“I want you, Raina. But, as much as I want you, I’m warning you, I’ll hurt you. Physically, mentally, and emotionally. My life is… difficult. I can’t give you forever, but for now, give me you. Offer yourself to me,bella.Let me have your body. Just promise me you will not fall in love. This”—he gestures between us—“isn’t love. It can never be love. It’s a contract. An agreement you’ve read. It’s fucking. It’s brutal, ruthless, and violent. If you can handle that, then I want you to say yes right here, right now.”
“If I say yes, what happens? Do I just become your what… slave? Submissive? Fuck toy? You use me when you need me and I’m pushed into a corner when you don’t?” My words are angry, heated with frustration at his push and pull.
“Slave? Submissive? Fuck toy? I like your descriptors, little one. Perhaps all three. I mistook you for an innocent. Someone new to this life, but it seems you’re not?” he questions and I can’t help blushing.
“I read a lot,” I retort, but his gaze narrows, as if he doesn’t believe me. “So, what happens? Tell me here and now, or I’ll walk away.” I watch his eyes flash with something. Fear? I can’t tell because he quickly hides behind a mask of cool control.
“No, you’ll have your job, but at night, you’ll be mine to use as I see fit.” He takes a step back to regard me. With narrowed eyes, I watch his eyes flicker with emotion. As much as this man tells me he doesn’t want love or won’t welcome it, there’s something in the way he looks at me that screams otherwise. “This is sex. It’s a business agreement. My life is my work. My love is my familia. There’s no room for more. If that’s what you’re looking for, then this ends here.”
The thought of him walking away burns. It hits me deep in my gut, but I find myself nodding. “Okay.” It’s a soft, murmured word that echoes around us.
“Yes?”
“Yes.”
11
Franco
When she saidyes, something inside me shifted. It was an emotion I didn’t need or want. So, as I gripped her hand and tugged her behind me, I shut it away. Even though the look on her face when I told her this would end if she didn’t agree screamed at me to walk away, I couldn’t. I held my fucking breath until she uttered the wordyes.Then my world tipped on its axis.
Steeling my gaze, I stalk through the crowd with her body close to mine. My brothers are sitting in a booth with their women when I reach them. “We’re leaving. Don’t cause shit, but Russo’s men are here. I want you to stay with these two.” I point at the two girls on each of my brothers’ arms.
Both nod. They understand the danger we’re putting these girls in, but I refuse to allow an asshole to rule my life.
“Where are you going, brother?” Matteo smirks. He knows. He wants me to confess that I’ve got feelings for her—more than just claiming her—but I won’t.
Shrugging, I tug her into my arms and pierce my brother with a warning glare. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” That’s all I say before I turn and walk away with Raina’s hand in mine. When we reach the car, I open the door and allow her to slip into the seat. Once I’ve joined her, I signal for my driver to get us back to the mansion.
She’s silent, with a nervous energy that whirls around her.
“Are you afraid,bella?” Her gaze lands on mine. The softness of her skin calls to me. Big eyes lock on mine and she squares her shoulders as if she’s about to tell me something I won’t like.
“No, I can’t be scared of you, Franco.” She purrs my name, which has my cock hardening behind the steel of my zipper. A smirk lifts my mouth as I watch her.
“And why is that, Raina?”
“Because I want you. Your darkness, your mark. Something about it calls to me. As if I was made for it…” Her words taper off into silence. I want to respond. To tell her how much I wish she were made for me, but I don’t. Because this isn’t anything more than a fuck. A contract between two consenting adults.
Once I use her the first time, there is no guarantee she’ll come back. There isn’t a surety that she will want what I have to offer. So I stay silent.
“Do you ever think about a different life?” Her question burns through the thick tension that radiates in the car as we weave closer to our destination. To the dungeon. The room I’m about to tie her up in and fuck her until she can’t walk.
“No. I told you. My familia are my brothers, mycosca.” With that, I turn and watch the tree-lined drive inch us to the house. Once the car stops, I exit and reach for her. Moments pass and I wonder if she’s going to request to go home, but she doesn’t. Instead, she slips her hand in mine and joins me on the gravel. Meeting Lorenzo’s gaze, I give him a swift nod. “Thank you, I’ll see you in the morning.”
He’s been my driver for eight years. He’s seen things that would make any grown man shudder, but he’s also had his family mauled by the assholes we’re trying to take down, so his loyalty is with the Morettis and what we can do.
Turning, I tug my new pet toward the door. Inside, I lead her toward the east wing where my suite lies waiting. Every step closer, I wait for her to refuse. I expect her to tell me to stop and take her home. But with each clip of her heels, the tension that stifled me in the car dissipates and she comes to me willingly.
Once we’ve reached the doorway to the room I keep hidden, I unlock it with the small gold key and push it open. With a soft creak, it gapes, begging us to enter and enjoy the delights it has to offer. “After you,mio caro.” Gesturing with my hand, I allow the beauty to enter.
In the silence of the room, she steps tentatively deeper into my world. My fortress of dark pleasures. When you’ve seen the heinous things I have, you need an escape from the consistent, everyday horrors.
This… This is my haven.
“I…” Her voice is raspy, and I wonder if it’s from shock, fear, or desire. Perhaps all three. What an intoxicating feeling.
“Do you want to leave? We can go into the living room.”