by Sam Crescent
He’d gotten information about the Cartel attack. The men The Boss had sent to him wouldn’t be enough, and he didn’t have the time to gather the ranks.
Down at the docks, he’d taken his men, and it had been a slaughter. He’d lost a lot of men, and nearly his own life. A broken face and hand were nothing compared to the bloodbath. The Cartels had underestimated them, and they had barely made it out alive.
Before the attack, he’d feared for Avery’s life. Being with him, holding a connection, had put her life at risk. By sending her home, hiding her, wiping out all trace of her father’s debt, he’d been able to protect her in some way.
The past two weeks had been hell.
He finally knew what his father had faced, only, Gino knew his woman was still alive. He’d wanted to go to her time and time again, but he stopped himself each time.
With him, she didn’t have much of a life.
Without him, she could have everything.
He cupped her cheek, seeing the tears in her eyes. “I shouldn’t love you, Avery. Your father borrowed money. You were only supposed to be a toy to me.”
She chuckled. “But I’m a toy you love?”
He pressed his lips together.
“You can try and pretend to be the bigger man here, but I know you. I’ve been with you when you’ve not had to play at being someone you’re not. Don’t lie to me, Gino. I know you don’t owe me anything, that we’re both equal here, but I love you. I love you so much that I’ve hated being away from you.” She took his hands. “These cause so much pain, and I don’t care. I love you. Only you. I want to be with you forever. I’m putting everything out there so that you know when I leave this room, you’ll have a piece of me with you … always.”
She leaned down, kissing his lips.
He didn’t say anything. Not one word.
She let out a little gasp almost as if her heart was breaking just a little too much.
He couldn’t stand to see her crying.
“I guess I was wrong.”
She walked away, going to the door, and he couldn’t stand it.
“You’re the best toy I ever wanted,” he said.
She turned toward him.
“I fell in love with you, Avery Finch, and damn you, woman, I don’t know what the fuck to do with these feelings.”
He got to his feet, and Avery rushed toward him. She threw her arms around his neck, and regardless of the pain in his bruised body, he held her close.
For the first time in his life, he was brought to his knees by a woman. He closed his eyes, breathing her in, just basking in everything that was Avery. Her scent, the feel of her, everything, he didn’t want her to go.
“You’re going to marry me,” he said. “You’re not going to get another shot, and we’re going to have babies together.”
She pulled back, laughing. “Don’t you think you should ask me that first?”
“Nah, I think you get a kick out of being told what to do.” He ran his hand down her body to squeeze her ass.
She let out a gasp.
“I’ve missed this ass.”
“I’ve missed you.”
“Do you want to go back to your tower?” he asked.
“No, I think my place is in your bed.” She kissed him. “When you’re all better, you’re going to get a slap.”
“I am, am I?”
“Yes. For leaving me. For thinking you were done with me.”
“I was done with you. I just didn’t realize I was going to break my own fucking heart in the process.”
He lifted her up onto his desk. Tilting her head back, she stared into his eyes.
“I held my mom’s dead body when I was a little boy.”
“Gino?”
“My family, my father was Capo, and he, erm, he loved my mother so fiercely. Behind closed doors we were like any normal family. We ate together every single night. She was the love of my father’s life. She was one hell of a woman. No matter what was thrown her way, she was always by his side. Always loyal. Always loving. You remind me a little of her. The day she was taken, my father changed. He became a monster. He ruled over this city, and anyone who was even closely related to the men who killed her, he destroyed. When I took over, I promised myself I wouldn’t allow myself to be made weak.”
“I don’t make you weak.”
“It has taken me all this time to realize my mother didn’t make my father weak. Losing her was what made him weak.”
“Why are you telling me this?” she asked.
“You asked about sharing the table. Sitting together as a family. I can’t remember exactly what it was, but I used to do that all the time, until it was taken from me. I want it again. I want a family, Avery. Not just an heir, a family.”
The smile she gave him filled him with hope. “Then we better get started.” She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he pushed up the skirt of her dress. He needed to be inside her, now, without a second’s delay.
As he tore at her panties, Avery attacked his belt, working his pants down. He grabbed his cock, rubbing it through her slit, bumping her clit before sliding down to fill her.
They both moaned, and he held her as close as he could, going to the very hilt, needing to own a part of her soul.
“I love you, Avery, so fucking much.”
“Don’t ever leave me again. I don’t care what else happens. You took my body, Gino, and now you own my heart and soul.”
He kissed her hard, knowing he would give anything to keep this woman. She was his entire world, and he’d been lucky enough to find the one for him.
Epilogue
Five years later
“Dada. Dada.”
Gino Mazza smiled at his son.
