by Ella Miles
“You fucking asshole!” she screams as she makes it to her feet, pulling her soaked dress up to cover her body.
The spell I was under breaks instantly at the loss of our connection.
I can’t touch her—nothing beyond the most chaste of touches ever again. Our connection is too much for my self-control.
I’m just like my father.
Worse.
Because I pretend I only hurt the wicked, when in fact I am just as capable of hurting the beautiful—just like my father did.
Kai runs out of the water. And I chase after.
“Kai, stop!”
She does finally stop on the edge of the deck, whipping around with a cross look on her face.
“Why should I? You are a fucking bastard! You know how much I’m afraid of the water. Why would you do that?”
I stiffen. “Because I want to ruin you,” I lie. Because it’s the only way to save you from me.
She gives me a sly smile. “Don’t worry; I’ll ruin you first.”
She stomps toward the house, and I follow. She throws open the sliding door and steps inside, walking through my house not caring that she’s getting water all over my hardwood floor.
I follow.
We both head upstairs to the bathroom.
Kai begins stripping out of her dress when she stops, noticing that I followed her.
“You’ve got to be kidding? Do you really think I’m going to let you watch me strip after what you did?” she says.
“I’m dripping wet. I’m going to shower and change.”
“You’re not going to do that here.”
“This is my house and my bathroom,” I growl.
She smirks. “Not anymore. Get out!”
I roll my eyes but decide not to fight her on this. I walk into the closet to grab a pair of jeans and a T-shirt and storm out to go shower in the guest bathroom. Too bad cold showers don’t work on me anymore because of Kai. I’m going to need something to convince my aching balls nothing is ever going to happen with her.
Twenty-minutes later I’m still steaming, but a knock on the door changes things.
“Come to apologize for kicking me out?” I ask as I open the door.
“We need to head out right now. The Savage sent out a mayday,” Zeke.
“Shit.”
I throw my shirt on as I race after Zeke. The Savage is the head of our fleet. It’s the yacht I’m most often on. My favorite. Anders captains the ship for me. He’s the best captain in my crew. If he sent out a mayday, then they were attacked by the best.
“Do we know what happened yet?”
“No, they’ve been radio silent ever since.”
“Shit.” Which means we were definitely attacked.
“Where’s Kai?” Zeke asks.
“Probably still showering.”
Zeke stops abruptly. “You need to get her.”
“Why?”
“Because now that you are no longer Black, she has to come with us. Archard is downstairs. He heard the mayday call. You can’t make this decision by yourself.”
“Kai get your ass downstairs in the next five-seconds! Archard has something he needs to say,” I holler, pretending Archard is here to tell us the game starts tomorrow. Instead of the truth.
The bedroom door flies open, and Kai emerges in tiny shorts and an oversized shirt of mine.
“Is the game starting?” she asks with a hint of trepidation in her eyes.
I ignore her and head downstairs.
She follows.
“Archard, is the game starting?” Kai asks.
Archard shakes his head. “No, I’m just here to ensure the rules are followed.”
Kai looks to me then Zeke.
“We need to go,” I say.
“Go where?” she asks.
“The docks. We need to get on a yacht right away. The Savage, one of our main vessels, sent out a mayday. We think we’ve been attacked,” I say.
“Why are we going to the docks? How will that help?” Kai asks.
“We need to get on a boat and hunt down the bastards who attacked us.”
“We?”
“Yes, we. We will lead a crew of men. I don’t leave my men to take care of things themselves, not when it’s this important.”
“I can’t get on a boat.”
I narrow my gaze. “You’re going to have to.”
“No, I don’t.” Kai crosses her arms and stares at Archard, knowing she has his reassurance to back up her words.
I run my hand through my hair in frustration.
“We have to go! We don’t have a choice. I don’t leave my men when they need me.”
“You no longer get to make the decision yourself.”
“Goddammit, woman! You are the most infuriating person on the planet!”
“And you are the most selfish, demeaning asshole!”
“What the fuck do we do, Archard?”
“You don’t both have to go, you just both have to agree how to handle the situation as a leader, or you don’t get to be involved at all,” he answers.
“Fine, I’ll go. You stay.” I like that plan better anyway. I have a feeling this is Alastar’s men who attacked us. This sounds like his doing. He is my biggest rival. He’s wanted my money and power for a long time. And I don’t know if Alastar was the leader Jarod reported to. If his men are hunting us and want Kai back, I don’t want her anywhere near them. She’s mine.
“Like hell I’m letting you go! You’ll get to make whatever fucking decisions you want by yourself if you go. The men will continue to see you as the leader instead of seeing me as an equal. You can’t go.”
“Jesus Christ! All I’ll do is ensure my men are safe.”
“Our men.” Blood boils raging back and forth between us.
“I’m going.”
“No, you’re not.”
I narrow my eyes as my cheeks redden, and my teeth grit to hold back my anger. I walk to her so I can hiss in her ear. “You are just doing this to get back at me.”
Her eyes cut to mine. “You hurt me; I hurt you.”
