wonderful he’d made it feel, there was a nagging question in the back of my mind.

  “Why did you change your mind?”

  “I’m finding it increasingly difficult to say no to you, princess. And I’ll be honest, I wanted you so fucking much. I hated not being able to touch you in the ways I wanted with your friends being here.”

  I smiled. I wasn’t the only one suffering from the need to fuck. Aiden was like drugs. I was well and truly addicted to the feelings he gave me.

  “I’m sleepy now.”

  He chuckled, pulling away. I crawled out of bed, very unsteady on my feet and made it to the bathroom. On the way back, I realised I was more than a little sore. Whilst he’d been careful, both of us had gotten a little carried away in the moment.

  Crawling back into bed, Aiden held me close and kissed me.

  “I love you,” I whispered.

  “My heart is yours, princess.”

  In his own way, Aiden just told me he loved me too.

  I didn’t need those three words.

  All I needed was him and me.

  Always.

  Chapter Six

  Aiden

  “Hello Uncle Charlie.”

  The fact she was even alone with that cocksucker made my skin itch and my blood boil. Avery was my fucking woman and if that prick ever tried to lay a hand on her again, he’d find himself minus a limb.

  I wanted to throw the laptop out the car window, but I wouldn’t. I promised her I’d be with her every step of the way. Not physically but watching over her. Making sure if anything happened, I could be there to protect her.

  The aching need to have her in my arms almost overrode all my senses. She’d given me everything. New Year’s had cemented us together completely. She’d given me the last part of her innocence, her virginity. And I fucking loved her even more for it.

  I remembered the way it felt to be inside her. The heat. The tightness. How she’d told me to fuck her harder. And most of all, how we’d both come apart entirely together. There were no more places to hide. I saw her and she saw me.

  I still hadn’t managed to tell her I loved her, but I’d given her my heart all the same. She knew how I felt without words. And that’s exactly why she felt safe knowing I had my eyes on her and Chuck.

  Fucking Chuck.

  Her uncle stared at her as the colour seeped out of his skin. I could see them from three different angles and the tiny camera Avery wore in the pin on the lapel of her blazer.

  She stood tall and proud, facing down her uncle like he was her adversary. And in a way, that’s exactly what he was. Killer heels, a black skirt which hugged her figure, a navy blouse under her black blazer. Her dark hair tied back in a low bun. Every inch the businesswoman she needed to be. And the sight of her made me shift uncomfortably in the car seat, my cock straining against my trousers. I wanted to bend her over her uncle’s desk, pull up her skirt and fuck her senseless.

  Whilst we’d finally had anal on New Year’s, she’d yet to agree to it again. I knew she’d been sore afterwards. I saw it in her eyes. I didn’t want to hurt her but being inside her and her pleas to fuck her made me abandon my gentleness. Whilst Avery, my beautiful, strong and effortlessly sexy girlfriend, didn’t resent me for it, I knew she needed time. And I wasn’t being a dick and taking what I wanted. I was trying to be a better man for her. Only for her.

  We’d discussed what to do about her family over and over. We didn’t have a solid plan, but she had to accept her place as the head of the company she had come to despise. She had to go back out into the real world. I couldn’t keep her hidden away any longer. I took what Tina said to me seriously. I’d asked Avery what she wanted to do. I told her she was under no obligation to help me with her family. Avery wanted to go after them. She wanted to fix this mess.

  My original plan wouldn’t work now she knew everything. I’d taken out Mitchell so that
made things easier. They were all on edge because of it. Whilst our plan wasn’t solid, we had to start by making sure we kept Chuck in line. And that began with this conversation.

  “You’re back,” Chuck said.

  “Yes. I’m here to take what belongs to me.”

  “So, you think after being missing for three months, you can waltz back in here and demand the company be handed over to you?”

  Avery didn’t flinch. She stared at Chuck with unnerving intensity. Just as she had done to me in the first days when I’d kept her in the cell.

  “Legally speaking, it belongs to me. I suggest you don’t make this hard on yourself.”

  “Where the fuck have you been all this time?”