“His first words,” Avery said, clapping her hands. “You’re such a clever boy.”
He kissed the top of his boy’s head as his little girl walked around the room, singing and dancing.
Avery’s father was in the kitchen, cooking up Sunday lunch, and Gino sat on his office floor, the two sofas pushed out to make room for himself, Avery, and their two children.
Joanne, named after his mother, kept on dancing and pulling books out of the shelves, glancing through them and shaking her head. She was a little firecracker at three and a half years old. He could still remember the long birth he had to sit through. He’d never been so afraid in all of his life as he was when Joanne finally came into the world.
Avery was such a strong woman, but she’d screamed in agony during the birth. After their girl was born, he’d held his wife in his arms, thanking anyone who would listen for keeping her alive.
During that first pregnancy, he’d been part of every single step of the way, and even Ben’s pregnancy, he wouldn’t miss it for the world.
Over four years they’d been married.
Five years today, it was their anniversary of when Avery came into his office and declared her love for him. Their fourth wedding anniversary was a couple of months ago, and while her father watched their kids, he’d showed her just how much he loved her.
She reached out, taking his hands. “What’s on your mind?”
“Remembering your declaration of love.”
She giggled. “I had to do something to win you over. I was so scared you were going to kick me out. When you didn’t say anything back, I remember walking to that door, heartbroken. I thought you hated me.”
He took her hand, pulling her close to kiss her inner wrist before placing his lips against the rings that bound her to him.
His wife.
Forever.
He couldn’t let her go, and now she truly was the mother of his child.
“Do you regret it?” she asked.
“Marrying you?”
“Yes.”
“No. I don’t regret a single moment of my life with you. Meeting you, taking you as my toy, it was the best decision I’ve ever made.”
“Mommy, are you Daddy’s toy?” Joanne asked.
&nbs
p; Avery laughed. “Don’t let Granddad hear you say that. He’ll be embarrassed.”
“Your mother’s mine, Joanne.”
“I want someone to keep.”
Gino chuckled. “You’ll find someone, and you’ll know they’re special because you’ll never want to let them go.”
Avery leaned over and kissed his lips. “I love you.”
“And I love you.”
He’d found his special someone. The family he didn’t even know he wanted, but now, couldn’t live without. Avery was his world, his kids were everything, and he was never letting her go. From the moment she had proclaimed her love for him, he had vowed to make her happy, to make her never regret falling for him.
And he was more than willing to work the rest of his life to make sure she never fell out of love with him.
The End
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BONUS SAMPLE CHAPTER
TAKING HER INNOCENCE
Killer of Kings, 1
Sam Crescent & Stacey Espino
Copyright © 2017
Sample Chapter
“You think you can handle it?” Boss asked.
Viper stared out across the parking lot. A lot of shoppers were milling around today, going about their own pathetic lives, believing they were the most important thing in the world.
None of them had any idea that one of the world’s deadliest killers was amongst them. He was part of an elite group of mercenaries. He killed for the money. Whoever offered the highest bounty, he took it. He never asked questions, and he never cared about the people he killed. This was a job to him, something he was good at.
“Why can’t I handle it? Send me a picture of the girl. I’ll do the rest.”
“She has to die of natural causes.”
Viper snorted. “No problem.”
He had one month to find a woman, and to end her life. Piece of cake. He had lots of ways of killing a woman, and this would be no different.
“Deposit the money, and I’ll call you if I need more.” Viper whistled as he made his way toward the car. He put the groceries in the trunk, got behind the wheel, and waited.
Her picture came through his cell phone, and he stared at the girl in question. She couldn’t have been older than fifteen, but from what Boss had told him, she was nearly twenty-one years old, and had been on the run for nearly six months. Curious.
The picture showed her cuddled up next to her mother, and she looked happy. Pepper was chubby, her cheeks looking like the kind you could pinch, and grandmothers cooed over. Boss had given him all the details over the phone. Viper didn’t do paperwork, reading, or worrying about something being tracked.
He memorized everything. All the little details were up in his head, and that was where they would stay until the job was gone.
Viper didn’t know why the woman in question, Pepper, was running, and he really didn’t care. The moment Boss called him and gave him an assignment, he did it. Now he just needed to figure out where she was staying.
Good news for him, he had a special guy who owned equipment that could find him this woman. Leaving the grocery store, Viper made his way across the city toward the guy who he knew would hook him up.
Whenever he was in between jobs, he would always stick around where his people were so that he didn’t have to worry about endless traveling. Working for Killer of Kings was rather lucrative. They were a company known for getting the job done. Nothing was too much, no job too hard. He had traveled all over the world to do what needed to be done, from killing people, to fucking women, to even rescuing people. If the price was right, he would do anything.
