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The Devils Angel Mafia Underboss Romance Mma Someone To Fight For Book 2 Cassi Hart Full Chapter
The Devils Angel Mafia Underboss Romance Mma Someone To Fight For Book 2 Cassi Hart Full Chapter
The Devils Angel Mafia Underboss Romance Mma Someone To Fight For Book 2 Cassi Hart Full Chapter
Cassi Hart
As I stare into the man’s emotionless dark eyes, I feel cold fear flow through my veins for the first time in my life.
Of course, this was a terrible idea. How could I have been so reckless as to think that the Rossi family’s underboss
would want to help me, the daughter of the Russian pakhan? I am a straight-A student and I have grown up listening to my
father’s stories about the hotheaded Italians. I should have known better. I did know better, but I was desperate. I thought
nothing could be worse than the fate my father is prepared to subject me to, but looking into this man’s eyes, I realize I’ve made
a grave mistake.
My family is going to kill me for this, if this giant of a man doesn’t beat them to it.
I must’ve done something in my previous life to warrant this kind of punishment because I know I’ve been nothing but
good in this one. For twenty-one years, I’ve been nothing short of a perfect daughter, going above and beyond for everyone.
When I was ten years old, my grandfather’s favorite cellist had an accident and couldn’t play anymore, so what did I do?
I begged my parents to enroll me in music classes where I learned how to play the cello and the piano. All my teachers loved
me because I was hard-working and never missed a day of school. I even snagged myself a scholarship to Juilliard in an effort
to make my family proud, and what do I get in return?
The very people I worked so hard to make proud just sold me off to a seventy-year-old man.
See, when my father told me this morning that he wanted to speak to me, I figured he was going to congratulate me for
finishing top in class and tell me he was going to cancel his plans, so he could attend my upcoming showcase. To my
disappointment, he couldn’t care less about my performance, but that was no real surprise. I never expected him to care even
less about my life, though.
My heart cracked in two when he told me it was my duty to our family that I marry a man old enough to be my
grandfather. And for what?
To strengthen our family’s criminal ties.
I have nothing to do with any of it. I’ve never been involved in my family’s shady businesses, and yet, they choose to use
me like this?
Why me?
I mean, sure, all of my siblings are married, but still . . . why me?
I thought being a good daughter was enough to earn my family’s love but apparently not. They care so little that they
would sell me off to an old man, and not just any old man, but the leader of the Albanian crime family. A man known for his
cruel nature.
Hell, even my older siblings thought that it was a good plan and called me selfish when I said I wouldn’t do it.
Their agreement was the final straw that pushed me to rebel for the first time in my life and come to this underground
fighting club, right into the hands of the Italian Mafia.
Despite what my family thinks, I’m not some naive little girl. I know why my father promised me to Anton Berisha. He
wants an alliance between the Russians and the Albanians, something I know the Italians would do anything to prevent. My
plan was to come here and find one of the Rossi family capos and ask for sanctuary. If my family cannot find me, they cannot
force me to marry Anton.
Finding this place was the easiest part. I’ve heard my brothers talk about all the cage fights that happen here and how
many men gather here to watch fights and sometimes even bring their girlfriends with them.
The last thing I expected was to encounter Luca Ricci, the Rossi family underboss and the most feared man in the city.
When he’d grabbed my wrist and spun me around, I’d recognized my father’s greatest enemy immediately.
“I-I’m sorry, I’ll just go,” I whisper, my heart pounding so fast it threatens to burst from my chest. Nothing my father will
do to me could possibly compare the things I’ve heard about this man. “I promise I’ll leave. Please don’t hurt me!”
“I don’t believe for a second that you came here for help. Why are you really here?”
“I’m sorry,” I say again, tears rolling silently down my cheeks, my chest growing tight as my throat closes up, and
suddenly, I can’t breathe. “I—”
He catches me before I can drop to the floor, lowering me gently as I fight to catch my breath. “Slowly,” he says in a
soothing tone I would have never guessed him capable of as he rubs circles over my back. “Slow, deep breaths, princess.
Don’t pass out on me.”
I dig my fingers into the arms he has wrapped around me as I fight not to choke on air, the soothing motions on my back
and the deeply growled assurances ease the ache in my chest but not completely. “P-please . . .”
