Total pages in book: 208
Estimated words: 207002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1035(@200wpm)___ 828(@250wpm)___ 690(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 207002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1035(@200wpm)___ 828(@250wpm)___ 690(@300wpm)
“Overnight, the trafficking side of Cem’s kingdom was dismantled and the girls safe. That gave me some peace of mind but not a lot. I-I’ve done things I’m not happy about, Neri. I’ve hurt people because Cem told me to. I’ve killed—”
I cut myself off, breathing hard. Focusing on the better parts of my story, I said, “The drugs and money laundering, the many assets and homes around the world are now mine to run as I see fit. Not because the police are corrupt and want in on such a world but because they’re using me to flush out the men and women using such things.”
I shrugged. “It’s not forever. I don’t have to play the part of a crime lord for the rest of my life. Eventually, they’ll have me shut it down, but I do have to do it until they are satisfied they’ve cleaned up as much as they can. Which means...I-I have to go back to Turkey soon.”
She gasped and went to argue, but I placed my finger over her lips and whispered, “Just to visit. I live here now. I have the visa to prove it. My visits to Turkey won’t be long, but I do need to be seen. My country isn’t evil, canım. Not like him. Turkish people are mostly good and gracious and will give the shirt off their backs to strangers. My father tried to taint that. He smeared my culture and my home with his greed. I suppose every city has good and bad. Every country has a balance of evil and goodness, but I feel as if it’s my duty to clean up the mess my father made. To restore my heritage the best way I can. To be loyal to my origins, all while ensuring my generals do what I’ve commanded them to do.”
“So that’s how you were able to come back to Australia?” she asked quietly. “By working with law enforcement?”
I shrugged. “It was my only condition. They’ve asked me to sully my name and do things I’m definitely not comfortable doing. I would prefer to shut everything down, not become its figurehead. In return, I asked for you. I demanded a passport, visa, and the promise that while I’m in Australia, I will be left alone. In return, I will keep my side of the bargain and continue feeding them information of deals and shipments. I’ll do whatever it takes to repent for what my father did.”
“That’s why you accepted the last name Kara.” She bit her bottom lip, stroking her hands over my bare chest, making me tremble. “That’s why you accepted your inheritance.”
I nodded. “Cem killed Aslan Avci. That part’s not a lie. The moment he took my leg, my tattoo, and my sanity, I lost that part of myself, and I...I became stronger for it. As much as I don’t want to admit that I’m like him, there’s an undeniable part that is. I’m not always a good person. I’m happy to do bad things if it protects those I love. The only difference between Aslan Kara and Aslan Avci is...I’m no longer afraid of that darkness inside me. I don’t need to run from it anymore because that darkness kept me alive long enough to come back to you.”
Turning her around slowly, I grabbed her hands and splayed them on the tiled wall. Her back arched as I ran my fingers down her spine and grabbed her hips. Hot water continued to rain over us. Lust caught me around the back of the throat as I dipped my fingers between her legs and found her drenched.
I choked on a snarl. “You’re so wet, aşkım.”
Her hips rocked back. She whimpered under her breath. “I always am around you.”
Testing her, I dipped two fingers deep inside before pressing my thumb on her clit and grabbing my cock. I fingered her while stroking myself, driving us into that dark tangle that made us reckless and wicked.
“Aslan...” Her head tipped forward, her hair streaming with water. “Please...”
The latent need in her voice. The sinuous grace of her spine. The magnetic charge between us that transcended distance and time.
It was too much.
It wasn’t enough.
It struck a match to my darkness and filled me with savage desire.
Removing my fingers from her core, I smeared her arousal over her hip as I pressed myself between her legs. “I missed this.” I rubbed my cock through her drenched folds. “I missed you.” I angled myself to nudge against her opening. “I missed fucking you.” My voice strangled, deep and smoky.
“Do it,” she gasped. “Fuck me. Please.”
I shuddered as I pushed inside her.
Slowly.
Possessively.
She cried out as I filled her, thickly, slickly, not stopping until my hipbones wedged against her ass and her fingers clawed at the tiles.
Just like that time on The Fluke when she asked me if I could come without moving, I felt the tingle, the pressure. All it would take was a kiss to her spine, a lick of her skin, and I’d spurt so fucking hard inside her.