We burst into the warehouse, and it was open warfare straight from the start. I had a bulletproof vest underneath my suit, and I burst in with guns blazing. I shot several men straight between the eyes before I had to duck and reload my weapon.
My favorite gun had been stolen by a little blonde bombshell that was somewhere inside this building. If Piotrek had hurt her, I was going to tear him apart.
I saw red as I fought through the masses, using my fists and the butt of my weapon to knock out several before I had to reload for a second time. When Jon’s men burst up from the subway below, the Polish quickly realized how outnumbered they were.
They were unorganized. They shouted between each other trying to figure out what to do and that’s when I realized that Piotrek was nowhere to be seen.
And that was when a feminine voice shouted out from above. “Stop!”
I looked up. From several stories above, Kasia stared down at me. She yanked on a piece of rope and her father’s body swung forward. His corpse showed signs of a struggle. His shirt was covered in blood, both from the neck and the arm. His jeans were soaked crimson too.
It had taken a lot to bring him down, but she had done it.
For a moment, I was stunned. I understood on a visual level how she’d rigged a pulley system to lift him up, but that wasn’t what really astounded me. It was the way she stood there, radiating power and confidence and sheer capability.
She looked positively regal.
The Polish soldiers peered up at her and I saw immediately that she was commanding their respect.
“For years, Piotrek Poplawski commanded you,” she began, and a hush passed over everyone.
Her confidence was the most arousing thing I’d ever seen. My cock was rock hard, imagining how I’d tear off her clothes and remind her that she belonged to me soon enough.
“You will serve him no longer. Now, you will serve me,” she continued.
Piotrek had no other children. He’d only sired a daughter. Although it was unconventional, she was the first in line to inherit his seat of power. By the expression on the Polish soldiers’ faces, they were just realizing that too.
Kasia Poplawski was now their queen.
Her gaze met mine and it softened slightly. In a show of respect for her, I bowed my head. Beside me, Sergei followed suit, as did Jon and Cyrus.
The room fell into an uneasy hush.
Kasia glanced at her father for a moment before she descended the metal stairs in the middle of the room. Slowly, she approached me and looked me dead in the eye. I reached for her, and she took my hand. I jerked her toward me, grasping my hand around the back of her neck.
I reached into my pocket and took out a small blue velvet box. I flipped it open.
I’d made several calls and pulled in every last favor in the book to protect her, but there had been one that was particularly special to me. It had been delivered with breakfast yesterday, but I’d spirited it away into my pocket with the full intent of sharing it with her at the right time.
This was that right time.
Right here.
Right now.
I was going to make her mine forever.
She was staring at me, her breathing quickening. Her chest rose and fell with her excitement, and I squeezed the back of her neck in support. When I let go, she reached for me, her face a mask of curiosity and adoration.
I flipped open the ring box, showing her the five-carat princess cut solitaire diamond I’d picked out for her myself. I grasped her left hand and slid it on her ring finger.
I didn’t ask her to marry me. I didn’t need to. She and I both knew what her answer would be.
“My queen,” I murmured.
“My king,” she whispered.
I kissed her, not caring that anyone was watching. It was brutal and rough, but it was everything she needed and more. When I finally allowed her the chance to breathe, her lips were puffy, and her eyes were glassy with arousal. She took a deep breath and turned back to the crowd, reaching for my hand.