“I won’t hurt you,” Luca says roughly, his voice sending a calming sensation to my chest. “No one is going to hurt you.”
“Okay,” I whisper, falling slack against him as my lungs resume functioning. I can’t explain it, but something about him
makes me trust what he says. We stay on the cold floor locked in silence, the sound of cheers and rough grunts from down
below echoing through the room.
“I won’t hurt you,” he says again, finally shattering the tense silence. “But you know I can’t let you go, right?”
“Why not?” I whisper, panic swelling in my chest once more. “I promise I didn’t mean any harm. I’m not here to spy. I
won’t say anything to anyone if you let me go. No one knows I came here, and no one will.”
Luca doesn’t respond, and I figure he’s mulling it over, but my hope comes crashing down when he shakes his head. “I
cannot let you leave here and marry the Albanian.”
My head whips around to look at him. “How do you know about that?”
He shakes his head but doesn’t say anything as he helps me to my feet. My instinct is to thank him, but then I remember
the situation I am in and decide to keep quiet, wishing again that I had stayed safely at home.
The thought brings me pause.
There is no telling how long I would be in that home before I’d have to move in with my husband as his fourth wife. The
thought of sharing my bed with the man I’ve been promised to sends a shiver through my body.
“Let’s go,” Luca says, grabbing my wrist, but I dig my heels into the floor.
“Where are we going?” No way am I going anywhere with this man unless he promises to drive me home. “You said you
wouldn’t hurt me.”
“I stand by that,” he says firmly. “I am not going to let anyone else hurt you either, but until I know what to do with you, I
am keeping you with me.”
“What? No!” I cry, grabbing his hand with my left and trying to pry his grip off me. How can he be so casual about
kidnapping me?
“You have two options: be a good little girl and follow me out quietly or continue to be stubborn, and I will be forced to
carry you out. Either way, you are leaving with me.”
My jaw goes slack, fear giving way to anger. “You can’t do that . . . This is illegal!”
“You are smarter than that, princess.”
Shit. He’s right, of course.
I can’t exactly call the police, as that will only make it worse for everyone, myself especially. Hell, I didn’t even bring
my phone with me, afraid my father would use it to track and stop me.
Even so, I can’t let this . . . this . . . rogue kidnap me.
I shake my head, which makes him narrow his eyes at me. Then a wicked smile spreads across his face, sending shivers
dancing over my skin. “Looks like we’re going with option two.”
Luca lets go of my hand and leans down to grab my knees before easily lifting me over his broad shoulders, taking me by
surprise, and for a full second, I don’t know how to react. I feel the firm grip on my legs as he carries me out of the room like I
weigh nothing.
“Put me down,” I cry, punching his back as he carries me down the stairs. “I will scream if you don’t let go of me.”
The man calls my bluff because he doesn’t say a word as he takes me through a private door beneath the stairs. The men
guarding the stairs don’t even blink as we pass. I kick my feet in an attempt to get him to put me down, but he swats my ass, and
I go still, not from the move but from the strange, pulsing heat that throbs between my legs.
I am so mortified by my body’s reaction that I don’t speak another word until we’re outside and he’s putting me down
next to a car. He opens his car door and nods at it. “Get in.”
“If my father finds out that you took me, he will raise hell—”
“You just said no one knows you’re here,” he says smugly.
Damnit!
“I lied,” I argue weakly, but he must read the truth in my eyes because he simply grunts, nodding again at the open door.
“Get in.”
I throw a look into the car and sniff. “What are you going to do with me?”
“I haven’t figured that out yet, but you’ll be safe while you’re with me as long as you behave.”
I swallow hard and take a half step away from the car. “What does that mean, behave? What do you expect me to do?”
His eyes darken impossibly further and he steps closer, forcing me back toward the car until I’m pressed against it. He
braces one arm on either side of me and leans in so his breath ghosts over my ear. “I expect you to do what you’re told. But
don’t worry, princess, I promise you’ll enjoy it.”
My chest heaves as I draw in unsteady breaths, and he’s so close, my breasts nearly brush the fabric of his shirt. My
body feels strung tight, and my eyes dart around him over the dark parking lot.
“No one is going to help you even if they come across us, Katya,” he says, as if reading my thoughts. “You have to know
that everyone in this part of the city answers to me.”
