Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 78236 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78236 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
Only when I marry will they be mine.
“Now, why are you grumbling about a top ten?”
I scan the paperwork. There’s nothing there that I haven’t already memorized. That I know will soon be mine by rights.
I want all of this right now.
The founding families signed this contract. The businesses I’ve been wanting to manage are now within reach. It’s so close I can feel it. And with Rya standing beside me as the most powerful woman—we will be untouchable.
“It’s something Rya said,” I grit out.
“Do you really think you can get her to agree to marry you? She hasn’t been in our world for a long time.”
“But she knows the world, and you know it’s always been her.” I’ve been fixated on her from the moment I laid eyes on her. She’s mine. Contracted or not. The more she fights it, the more I want to break her into submission. To watch the beautiful little vixen admit that she’s mine. And mine alone.
“Yes, and I think every other woman you’ve fucked has known that too.” He laughs. “Remember that one time you asked Tiffany to dye her hair and wear contacts when you were fucking her?” He shakes his head. “She was pissed and came out of your room ready to murder someone.”
“I have a thing for women with caramel-colored hair,” I say, smiling.
“Yeah, I think we all know that.” Dominic stands and taps me on the back. “I must say, despite the muttering, you seem less stressed. Did you finally get laid?”
I smile at the vivid memory of Rya straddling me, and it makes my cock twitch.
“Oh shit, you did. Who was the woman?”
“It was her.”
His brows raise in surprise. “Well, shit. So are we planning the wedding?”
“She made me promise that in exchange for us fucking, I would stop asking her to marry me.”
He smirks at that.
And so do I.
CHAPTER 18
Rya
For two days in a row, I have seen Angel. It’s nice to have a visit with her after work and then have some dinner with her. She hasn’t brought him up, though I know she’s dying to.
The first night, she asked me about the mark on my neck. That bastard left his claim on me, and no amount of makeup could cover the dark purple mark entirely. I brushed it off, saying it was some mystery man. But she and I both know that Crue wouldn’t let any other man touch me. Which is painfully irritating and sexy as all hell, considering he’s visited my dreams every night since.
I shouldn’t want it again.
I hate him.
But my body is a treacherous thing.
And it pains me to admit it had been the best sex of my life.
Tonight, Angel sits across from me, glowing with her pregnancy, and I have a feeling she is going to ask. She’s mentioned him in passing comments, gauging my reactions. And I’ve given her nothing.
What is there to tell?
Am I supposed to say, “Hey, I fucked your brother-in-law, and the sex was amazing. I’m already dreaming about when it can happen again. But did you know he’s a psycho and that he kills people who piss him off?” I mean, she more than likely knows all that already.
We sit in my living room on the couch with the television playing in the background, not that either of us is watching it as we finish our takeout.
She sighs. “I’ve really enjoyed this. We shouldn’t have waited so long to get together again.”
I nod in agreement. Life seemed to get so busy so fast. And although it’s been fourteen years, having Angel here in my New York apartment doesn’t feel strange. It’s as if no time has passed between us, and we are back where we were all that time ago.
There’s a deliberate pause as she watches me.
“Say it, Angel.”
She quirks a smile. She’s never been one to be shy or beat around the bush. Not with me. Not with anyone. And that’s saying something, considering she married a man from one of the most established criminal families.
“Do you think you’ll ever come back home?”
“To Italy?”
She nods.
“Nope. No interest. This is my home now.”
Angel seems a little sad at these words, but she nods as she takes a small bite of her dinner.
“Your name has been circulating a lot back home, you know.”
“Because of this marriage shit?”
She nods.
“Has nothing to do with me. I never agreed to it.”
Her gaze lands on my neck, and I feel a slight flush of heat across my cheek. A woman has needs. The problem is, I can’t entirely deny I wouldn’t do it again. There is no way a woman has that much self-control. The man knows how to fuck, and that fact calls to me.
“I have to go back soon, and Dominic is coming with me,” she says, reaching for her glass of water. Following her cue, I take a sip of my red wine.