Monster's Claim

by Winter Sloane

  Next time, he planned to fuck her bareback, without any condom in the way. After claiming her pussy, he’d take her ass, he decided.

  Much better, he thought, rolling off her to lie by her side. She snuggled close to him, smearing her tits, marked with his cum, over his chest.

  Lara giggled. “We’re making a mess all over your sheets.”

  “They can be easily changed,” he said in a dismissive tone.

  He wanted to feel her body curled up against him, but decided it might apply too much pressure on her injured leg. They didn’t speak for a few seconds. Matthias didn’t mind the silence. He imprinted this moment in his head forever and wondered if there could be more.

  There would be, he decided. The Familia couldn’t let Lara go, might even consider her collateral damage after he retrieved all the information they needed from her, but he’d intervened. Hell, Matthias would fight until his last breath to keep her. Marco owed him for all those stolen years he had to live in darkness. He’d soon come to collect that debt.

  Emerging from that torture room had changed him, breaking something vital inside of him. It turned him into a twisted and scarred monster. Matthias didn’t think he could ever feel this way again, much less love again, until her.

  She rested her head against his shoulder. He reached for her fingers and gave them a squeeze.

  “What are you thinking of?” he asked.

  “About what’s going to happen next.”

  “I’ll make sure you’re safe. You’re mine now, Lara. Nothing and no one will harm you.”

  Lara suddenly sat up, eyes wide. “I can help you. I only thought of it now, but maybe I can reach out to Skip.”

  He frowned. “You mean pose as bait.”

  “That’s it. I don’t know if he’ll appear, but at least it’s something, right?”

  “That’s a dangerous suggestion. Putting you in harm’s way is not an option,” he firmly said, sitting up.

  She crossed her arms over those tempting breasts. Another surge of possessiveness filled him as he eyed the drying cum on her skin. Lara blushed.

  “When you look at me like that, I don’t know what to feel,” she said.

  “Having second thoughts about belonging to this monster?” he asked, teasing her.

  She shook her head. “It’s new to me, someone genuinely wanting me the way you do. You’re so intense sometimes, but I think I don’t mind. If it’s you, it’s fine.”

  He raised her fingers to his lips and kissed them. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you. The answer is still no.”

  She pouted at him. Cute, he thought, as she took her fingers back from his grip.

  “Matthias, I’m not joking. This isn’t a ploy to escape or anything like that. I genuinely want to be in your family’s good graces. To help. After all, I also want Skip to get what he deserves.”

  He considered her words. Matthias knew with absolute certainty she wouldn’t betray him. Lara had no one, nothing to lose, but she had him on her side now.

  “My family ordered me to stalk you, kidnap you,” Matthias reminded her.

  “I know that, but I can’t change the past, and besides, if you didn’t take me captive, I wouldn’t have met you. I think that trumps everything else.”

  Matthias pulls her towards him for a kiss, this one sweet and tender. Just when she thought a man like him didn’t do soft, he kept surprising her.

  “If we do this, we’ll do it right,” Matthias finally said. “I’ll have a talk with my brother. After we get Skip, you’re no longer in danger. You can leave this house.”

  Lara widened her eyes and held her breath. Wait. What was Matthias implying?

  Matthias gathered her hands in his. “I planned to keep you, never intended to let you go, but you deserve better. I’ll convince my brother, the Familia to leave you the hell alone.”

  What the hell? After everything, did he really had the balls to say those words? Did he really think he was doing her some kind of favor?

  “No, Matthias. That’s not what I want,” Lara blurted, biting on her lower lip. God. Sometimes, this man infuriated her. “Can’t you see? You’ve plucked me from my old life and thrust me into this one. Then you made me fall for you. Now you want me gone?”

  Lara didn’t realize she was yelling or punching at his shoulder, until he gripped her wrists again. Then the bastard stole a kiss from her, real, rough, and merciless. Lara needed a couple of seconds to remember how to breathe again as he pulled away. Matthias reached out, tucking one short strand of hair that got in her face.