I swallow deeply as I lift my eyes to his much darker ones, and I lose a bit of myself in them. They are nearly black, like
the sea on a stormy night and just as mesmerizing. Under the streetlight, they carry a hint of a challenge, and I am under no
delusion that this man is dangerous, but . . . something about him calls to me, pulls me in.
A part of me wants to leave with him, to take my chances with this enigmatic devil. If he let me go back home, I would
be walking into an arranged marriage. This man offers a chance at an uncertain future, one that could potentially be dangerous,
but at least I won’t end up in the arms and bed of a cruel old man.
Maybe leaving with him won’t be so terrible.
“You promised . . .” I start, chewing at my lips as I ponder my decision a little more. “You promise you won’t hurt me?”
“You have my word.”
I nod, climbing into the car, my nerves fraying when he locks the door behind me. I wait until he’s circled around to his
own side and climbed in before speaking again. “Where are you going to take me?” I ask.
“You’ll come back to my apartment with me.” He must see me stiffen because he adds, “I assure you that you’ll be
treated with respect as long as you behave yourself.”
“So, I’ll be like a guest rather than a captive?” I wince at the unintended edge of sarcasm in my tone.
Luca’s lips tip up in a self-satisfied grin. “No, princess. You’ll be treated like what you are . . . mine.”
As he pulls away from the curb, I can’t help but wonder if I’ve simply traded one monster for another.
Chapter Three
Luca
Katya is suspiciously silent as I drive down the city streets toward my apartment. She’s been awfully quiet since I told
her that she is mine. I can only imagine the whirlwind of emotions she must be feeling. The little Bratva princess now in the
clutches of her father’s enemy.
She knows who I am. It was obvious she recognized me immediately, and her reaction told me she is familiar with my
reputation. I’m sure her father and older brothers have had plenty to say about me over the years.
From what I’ve heard, Katya is not directly involved with her family’s business, but it would be impossible for her to be
totally ignorant. Katya has a reputation as the perfect, obedient daughter. She must know how dangerous it was for her to cross
into Rossi territory. And she still took that risk.
Which makes me wonder how obedient she really is. She has the red hair and gray eyes characteristic of descendants
from the Volga region of Russia. There is no mistaking her ancestry. I can’t help but wonder if she has the fiery temperament
stereotypical of redheads. My cock pulses in my pants at the thought of this beautiful girl misbehaving.
Fuck! I want her.
I would be smart not to allow myself to fall into temptation with the daughter of a rival family and muck up the waters
further. This sexy human is forbidden to me, and I would best remember that.
“What did you mean when you said you came to the club seeking help?” I ask if only to fill up the heavy tension in the
car.
“I was looking for sanctuary,” she whispers reluctantly. “I had hoped to find a capo who would agree to hide me until
my father gave up trying to force me into marrying the Albanian.”
Taking a deep breath, I fight to calm the sudden rage that courses through my veins at the thought of this soft, innocent girl
marrying the brutish Anton Berisha. Not even marriage could save his previous wives from his cruelty. How could her family
subject her to such a fate? It’s no wonder she came to the club, misguided though she was.
“It wouldn’t have worked,” I tell her, and her gaze darts to my face with a look of surprise. She might be Bratva royalty,
but my little princess clearly doesn’t understand how mob politics works. “Offering you sanctuary will cause a gang war.
Anton will be insulted and no doubt do whatever it takes to help your father get you back. They will form an alliance over it,
and we’ll either be forced to give you back or fight it out in the streets. Either way, it won’t save you from being forced to
marry the Albanian the moment your father has you back.”
I glance over at her as I speak and see the color drain for her face. The thought of Katya enduring such a fate sends bile
rising up my throat, and I bite back the urge to promise her that she is mine and nothing will happen to her . . . except she’s not.
And when Matteo finds out that I have Katya Ivanov, he’ll be furious. But he did tell me to stop the alliance between the
Russians and Albanians. Keeping Katya is the key to do that. I just have to figure out a way to do that without risking an all-out
gang war.
“Does that mean you’re going to send me back to my father?” she asks meekly.
