“Franco?” he questions and I nod. “You know, we grew up together. He was like a brother to me. For years. When I chose the wrong side, I lost him along with the only woman I ever loved because she chose my best friend.” He chuckles wryly.
“The woman you loved, she chose Franco?” My brows furrow in confusion and my heart leaps into my throat with the new knowledge of the man I love with another.
He nods with a sad smile, but as soon as it arrived, it’s gone. “Life moves on. I did.” He pushes up and turns to the window once more. I risk a glance at my wrists. They’re marked lightly with the pattern of the rope. “I’m sorry I have to do this, Raina. I’ve always done bad things. I’ve always chosen the wrong side. After I lost everything, I became…”
“Angry?” Dragging my gaze to him, I watch the suit jacket crinkle with his movements. He places both hands flat on the windowpane and drops his head. Pushing off the chair, I take a few steps toward him. The knife is still in his hand and my heart thuds in my chest.
As soon as I reach him, he spins on his heel, grabbing me by the throat and pinning me between his solid torso and the wall. His body heat warms me and his breath fans over my face. “I became a monster. I hurt people. I watch them die and you know what, Raina?”
I shake my head as his grip around my neck gets tighter.
“I love it. It makes me hard. It’s like sex. Feral, animalistic, and raw.”
My body shudders beneath his. My throat works to swallow and he eases his grip. Our heated gazes are locked on each other. I can feel his rigid erection pressing against my thigh and when my eyes fall to his lips, they curve into a smirk, so devilish it’s almost sinful.
“You see,bella,I can make you ache. I can make you crave it. And you know why?” He leans in further, his lips nipping at the lobe of my ear. “Because you like the dark, you like it rough. Your pupils are dilated, and your pussy, that sweet little cunt, it’s hot and wet for me right now. Isn’t it?”
As much as I want to deny it, as much as I want to shake my head and disagree, I can’t. Because I am needy, but not for him. The way he’s pinned me, the scent of his spicy cologne, they all remind me of Franco. “I’m only turned on because you remind me of him.” Once the words fall from my lips, I find myself being flung onto the bed. Before I have time to find my bearings, he’s on top of me. His body pressing me into the mattress as he bucks his hips into my ass, grinding his cock against me.
19
Franco
The grounds are dimly lit. Getting onto his property wasn’t an easy feat and as I walk up to the basement door, I shudder to think what’s happening inside. With Matteo’s computer wizardry, he managed to override the alarm system.
The ten men, armed with guns, took out the outer perimeter of guards Russo had along the walls. Getting in wasn’t challenging. The problematic part is coming up. Entering the house will be interesting because I know the layout. We’ve all seen the blueprints, but as I push the door of the pantry open, I’m met with silence.
I’m not sure where he’s holding the girls, but with the amount of men I have behind me, we’ll find them quickly. Allowing six of the ten armed killers in before me, I keep my Glock tight in my hand. There’s a round of metal in here that I’m dying to unload into Cristiano’s skull.
Edging our way in, I watch as Gio and Lorenzo take down two guards. The doors to the living area slide open and we’re all bathed in dim light. For a man this dangerous, his clan isn’t as sharp as I thought they’d be. In no time, I’m climbing the stairs and heading toward what I’m guessing are the bedrooms.
Muffled sounds come from each door and with a show of my hand, I point in the direction of the entrances to whatever atrocities are happening behind them. I know where I’m headed. The master suite. The only place I know he would have taken her.
It’s been years. Cristiano and I grew up together.
Best fucking friends.
Until a woman came between us.
He blamed me. She chose me.
I hated her.
It was a fate worse than death. I dated her for a short while before I finally admitted defeat. I never loved her the way she wanted, the way he did. When I moved on with my life and found Isabella, I fell hard and fast. She was my first slave. The first woman I owned. With her, I saw forever. But my best friend had already made up his mind. He’d had it out for me for years after the woman he loved chose me. He left Isabella in a pool of crimson on his bedroom floor.
And now that I’ve finally allowed love back into my life, my heart, finally moved on, he’s attempting to take it away.
Nothing could prepare me for feeling this anguish. The throb inside my chest when I think of her being hurt. Raina Lombardi has slowly embedded her innocence inside me. She’s given me everything I didn’t know I wanted.
But with that, she’s also taken my darkness, she’s fed the beast, and somehow flourished with it. She dances with the blackened soul I hold, as if she craves it. When I reach the end of the long hallway, the double doors tell me I’ve arrived. My future lies on the other side of those doors.
Gripping the knob with my free hand, I lift the gun and shove open the door to find a sight that boils my blood. Rage turns my vision red and I command as I enter, “Get the fuck off my woman.” My voice booms through the bedroom and both Raina and Cristiano still. His glare pins me to the spot and his mouth lifts into a smirk.
“Franco, so good to see you. I can tell why you’re so enamored with this beauty,” he murmurs as he gets up off my girl. Righting his jacket, he stalks toward me, stepping in front of the barrel as if he’s not afraid to die.
“Get on your fucking knees, now.”
With a smirk, confident and sure, he drops to his knees.