From a young age, younger than any child should ever have to deal, he had been taught to hunt, to kill, and to do it without feeling a damn thing. There were scars on his back that all bled together that reminded him a past he wished he could forget. When he saw children with their parents, for a split second he felt envious, jealous that they could be having a wonderful life, a better one than he ever had. Of course they were having a better life than he had. None of them had ever gone through the hours of pain or the training that had made him one of the deadliest men on earth.
Parking his car outside of one of the shittiest apartments in the city, he made his way toward his contact, Maurice. The guy was thirty years old, a slob, but damn good when it came to computers. He was the only one who gave Viper the facts without giving him files thick with writing and shit. Viper didn’t want to be studying. Cold, hard facts were what he was after, and he didn’t need paperwork that could be traced.
Maurice lived on the top floor. He was a tall, skinny man who wore big, thick glasses. Banging on the door, Viper waited, and when Maurice opened the door his shirt was covered in ketchup and mustard stains.
“I’ve told you to change,” Viper said, entering the room.
“Yeah, well, I didn’t think I’d see you for a couple more weeks. You usually take time off. Why are you back after just a week?” Maurice asked.
The apartment was littered with debris. Only the sitting room, the place where all the computers and equipment were set up was spotless.
“You need to get a cleaning lady,” Viper said. He hated mess.
Mess equaled mistakes.
He was clean, efficient, and he didn’t have anything to leave behind. Even his apartment where he stayed during his vacations didn’t hold any personal mementos. Not that he would ever have those. Mementos would mean caring, and that wasn’t what he did. He didn’t have a family, a past, nor would he have a future.
“Cleaning ladies touch stuff, and I know where everything is.”
Viper looked around the apartment. “It stinks.”
“So? It keeps everyone out, okay? This is my mess. My problem. Not yours. What do you want?” Maurice asked, shoving his glasses up his nose.
“Fine.” Viper handed over his cell phone. “Get me everything on her.”
“Do you have a name?” Maurice asked.
“Pepper. I want everything on the face though. You’ve got your computers that can track CCTV. I want to know where she was last seen.”
“This could take a while.”
“Don’t care. I can pay.” Viper moved into the sitting room and took a seat. It was the only place he was willing to park his ass while he waited, and there wasn’t a chance in hell he was leaving until he got what he wanted.
Something was bugging him about this assignment, which was strange because he usually didn’t care. Swift, efficient, done. That’s what he’d always been about.
Maurice was humming as he got to work, scanning her picture, and then tracking it through the database. On the big screen in front of them, he saw several names and pictures as it did the recognition thing.
The beauty about security and live feeds everywhere was anyone could be tracked or traced. Unless someone knew how to avoid the cameras and the recognition software, no one was untraceable.
“She’s young this one.”
“You’re not paid to worry about that.”
“This isn’t a rescue mission though, right? I think I saw something about this girl’s mother a few weeks ago.”
That made Viper pause. “What did you see?”
“Only that her mother had died, and Pepper’s stepfather was taking over the company that should, by rights, go to this Pepper girl. We’re talking a billion-dollar company. Stocks, shares, and they have stakes in pretty much everything. I’m surprised you don’t know that.�
� Maurice munched on a potato chip as he spoke.
Viper didn’t follow the news. He didn’t read the papers, nor did he care about pampered princesses. “Out of curiosity, what happens to this fortune if the girl dies?”
“It goes to the stepfather.”
Sitting back, Viper thought about the terms of his latest contract. Pepper needed to die of natural causes, and the stepfather would inherit everything.
He didn’t like the twist in his gut.
This was just another assignment like everything else, and he wasn’t going to let feelings or emotions get in the way. Patting his fingers on his thigh, he watched the computer screen as faces all seemed to roll into one. This was the one part of the job that he hated.
He was bored.
When he was bored, he was able to think.
Thinking made him remember the past, and he didn’t want to remember the past. He wasn’t someone plagued by his fears. He had no fears.
“There she is,” Maurice said.
Viper looked up as her image was brought into focus. It was a really clear image. “When was it taken?” he asked.
“Three days ago. A grocery store near the coast.” Maurice rattled off several details and directions.
Viper didn’t need anything else. He already knew where he was going. Pulling out a wad of cash, he handed it to Maurice, and made his way toward the door.
“Viper,” Maurice said.
Turning, he saw Maurice standing, holding his keyboard. “What is it?”
“You don’t have to do this, you know? She’s innocent. There’s nothing on her. No criminal record, nothing. Her slate is completely clean. This is not like your usual kills.”