I shake my head. “No. I promised to keep you safe. If I give you back to your father and you marry Anton, the Italians
won’t stand a chance against the combined forces of the Russians and the Albanians. It’s a lose-lose. If I give you back, there
will be war. If I keep you, there will be war. Your father has been trying to find a way to push us out of the city for decades.
You’re the key to his success.”
You’re just a pawn in his game, I think, but I don’t say it.
“Maybe when they learn I am missing, they’ll realize they made a mistake, grow worried, and cancel their plans to
marry me off.” There’s so much naive hope in her voice, it makes my gut tighten.
“You don’t really believe that, though, do you, princess?” I ask. She doesn’t respond, but her shoulders slump and she
slides lower in the seat, turning her head to stare unseeingly out the window.
I know how she feels. She isn’t the first to have been betrayed by her own family. Hell, my own father sold me to Matteo
Rossi to pay off his debts when I was only twelve years old. I was meant to be Matteo’s errand boy until I grew old enough to
serve as a soldier. But the old man took a liking to me and took me under his wing. He molded me into the man I am today,
becoming more of a father to me than the sperm-donor who sold me off ever was.
We’re silent for the rest of the trip, and as I drive into the underground parking lot of my building complex, I refuse to
think of how bad of an idea this is.
I should’ve taken her straight to Matteo so he could decide what to do with her, maybe he could ransom her back to her
father or Anton, but . . .
Mine!
She is mine!
Whatever happens, I know I won’t be letting her go, even if Matteo tells me to. I’ll figure out some way to keep her and
avoid this war. No matter what it takes.
I ignore the voice at the back of my head as I turn to the woman in my passenger’s seat. “I am taking you up to my
penthouse until I figure out what to do with you.”
I wonder how long it would take for Anton to lose patience with Viktor Ivanov and walk away from the alliance and
marriage. Can I drag out negotiations for her return long enough to wear Anton down? Probably not. Anton and Viktor know
that their combined resources make them more powerful than us. But without a marriage, any alliance between them would be
weak.
An idea begins to form and I turn to the beautiful girl in my passenger seat as I shift the car into park. “How old are
you?”
She seems surprised by my question, but answers quickly. “I’m twenty-one.” She looks younger than that with her pale,
blemish-free skin and wide, innocent eyes. Good. She’s old enough to make her own choices.
I climb out of the car and walk around to her side, pulling open the door and helping her out. I don’t release my hold on
her arm once she’s standing next to me, instead using my grip to guide her toward the bank of elevators.
“How long will I have to stay with you?” she asks. “I have school and showcase coming up. I can’t just stay locked up in
your apartment.”
She really has no idea what’s happening to her. A feeling dangerously close to sympathy slices through me, but I push it
away. I can’t allow this girl to make me soft. Not when the stakes are so high.
She steps into the elevator ahead of me, and I fall behind, my eyes dropping to her jean clad ass, and I have to fight the
need to reach out and trace my hand over her perfect mounds. She turns around, and that snaps me out of my daydream. I step to
her side before pressing my keycard against the scanner.
“You are staying with me until it’s all sorted out.”
“I will lose my scholarship if I miss classes.”
“That’s not something you need to worry about.”
In fact, losing her scholarship will be the least of her worries if she is caught by anyone from either of the three mob
families. She is safest with me. But I can see by the way she twists her fingers in front of her and bites on her lower lip that this
thought worries her. She’s showing more concern over her schooling than she did over the prospect of marrying a monster.
Looking at her in the reflection of the elevator doors, I silently vow to do whatever it takes to ensure that she’s able to stay in
school.
The elevator doors slide open to reveal my lavish penthouse. The scent of luxury is still something I am not used to after
growing up in poverty. The high floor-to-ceiling windows showcasing the breathtaking city view still feels foreign to the kid
who used to sleep in a little shoebox apartment with five other people.
Katya follows me across the polished marble floors and past the modern artwork adorning the walls. She doesn’t spare
any of it a glance. But when she reaches the living room, she stops dead.
“You play the piano!” She jumps, rushing past me to the grand piano in the corner of the living room. All of her earlier
anxiety is washed away as she settles on the bench and lightly draws her delicate fingers along the lines of the piano. I follow
her into the living room, settling on the plush velvet sofa as my little prisoner traces the keys with her petite fingers, and I can’t
help but picture those fingers on me.