  “Where? Did Dad not tell you what he had installed in my house?”

  That little piece of knowledge she’d granted me when we’d come up with a story to explain her disappearance.

  Chuck raised an eyebrow, his brown eyes full of unconcealed irritation. He wasn’t happy with his niece’s reappearance, nor the way she was speaking to him.

  “No. Are you going to enlighten me?”

  “The basement contains a bunker or you could call it a panic room. Either way, it has supplies to last a year. Don’t be disappointed you didn’t know, it isn’t on the building plans. As far as the world knows, it doesn’t exist.”

  She was more resourceful than I gave her credit for. We’d visited her house together last week. She lived on the ground floor and there was a tenant above her. One who happened to be out of the country. And that bunker was very real. Her father had spared no expense in protecting his daughter. It was a fortress. Impenetrable. And full of everything she could need to live comfortably.

  Chuck’s eyebrows knitted together.

  “And how did you manage that little stunt with the video?”

  At least he hadn’t questioned the bunker. He knew Mitchell would never have left his daughter vulnerable. Despite their power, they had enemies too.

  “I paid someone in cash to help me. How they managed to make it go viral is a question I didn’t ask.”

  My princess knew exactly what Chuck would ask. She had the answers. The truth woven into the lies she told.

  Where the fuck had she been all my life? The very thing I never knew I needed or wanted. I’d been right about her helping me tear down her family. My secret weapon. I just hadn’t realised it would be something we did together as partners. I still controlled so many aspects of our relationship, but this was different. This was about righting wrongs. And she’d be the face of their destruction whilst I orchestrated their downfall from the shadows.

  Chuck shifted, walking over to his desk and sitting down. Avery stayed where she was, watching her uncle expressionlessly. I saw the fire in her eyes. The hatred. He wouldn’t read it because he didn’t know her like I did.

  “Have you informed the police?”

  “No. You’re welcome to call them. If they want me to explain myself, they can come here and ask me. In the meantime, I want a meeting with the board and the company transferred into my hands.”

  “What makes you think I will answer to your demands?”

  She splayed out her hands.

  “Firstly, the company is mine by law. You know Dad made it ironclad. And secondly, if you don’t, it will only take one interview from me to ruin you entirely.”

  His face fell.

  “You wouldn’t.”

  “Wouldn’t I, Uncle Charlie? I don’t care if the world knows your sick twisted fantasies.”

  His fist curled on the desk. I froze. He better not fucking lay a hand on her.

  “You’re bluffing.”

  “Are you sure you want to test that theory? Or do you want the world to know you like little girls?”

  Seconds ticked by as niece and uncle stared at each other. A battle of wills. I knew who’d break.

  “Fine. I’ll call the board and the police.”

  “Thank you.”

  He rolled his eyes, flattening his palm on the desk.

  “You have to do one thing for me.”

  “What would that be?”

  He rose from the desk, walking around it and coming to stand in front of her. He was half a head taller than her even in her heels. He gripped her by the chin and turned her head to the side. Rage boiled inside me.

  How fucking dare he touch her. I would fucking rip his balls off.

  “Explain to me how the fuck you came to have a tattoo of an A behind your ear.”

  Avery took a step back, wrenching out of his grasp. She put her hand over the back of her neck, covering it from view.

  The still-healing tattoo. The one which marked her as mine. My cock jerked at the knowledge I’d branded her and sent her out in the world to be my weapon.

  She wore the mark of their enemy.

  Just as I’d given her the necklace with an A, which she never took off, I gave her this too.

  And no one would know because she shared something with me.