  “I made that offer, knowing what you’d say. I don’t need torture. I know you’re already mine.”

  Lara blew out a breath. “Was that a test?”

  “There’s no need to get angry, little bird. You’ve dug your hooks deep in me, too. I needed to know you’re staying out of your own free will.”

  “So, you’ll let me help you in finding Skip?” she finally asked.

  Matthias nodded. “I don’t like it, but it’ll speed up cleaning this mess. Then we can finally focus on what to do with the rest of our lives.”

  Her heart sped up at those words. “I’d like that.”

  Chapter Ten

  “What kind of magic does this woman possess that she managed to wrap you around her little finger, brother?”

  The moment those words came out of Marco’s mouth, Matthias wanted to punch him in the face. He didn’t care if they were in Paolo’s, that the other tables were occupied by other members of the Familia. No doubt everyone was curious as to what their meeting was about. Matthias hadn’t made an appearance in their father’s restaurant for years, but everyone there probably knew who he was.

  Realizing he touched the handle of the butter knife next to his plate, Matthias let it go. Violence didn’t solve anything, not in this situation. Paolo’s wasn’t his dungeon. It was Marco’s playground. He noticed even the older Mafiosi, those loyal to their father like Gino, eyed their interaction in the background, despite pretending to play cards. None of the men made a move. They didn’t dare to. They were probably uncertain which side to take, because they were both sons of the old boss. Marco might be the head of the family now and that meant power, but Matthias was the bogeyman of the Familia. Those who didn’t respect him, feared him, and fear was as good as respect in his opinion.

  Matthias took deep breaths, trying to cull his anger, but fuck. He’d been the Familia’s best torturer for years.

  “Do you think I’m so weak-minded that I’d let anyone do that to me?” he asked his brother in a careful voice.

  Marco lighted a smoke and regarded him. Matthias could see it in his brother’s eyes. Marco was about to tell him to fuck off. He knew how this meeting would go down. Marco didn’t like being told what do to. Like him, his brother liked being in control far too much.

  If Matthias didn’t tidy up this loose end, then Marco would send someone else to end Lara’s life. It was a good thing he’d left Lara back at home with Sky. Even if Marco sent his men to his house, they wouldn’t dare make a move, not with their pregnant adoptive sister there.

  Matthias had no other weapon on him. His knife and his guns were confiscated before the meeting, one of the iron-clad rules of the Familia when meeting with the boss. Conversations faded away. Matthias could do plenty of damage with a single butter knife and would be able to position that pathetic blade against his brother’s throat before anyone knew what was happening, especially when most of them remain conflicted about what to do.

  He didn’t intend to kill Marco. Matthias wasn’t that crazy. If he did that, he and Lara would be hunted down by the Familia for the rest of their lives. Despite his issues with his brother, the anger he felt all those years for taking Marco’s place and falling under the torturer’s knife, Marco was still his brother. Blood.

  Always and forever. Their father taught them that. Family above everything else, but Matthias would break all those rules for the woman he loved. He understood where Mar
co was coming from. That if their positions were reversed, he might also question his brother’s sanity. No one fell in love that easily, but Matthias knew the moment he sighted Lara that she was born to be his. He finally found a woman who saw past his scars, someone who accepted all his flawed, dark parts.

  “Matthias, it's been such a long time,” a voice interrupted.

  Seeing their father, Matthias let go of the knife. Giovanni might be retired, but the old man always had sharp eyes. Giovanni placed one hand over his fingers, the ones that held the knife.

  “Won’t you give your father a hug?” Giovanni asked with a smile.

  Matthias stood and awkwardly embraced his father, slightly taken aback when Giovanni patted his back and pulled up a chair to join them.

  “Now, I don’t want to see my two boys arguing,” Giovanni said, waving over a Familia member. “Double espresso, Jon. Thank you.”

  “Father, you don’t need to interfere,” Marco said tightly.

  “I might be retired as the family head, but I’m still the Familia’s consigliere,” Giovanni said simply.