And how those neatly kept nails would feel scratching their way up my back as I thrust my fat cock into her and mark her
as mine. My cock swells in my slacks, pushing hard against my fly as I picture her trembling fingers braced on the piano, body
shaking with pleasure as I fuck her from behind...
I shake my head to be rid of the image, and instead, focus on what she’s doing. There is an easy smile on her pretty lips
as she presses a single key before swinging around to look at me, and suddenly, all I have in my head are thoughts of us
together on the small bench, the little redhead riding my cock as she plays the piano.
Fuck!
I can’t think about this now. I didn’t bring her here to sleep with her. There would be hell to pay for touching her, but she
makes it hard for me to think of anything but her perfect body.
Everything about her tempts me.
“Luca?”
I look up, and our eyes lock. She must read something in my gaze because she gasps, and I figure I must’ve been
unsuccessful at hiding the heat swimming in them.
“Did you say something?” I rasp, my voice thick with desire for this forbidden fruit. My cock is hard and aching, and I
know it’s only going to get worse.
“I asked if you play the piano,” she repeats.
“I don’t,” I say, rising from my seat and walking toward her. “The person I hired to design this place said the piano
added a touch of sophistication to the room.”
“That’s an expensive ‘touch’ to add to a room,” she says breathily when I lean against the piano, and I can tell that she
can feel the tension between us too.
“It was,” I agree nonchalantly.
It would take so little effort to reach down and touch her, skim my fingers over her rosy cheeks and watch those molten
eyes flutter to a close. So easy to erase the distance between us and sweep her lips into mine with a kiss I know we both want,
but . . . I can’t do that.
Katya could be either the key to my future or my downfall. Everything hangs in the balance. There are three ruthless mob
bosses who would do anything to put their hands on her. And If touch her, I’ll never let her go. I will make her mine.
Mine!
I shake my head in an attempt to silence the needy voice at the back of my mind, but it doesn’t do much as the voice only
grows louder, demanding that I claim what belongs to me.
I found her, so she is mine!
Damn my boss and the rest of the old relics that only want to use her for their own gain!
Mine!
“Luca.” My eyes shoot to hers, and there is little I can do to hide just how much I want her. But where I expect to read
fear, I see curiosity. “Uhm . . . Can I take a shower and get some rest? You’ll allow me that at least, right?”
I nod, afraid of what I will say if I speak. I turn around and start walking down the hall, and I hear her steps follow after
me. I am half tempted to lead her to the master bedroom but show her to the guest room instead.
I push open the door and move aside for her to walk in. “Everything you need is in the bathroom, help yourself.”
I turn around to leave, but Katya grabs my arm before I can make my hasty exit. “W-wait, you’re leaving?”
I look down at her hand and up at her wide, innocent eyes, and it takes every last bit of control in me not to push her into
the wall and kiss her. “I have some things I need to take care of in my office,” I say instead.
“But what if I need you?”
Fuck me!
The way she says that word. Need. She’s not helping with my control.
“Goodnight, Katya,” I say gruffly, and she must see the danger she’s in because she lets go of my hand and moves back. I
walk away without another word, hoping I’ll be able to get the hell out of here without losing my goddamned mind and doing
something I can’t take back.
Chapter Four
Katya
I can’t sleep.
Blame it on the unfamiliar bed and the eerie silence this place carries. Without Luca’s heavy presence, the apartment
feels like a mausoleum. In this bedroom, it feels like I am the only person in the world . . . and I hate it. I’ve never been alone
before. If my parents or siblings weren’t around, I was constantly shadowed by my father’s goons tasked with ensuring I never
stepped a toe out of line. It had been hell getting off my father’s property without being seen.
Counting sheep has done nothing to help with sleep. The milk from Luca’s kitchen did even less, and now, I am stuck in
his living room, playing the piano idly.
I want Luca.
I frown at the sudden thought, possibly fueled by the loneliness I am feeling, but I know that’s not exactly true. Wanting
Luca with me has little to do with loneliness. I have always been a lonely child despite being constantly surrounded by people.
My siblings are all from my father’s first marriage and decades older than me. They’ve never wanted anything to do with
me. And all my schoolmates are scared of me because of my family’s reputation. So no, wanting Luca here has nothing to do
with loneliness and everything to do with how he looks at me. No one has ever really seen me before. But when Luca looks at
me, I know he does.