  My initial.

  ~~~

  Two Weeks Prior

  I held her hand as we walked up the street. She didn’t know where we were going. Our breath misted in the cold air. I’d made sure she wrapped up warm, her face hidden within her jacket hood.

  I was equal parts nervous and happy about what would happen next. Avery needed to do something for me, but I wasn’t quite sure if she’d say yes. Even after what we’d shared together only a few days ago.

  I gave her a chance to see her other best friend. And she’d finally allowed me to have what I’d coveted from the moment I knew I wanted her. Now, I needed to take another first from her.

  Reaching the shop, I pushed open the door before she had a chance to look up at the sign. She’d know soon enough.

  Ben looked up from where he was perched on his stool. A grin spread across his face.

  “Shithead.”

  “All right?” I replied, smiling back.

  Avery flipped down her hood and looked between us, realisation dawning on her face.

  Ben stood up and took a few steps toward us. I let go of Avery’s hand and half hugged him. When we drew apart, his eyes fell on my girl.

  “Ben, this is Avery.”

  He stuck his hand out to her.

  “Nice to meet you.”

  She shook his hand.

  “You too.”

  Then she turned to me, eyes narrowing.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  I shrugged. I meant to, but I liked surprising her. Besides, I’d only just worked up the courage to actually introduce her to my best friend and the man I thought of as family. And telling him I had a girlfriend had been a conversation that landed me with a tirade of abuse about how I’d always told him I never wanted to be shackled to a woman. We’d both laughed it off, but I hoped he saw what I did when I looked at Avery. She offered me the world and I wanted to bow at her feet. My goddess who I really didn’t deserve. None of that mattered. I was hers and she was mine.

  Ben grinned, shrugging.

  “He keeps everyone in the dark. I wouldn’t worry too much about it.”

  “How’s Skye and bump?” I asked.

  “Honestly, mate, I’m glad to be out of the house. Pregnancy has made her grumpy as fuck.”

  I stifled a laugh. Skye was formidable enough as it was. She had to be to put up with Ben day in, day out.

  “When is she due?” Avery asked.

  “A month or so. If it was anyone else but Aiden, I doubt she’d let me come to the shop today.”

  Avery’s eyes screamed ‘why are we at his tattoo shop rather than visiting their house’ at me. I reached for her hand.

  “You want to ask me something?”

  She let me take it, moving closer. Ben sat back on his stool and started fiddling with the ink pots and his gun. The bastard knew I hadn’t asked her yet. We were here for me, but also for her.

 
“You… I know what you want and you should’ve asked me long before we came here,” she hissed.

  “Princess, don’t be upset.”

  I knew it was the wrong thing to say the moment her doe eyes flashed with anger.

  “I tolerate a lot of things from you, but not telling me you want me to get a tattoo, that crosses a line.”

  Tolerate? Did she think that was acceptable to say to me? Fucking hell. Sometimes she really pushed my fucking buttons.

  I tugged her further away from Ben.

  “What the fuck does that mean?” I said, keeping my voice low.

  “It means you put me through a lot of crap, Aiden, and I accept it, but you can’t order me to permanently mark my skin for you.”

  I hadn’t even told her what I wanted yet. It wasn’t what she thought. I took a breath. Getting into a fight wasn’t needed today and especially not in front of Ben. I really wished she’d stop testing me all the time. I supposed it was my own fault for falling in love with a girl with such a deadly temper on her. One which matched my own.

  “If you let me explain…”

  “Fine. Just don’t expect me to say yes.”

  I’d upset her. Even though I knew she appreciated me introducing her to someone important to me, she was pissed as hell too. I didn’t blame her, even though it grated on me she immediately got annoyed before I’d even had a chance to tell her exactly what I wanted. I pushed her just as hard as she pushed me.

  “I want us to wear each other’s initial, princess. Just a single A. You choose where I wear yours and I decide where you wear mine. This isn’t about me wanting to mark you. It’s about us. Together. As a couple.”

  Her doe eyes searched mine for the longest time. She looked confused at first but then her features morphed into understanding.

  She turned my hand upwards in hers. Her fingers traced a line over my right wrist which wasn’t yet inked.

  “Here.”

  My heart slammed against my ribcage. I didn’t care where she wanted it. I’d gladly wear her name on my skin. I belonged to her.

  “You want it there?”

  She nodded. Agreement. She just fucking said yes to me yet again. Every time I thought I asked too much, she always managed to surprise me with her acceptance of my needs. My desires. How much more would I take from this girl?