  Jon returned with Giovanni’s espresso. Their father lifted the cup and took a sip, eyeing them both. Matthias could remember all those times in their childhood Giovanni had sat them both down for a talk when they were about to fight. They were no longer kids however, but selfish adults.

  “I assume this meeting is about that woman, Lara.”

  Matthias gritted his teeth. “Not you, too. I intend to keep her, no matter what the Familia says.”

  Giovanni raised an eyebrow at him. “I’ve spoken with Ryker and Sky. Sky seems to have nothing but good things to say about your woman, Matthias.”

  “Father,” Marco said tightly. “This woman knows too much, has seen Matthias’s dungeon. Faces of Familia members she could identify to the police.”

  “Lara won’t do that,” he said.

  “So sure of that, brother?”

  “Being the boss, has made you paranoid, Marco.”

  “Enough arguing. Marco, you have other important business matters to attend to. Besides, I don’t need to remind you, that Matthias is your brother. Show him some respect. Matthias, I will speak to Lara and decide for myself whether she lives or dies.”

  Matthias glowered at his old man, but his father’s word was still law. Besides, he told himself, at least Giovanni hadn’t signed off Lara’s execution. If the worst did come to pass, Matthias formulated a plan B in his head as Marco left the table in a huff and Giovanni finished his coffee.

  The decision would gut him. Family was everything to him, but if it came to it, he’d take Lara and leave town. Even if they had to spend the rest of their lives running, he’d do everything in his power to keep her safe.

  ****

  “Here, let me do that,” Lara said quickly, taking the teapot from Sky’s hands. She poured them both tea. Her leg still ached, but it was more of an annoyance than anything else. It felt like she had a sprained ankle all the time.

  “Thanks. Don’t worry so much. Matthias will come through,” Sky said. The other woman offered her a plate of chocolate chip cookies, which she accepted.

  “I don’t know,” Lara admitted. “His brother wants me gone, I think. Matthias is the only one standing between me and my death.”

  Goosebumps appeared on her arms at those words. Lara wasn’t ready to die. For once in her life, she wanted something so bad, a future with Matthias.

  “Marco?” Sky scoffed. “Think of Marco as a bully, a control freak who likes everything his way. Believe me, he didn’t like me either when Ryker introduced me to the Familia.”

  “Both Matthias and Marco have that in common, liking control I mean,” Lara said. Except, she liked it when Matthias took the lead in the bedroom.

  “Ryker’s like that, too. All the men in the Familia are.”

  “You were fifteen when Ryker and you met, right?” she asked, intrigued by the other woman’s story.

  Sky didn’t elaborate on her past, but Lara could guess she’d been in a bad place before Ryker saved her.

  “That’s right. Look, Marco’s not all that bad,” Sky said quickly. “Give Marco time. I didn’t think I could ever like him at first either. Still Marco and everyone else in the Severin Familia, they’re the family I’ve never had.”

  “That sounds nice.” Lara couldn’t keep the envy out of her voice. “Having a family who has your back I mean.”

  Sky reached over, patted her arm, sympathetic look in her eyes. The front door opened, then closed. She gave Sky a panicked look.

  “Relax, Lara. Matthias and Ryker left two of their guys standing watch outside. You’ll be safe, I promise.”

  “Don’t make promises you can’t keep yet, daughter,” said a new, cultured male voice.

  Lara warily turned her gaze to the two men who appeared in the kitchen. Relief washed over her, seeing Matthias. She wanted to leap at him and put her arms around him for a hug. It was the older man who caught her interest. The stranger was as tall as Matthias, wore a tailored dark grey suit and blue tie, his dark hair peppered with white, but it was his icy blue eyes that gave her pause.

  Lara didn’t know what it was about him, but instinct told her no one crossed this man and lived. She also glimpsed more suited men, hovering in the living room. She didn’t miss the way Matthias kept clenching and unclenching his fists by his side.

  Just who was this stranger, that he was capable of unhinging her man?

  “Giovanni, what are you doing here?” Sky asked, rising to her feet to give the man a hug.