He looks at me like he wants me.
No, he doesn’t just want me. He looks at me like he craves me . . . my touch, my attention. It’s a strange feeling. No one
has ever wanted me before.
No one has ever looked at me the way he does . . .
I’m not naive. Well, I am in some cases as tonight has so blatantly proven, but when it comes to why Luca wants me, I
am not so blind as to miss the way he openly checks out my body, even when he thinks I am not looking.
I know he wants me in ways a man would a woman they’re attracted to. Just thinking about it sends a blush creeping up
my cheeks.
“Snap out of it, Katya,” I whisper, placing my forearm arm over the piano before dropping my head onto it. I run my
fingers over the keys, playing the notes I first learned when I started taking lessons. I lose myself in the soft melodies that fill
the room and occupy the empty part of my soul. I only stop when my fingers start to cramp.
I push back from the piano and stretch my arms over my head, my eyes shooting up to the clock on the wall, and I gasp
when I notice it’s already two in the morning.
Where is Luca? Is he still in his office? In his bed?
My sex throbs at the thought of Luca in his bed. Does he sleep naked with all his muscles and tattoos on display? I shake
my head and mentally scold myself for my thoughts. How stupid. Not only is Luca much older than me, he’s gorgeous and could
have any woman he wants. He might find me attractive, but he’d never truly want the daughter of his worst enemy.
I figure I might as well head back and try to catch sleep, perhaps count more sheep if I can’t fall asleep, but when I turn
around, it’s to find a dark figure seated on the sofa.
“Sweet Jesus!” I jump back, startled, and bump into the piano. My heart is racing so fast I am half afraid it’ll pump its
way out of my chest. “L-Luca, you scared me!”
The man silently watches me from his couch, and I can’t help but notice that he looks like the TV version of a perfect
Italian mob boss, with neatly styled, dark wavy hair a little longer at the top and wearing slacks and a black shirt with the
sleeves cuffed around his elbows, exposing his heavily tattooed arms. I didn’t get a good look at Luca when we first met, too
busy trying to get away from the man, but now that I am calmer, I can’t help but admire how his muscles are perfectly
highlighted by his form-fitting clothes.
I’m not the only one doing some ogling as Luca runs his eyes over my body with such undiluted hunger, it gives him a
predatory air. I follow his eyes down my body and gasp when I see the belt on my robe has come loose and it’s falling open. I
rush to retie the belt, but the damage has already been done.
“Uhm . . . when did you come in?” I whisper, trying to back up, but there is nowhere to go. I am trapped between the man
on the couch and his grand piano.
“I came in a while ago, but you were playing so beautifully, I didn’t want to interrupt you,” he replies, but he doesn’t
move a muscle. I can read the tension in his eyes and in the way his jaw is clenched.
“Right . . . I . . . uhm, I guess I will go to bed now.”
“Don’t move!” It’s not a request, and I don’t take it as one. “Sit back down.”
I drop back to the bench, but instead of facing the piano, I am facing him. My heart is racing so fast, I bet he can hear it
from his place on the couch. “Luca . . .”
“You know why I had to leave you earlier, right?” he says, his face blank.
“You said—”
“Forget what I said,” he grinds out roughly, his voice deeper than it had been earlier. “I had to leave before I gave into
my desire to bend you over the piano and fuck you senseless.”
Oh God.
My cheeks flush deeper at his words, and I break our eye contact. “Luca . . .”
“You have to know the things you do to me, Katya, don’t you?” I spy his hand on his lap, and I follow it to the massive
bulge in his pants. “Or else you wouldn’t have stayed up late and come out here . . . dressed like that.”
I cross my legs and draw my robe tighter around me. I didn’t have anything else to put on, but I don’t think Luca will
care to hear my reason. “I—”
“I tried to stay away,” he says hoarsely. “But like a siren, your presence kept calling me back.”
I shouldn’t like that as much as I do. My skin feels like it’s burning, and it’s all I can do to keep myself rooted to the
bench. “Luca, I . . .”
“Drop the robe, princess,” Luca demands gruffly, and my eyes shoot over to him in shock, but he seems serious. “You
have until I count to five to make up your mind. Run to your room, little girl . . . Once I have my hands on you, you’re mine.”