“You have no idea what you are doing.”
“I’m ensuring you have the same power as me. I’m punishing you for hurting me because you can’t stand not to have all the control.”
“I won’t leave my men to die.”
“We will send Zeke and Langston,” she says.
Zeke looks at me. We’ve already wasted too much time as it is. “Go.” Hopefully, I’ll be able to coerce Kai into letting me follow suit.
“And keep us informed of what is happening,” Kai says.
I chuckle. She has no idea what we are facing. Zeke won’t be able to give us a play by play. We won’t know what happens until he returns.
“Stay safe,” I say.
“Always do,” Zeke answers and then disappears.
“Fuck!” I scream before pounding my fist into the wall leaving a large hole in its wake. I’ve never stayed behind when something this bad happened before. I hate not being there for my men.
“It’s going to be fine. Not everyone needs an ass like you weighing them down.”
“Oh sweetie, you have no idea the danger you’ve just put our entire team in, and yourself, by not letting me go after them. My men are fearless, but they need a leader. Zeke and Langston aren’t those men. We always fight together—the three of us. If anything happens to any of them, it’s on you. And when the danger isn’t put out, you’ll be who they come for next.”
“Where are you going?” she asks as I storm toward the office.
“To work and hope I can find some way to help them from here.” But I already know there is nothing to be done. Kai may try to seek further revenge, but I can’t imagine anything worse than this. Whatever Kai plans after this will be nothing. At least I no longer have to worry about any physical connection between us, she just severed it.
9
Kai
Fuck, that kiss.
That kiss was
everything.
Passionate.
Gut-turning.
Toe-curling.
Explosions firing.
I never wanted the kiss to end. I was completely lost in the moment. I forgot about everything.
The pain.
The heartache.
The game.
Everything.
I forgot it all.
Nothing has ever consumed me as much as kissing Enzo did—until he dumped us in the water.
And then the hatred returned, more powerful than ever. Like I was baptized in the water and came up new. The lust vanished, replaced fully with the hate—and the need to destroy this man that has been the cause of every bad thing in my life.
Enzo is a monster. Not just to men who deserve it. He’s the devil through and through. I never met his father, but Enzo is just like him if his father is as bad as everyone says.
And the best way to destroy a monster is to show them their reflection. Once Enzo sees his reflection as the devil he truly is, he will destroy himself. He won’t be able to live with the self-loathing when I’m through revealing his truths.
I pound on the door Enzo threw shut to his office.
“Let me in!”
“No.”
“You don’t have a choice! I get to be involved in the business.”
“What? You going to run to Archard if I don’t let you in?”
“If I have to.”
Archard left shortly after Zeke did, but not before warning us both that not following the rules would lead to penalties during the game.
I hear the lock of the door clink, and then the door opens. Enzo stands tall, towering over me. The look alone would bring most men to their knees, but I know Enzo’s weakness—me.
“I’m sorry,” I say.
He huffs. “No, you’re not.”
Enzo collapses into the office chair, while I take a seat on the couch.
“Fine, I’m not. But I didn’t make the decision to get back at you from before.”
“Then why did you?”
I hesitate. “Because I couldn’t go with you, and I don’t trust you.” And I would be petrified, worrying they might hurt you. I want to be the one who hurts you. My feelings are so messed up.
He cracks his neck.
“What are we going to do now?” I ask.
“Nothing. There is nothing to do but wait. Zeke will call when he has the situation under control.”
“Who attacked us?’
“I think Alastar. He’s been trying to coordinate his allies to make a move against us for a long time. I’ve been distracted lately. They must have known and made a move.”
“How dangerous is he?”
“A step below me.”
“So basically an adorable, whiny kitten.”
“This isn’t a joke, Kai.”
“Sorry, just trying to lighten the mood.”
A knock rattles. “Excuse me, sir. I have the pictures on my camera here. You wanted one selected to send to the newspaper for the announcement. Would you like to choose?”
“Leave the camera on my desk,” Enzo says.
Westcott places the camera on his desk and then leaves.
We both stare at it, silently stewing until I can’t take it anymore.
I retrieve the camera, and kick my legs up on the couch, while I click through the pictures.
There are hundreds of pictures. Of us holding hands as we walk through the sand. Then staring at each other. Some of us smiling and laughing. Others more solemn.
I smile looking at us. We look like a bride and groom on our wedding day.
And then I get to the picture of us kissing. How locked in the moment we are. How right we look together—like we belong in each other’s arms.
It was so easy to kiss him. To let him hold me, like we regularly make out while holding each other.
“Why the hell do I let you touch me like this when I can’t even shake anyone else’s hands?” I say.
“Because we have a physical connection neither of us can shake,” Enzo says standing over me as he stares down at the picture of us making out. “And it’s going to cause the death of both of us if we aren’t careful.”
He lifts my legs and then sits on the couch before placing my feet in his lap.