  “Sky, you shouldn’t stand on this old man’s account.” Giovanni’s eyes crinkled. “Aren’t you about to give birth any day now?”

  “I’m pregnant, not an invalid,” Sky grumbled.

  Giovanni. Lara had heard that name before. Matthias and Marco’s father, she remembered Matthias mentioned him before. The former head of the Severin Familia. What was he doing here? What did Giovanni want with her?

  Lara wasn’t fooled for a moment by Giovanni’s grandfather act to Sky. Sky was one of them. Lara, on the other hand, was merely a witness Marco wanted gone. In Giovanni’s eyes, Lara was a potential threat to his family.

  “Why don’t you and Matthias have a little talk in the living room while I speak to this young woman?” Giovanni suggested.

  “I’m staying,” Matthias said.

  “Son, we’re simply going to have a chat,” Giovanni said. “I promise you, I have no ill intentions towards the woman you clearly care about.”

  “Lara, I’ll be nearby,” Matthias said, walking up to her.

  He lifted her face and gave her a kiss. She gripped his arm, comforted by the familiar, demanding press of his lips. He released her mouth, running his fingers through the short strands of her hair.

  “Everything’s going to be all right,” Matthias added.

  Lara wasn’t entirely sure about that.

  Chapter Eleven

  “Lara, I’ve heard plenty of things about you. I’ve decided it’s about time we finally met,” Giovanni said.

  Giovanni Severin seemed like a handsome, nice, and cultured man on the outside, but Lara reminded herself that Giovanni was Matthias’s and Marco’s father. The former head of the Familia.

  “Good or bad?” she asked, deciding to play the game.

  “You’ve voluntarily given us all the information you have on one of our ex-bookies,” Giovanni said.

  “Skip’s my ex, but I didn’t know he worked for you guys. I’ve told Matthias everything I know, and there’s no reason for me to hold back or lie.”

  Giovanni reached out across the table to give her clenched hands a pat. Lara wasn’t even aware of doing that.

  “In this line of work, I’ve encountered different kinds of people. I can tell you’re not a bad person. You just happened to be swept up in someone else’s mess, am I wrong?”

  She fidgeted her fingers. “I never expected any of this to happen to me. I’m no one special.”
<
br />   “Then I feel I must apologize on behalf of my son. Matthias hasn’t exactly been right as rain since a particular incident with left him with those scars.”

  Lara raised her head, stunned. Anger replaced her initial anxiety. How dare Giovanni refer to his son as that? For that matter, Giovanni shouldn’t simply dismiss Matthias’s torture as “that incident” as if anyone could survive the hell Matthias went through.

  Too tongue-tied and angry, she could only glare at the old man, not entirely hearing his words. Giovanni didn’t know his son at all. Maybe Giovanni was just like Marco. Both men only took advantage of Matthias as being the Familia’s torturer forever. That thought made her see bright red, and Lara never thought she was capable of this much rage.

  “I’ll personally make sure you’re taken care of,” Giovanni was saying.

  “What?” she asked dumbly.

  “We have a special drug I’d like for you to take. Don’t worry, it’ll only help you erase your memories of the last few days.”

  “Erase?” she whispered. As in forget Matthias entirely? Was Giovanni joking?

  “Exactly. You won’t remember a single thing about this traumatic incident. The next time you wake up, it's as if you’re merely starting a new day.” Giovanni beamed at her like he was doing her some kind favor.

  Giovanni looked down at the table and shook his head as he looked at her bandaged leg. He patted her arm again, like she was some hysterical female he felt obliged to comfort. “You can trust me, Lara. I’m not a brute like my son.”

  A brute? What were her days like before she met him? Work. Sleep. An empty existence. Even after Skip got sick of her and left, she thought she’d feel liberated, free. The only time she felt alive was under Matthias, when she was on the receiving end of his scorching kisses and possessive touches.

  “Don’t talk about your son that way,” she snapped. “If you ever learn to look past his scars, you’ll see a protective heart that’s capable of caring. Kill me if you must, but I don’t ever want to forget him. I love him.”