I chew my lips as I mull over his options, but I don’t really have a choice. Despite knowing who Luca is, I want this man
and whatever attention he’s willing to give me, but . . . to get naked for him?
I have never stripped for a man before. The reminder of my own inexperience presses down on me like a weight on my
shoulders.
“Five.”
My breath catches in my throat when he starts slowly stalking toward me like a lion on the hunt. My entire body heats,
just as it did when he cornered me at the club. If anything, my body’s reaction is stronger this time, my fingers trembling with
the compulsion to give in to this man’s desire.
“Four.”
Luca is perfect in every sense of the word with the body of a Roman god and a face meant to draw women to temptation,
but . . .
“Three.”
Can I really do this? Luca is my father’s enemy and that’s really all I know about the man. Letting him have me would be
a betrayal to my family.
But do I even own my family my loyalty? Hadn’t they betrayed me first?
“Two.”
I should get up and leave. Run to my room and pretend this never happened.
“One.”
With my heart in my throat, I tug at the ties, and the robe slips open to reveal my beaded nipples and drenched folds. My
fingers are shaky as I slip the robe off my shoulders and let it fall to the floor, leaving me completely bare to Luca’s heated
gaze.
“I . . . I’ll stay,” I whisper shyly, watching his features harden as he runs his eyes over me, leaving a tingling sensation on
every spot his gaze touches.
“Sit on the bench and part your legs for me, princess” he commands, palming the massive bulge in his pants. “Show me
that wet pussy.”
I bite my lip and do as he says, spreading my legs shyly to expose the evidence of my arousal, and he makes a deep,
hoarse sound that goes straight to my damp, pulsing sex. His eyes darken and nostrils flare, and I don’t need to look down to
tell what’s got him this way. Not when I am this wet. Not when I can feel the evidence of my own arousal on my thighs, wetter
than I have ever thought I could possibly get, but Luca did this to me.
With his body, his hungry gaze, and his deep husky voice.
“Damn,” he growls. “Look how slick you are, princess, and I haven’t even touched you.”
His words send a hot shiver coursing through my body and moisture gathering at my sex, and I long to hide the effect this
man has on me even with the distance between us, but I am helpless to him. It shames me deeply, but I know I would give
anything he asks of me. The fact that I just met him and know little to nothing about him doesn’t seem to matter now.
Watching him watch me with such undiluted desire is enough to send my head reeling, and I want more of it.
He makes a broken sound when I lift my palm to my breast and cup it, pinching the aching nipple with my fingers. The
move is meant to tease him, but I whimper from the pleasure that shoots up my spine. I slide my hand down my stomach and to
my naked sex, finger trembling as I slide it over the valley of my sex.
“Fuck!” he curses as he unzips his pants, and I watch with bated breath as he tugs his briefs down to draw out his cock,
and I gasp at the impressive girth. He starts stroking his thick shaft in his fist, and when I look up, it’s to find his eyes trained on
me.
This feels forbidden . . . This is forbidden. Luca represents everything that I have been raised to despise . . . but I can’t
stop. I can’t bring myself to turn away from this man.
“You are trouble,” he says harshly, his thoughts echoing my own, as he strokes his cock fast, his dark eyes trained on me.
“You make me want to drop to my knees and worship you. Finger your juicy pussy, eat you up until you’re all I can taste on my
tongue, and then fuck you against that piano until you’ve forgotten how to play the damned thing.”
“Why don’t you?” The words slip out before I know what I am doing.
“You don’t want me to touch you, little girl.”
“Why not?” I challenge, feigning bravery.
“I would break you,” he says hoarsely, his nostrils flaring with so much desire, it has my sex clenching with need. “You
can’t handle me. Not now. Not like this.”
My face falls a little at his words as disappointment filters in. “But I want you to,” I say with a pout, a needy whine
rising up my throat as the thought of pleasuring myself with only my inexperienced hands as he watches leaves me feeling
dissatisfied. I look down, unwilling to see his reaction to my vulnerability. “I—I’ve never done anything like this with anyone
else before, never had someone touch me, and . . . I want you to be the first.”
A long silence follows, and my cheeks burn with mortification, but when I look back up, it’s to find Luca’s eyes still
trained on me, but this time, I read surprise written all over his face.