This feels so normal, how any regular couple might sit on this couch. Except one of us didn’t try to kill the other. One of us didn’t sell the other. One of us is cruel. And the other is about to get her revenge by ruining him and then winning this fucking game.
I reach out and touch his hand, trying to unnerve him, but instead, I do it to myself. I feel everything he’s feeling when I touch him: the worry, fear, and concern for his friends.
Shit, what did I do?
I’m not a monster. I shouldn’t stoop to his level. And I sure as hell shouldn’t bring other people’s lives into this.
“I’m sorry—truly.”
I continue tracing circles on his palms, each circle I trace I feel more of his emotions. More pain. More hurt. More anger.
But also lust, desire, want.
He grabs my wrist and lifts my fingers from his palm. “Stop.”
“Why?”
“Because if you don’t, I won’t be able to.”
And what if I don’t want you to stop? Enzo is the only one who has been able to drive out my demons so far. If we fuck, maybe they will be gone for good.
Enzo sighs. “Try to sleep, Kai. It’s going to be a long night.” He leans his head back and closes his eyes.
I swear I hear him snoring a few minutes later. Apparently, sleeping is how he shuts the world out when he wants to.
I close my eyes, but I know I won’t be able to sleep. Not on this tiny couch with my legs on Enzo. Not with the tension between us. Not when I want him more than I want any sort of revenge.
Christ, what’s wrong with me? How can I lust after a man who hurt me so much?
Because there are two sides to Enzo. The monster and the protector. Turns out I like it when he protects me. Because him staying home instead of going to the fight feels like protection. If he truly wanted to go, he would have fought harder.
I try to push Enzo out while I wait for news, but hours pass, and he’s still the only thing on my mind. And I’m more conflicted than I’ve ever been about what I want and what I plan on doing next.
“Enzo!” Langston yells down the hallway.
Enzo’s eyes pop open, and we both run at toward Langston’s distant voice.
The front door is open, and Langston stands inside, holding a limp and bleeding Zeke in his arms.
Fuck. I fucked up.
10
Enzo
If Zeke dies, I’ll kill her.
I don’t care that I’ve done everything I can to keep Kai alive. I don’t care if she’s too naive to realize the danger she put us all in. I don’t care if she genuinely thought she was doing the right thing.
She’s no longer innocent.
She fucked up.
She betrayed me. She betrayed Zeke. She betrayed all of my men.
I run to Langston. “What happened?”
“We were ambushed. It was all a setup, a trap. They used the attack on The Savage as bait. They wanted you, Enzo.”
“How many did we lose?”
Langston’s eyes drop. “We were the only ones to get out. And it wasn’t because I was skilled. They let us go. They wanted us to go—to warn you.”
Fuck. My enemies already think I’m weak. I need to squash them immediately—set an example.
“There are rumors you no longer are king. That you’ve abandoned your thrown—for pussy.” Langston looks to Kai.
I don’t have time to deal with it now. Now I need to ensure Zeke lives.
“Put him on the couch,” I yell to Langston.
He does. There is so much blood. I’ve seen bad before, but I’m not sure I’ve seen a man continue to breathe with this much blood loss.
I stare at Kai who blinks rap
idly as she takes in the scene. I toss her my cell phone from my pocket. “Call the emergency doctor listed in my contacts. Now!”
She starts fumbling with the phone.
I don’t have time to ensure she does it. I need to take care of Zeke.
“Hang on, buddy. You’re going to be fine. I got you,” I say, but Zeke doesn’t stir. He doesn’t even open his eyes or moan.
I rip his shirt open, trying to identify his wounds to stop the bleeding.
Three holes cover his chest.
Fuck.
Langston and I exchange a quick, worried glance. He has less than a five percent chance of surviving and that’s being generous.
“The first aid kit!” I yell to Langston who is already moving to where I keep it in the cabinet on the wall for emergencies just like this.
He opens the box and starts pulling out all the gauze he can find. I find the first bullet wound on his stomach spurting the most blood and pack the gauze tightly over the wound.
Langston does the same for the two wounds on his upper chest.
“Just hang on, Zeke,” I repeat.
I scan more of his body trying to find other sources of the bleeding.
His jeans are soaked in red blood.
And then I see the slice on his upper thigh less than an inch from his groin.
Jesus, these men are savages. They tried to castrate my most loyal man. They won’t get away with this.
“I need more gauze,” I shout to Langston.
Langston’s eyes grow big. “There’s none left.”
“Fuck!”
I stare down at what we have, but if I remove any of the already soaked gauze from his current wounds, he’ll die. But if I don’t stop the bleeding in his thigh, he’ll die. Whatever I do, he’ll die.
“Here,” Kai says, pulling her shirt from her body and tossing it on his leg.
I cover the wound with the shirt, pressing hard and deep.
“Let me,” she says, kneeling next to me.
I want to push her away and say she has no right to touch him, not when she is the reason he will die. If I had been there, this would have never happened. I have instincts my father taught me that Langston and Zeke don’t. I would have realized the trap that was set.
“Push down hard on the wound with everything you have. Use your entire body,” I say.