“You’re a virgin,” he says huskily, and I swallow deeply before nodding. He makes an anguished sound before pushing
his hard cock back into his pants and zipping himself up.
“Luca . . . is that a bad thing?”
He shakes his head as he adjusts his pants. “No, it’s not, princess,” he says getting up, and I watch with bated breath as
he approaches me. “It makes me want you even more.”
He stops right in front of me, grabs my chin, and tips my head up. “You should never have walked through those doors
tonight.”
“But I did,” I whisper shakily.
“You did,” he agrees, rubbing his thumb over my cheek, which makes my heart swell with warmth. “And now, there is
nothing that’s going to stop me from claiming you.”
There is little warning before his lips descend on mine in a toe-curling kiss. I whimper into the kiss as his lips part over
mine with so much need it leaves me achy and sensitive. I lift my fingers to his firm chest, moaning when our tongues touch and
move in an erotic dance against each other.
It’s my first kiss.
The first time I have felt desired, wanted, and I never want it to stop.
Our breaths turn shallow as the kiss grows hot and desperate, and I lose myself in his taste and smell. Christ, everything
about him is perfect. My head swims both from the kiss and his musky scent, but it’s his touch that almost drags me to the edge.
I cry out against his lips when his fingertips skim my nipples, the feeling more heightened than when I did it myself.
Intense pressure gathers between my legs, so strong it sends a fresh wave of heat pooling there until I can feel a trickle down
my thighs.
I drop my hand between my thighs to ease the ache, but Luca grabs me before I can touch myself. “Please,” I whimper
into the kiss, my body shaking with need.
Luca pulls back from the kiss, his eyes on me as he fondles my left breast in his palm, taking the aching nipple between
his fingers and tugging gently. “You are no longer allowed to touch yourself.”
“Please . . .”
He leans down and pecks my lips, kissing a path down my chin. His heavy breath fans my skin sending a rush of heat
through my core. I writhe on the bench, my sex aching with need for relief, but Luca is set on torturing me with his feathered
kisses, but when he dips his head and takes my aching nipple into his hot mouth, there is nothing teasing about the way he sucks
at the bud.
Nothing teasing about the way he drives my overstimulated body to the edge.
I cry out as my back falls against the piano, hitting a few keys as I’m pressed against it. His eyes lift up to mine, and I
whimper at the lust-filled look he throws my way, and it tugs at my heart strings just how much he’s willing to forfeit his
desires for mine. If he’s feeling half of what he’s making me feel, I question how he’s able to hold on to his sanity.
I should . . .
I should do something, but I can’t gather my wits long enough to think past his touch. Before I can come up with anything,
the man drops to his knees between my legs, and my eyes widen to saucers. “Luca, w-what are you—”
“I’m going to take care of you, princess,” he whispers, brushing his lips between my breasts and kissing a trail down my
stomach. My cheeks flush when it registers what it is he’s going to do.
Seeing a man with as dangerous a reputation as Luca drop to his knees, eyes swimming with desire, is not something I
ever imagined would happen to me.
“Just feel, princess,” he says sternly. “Let me take care of you.”
It’s reckless of me to fall for a man I will probably never get to keep, but how can I hold back when he says things like
that?
Chapter Five
Luca
“I assume you’ve heard the news,” Matteo says, scratching his mustache as he stares up at me with a suspicious glit in
his eyes. He is a short, stocky man with a large pot belly and thinning white hair, which gives people the illusion that he is
harmless, but the truth is that Matteo Rossi is as ruthless as they come to anyone outside his own family.
As was his father before him and his grandfather before that.
I can’t say the same thing about the son resting on the couch near his father. Unlike Matteo, Nico is quiet and soft. He has
no interest in his father’s empire, preferring to pursue his passion for cooking instead. Nico is a skilled chef with a kind heart,
something Matteo has only recently come to accept.
Normally, Nico and I would be at odds given his natural position as Matteo’s heir and mine as his father’s second in
command. We are about the same age, and Matteo has always treated me like a son. Fortunately, Nico has never struggled with
jealousy, only too happy to see me take up his father’s mantel. It’s why everyone assumes that I will be Matteo’s heir, though he
hasn’t officially named me as such.
“Luca,” comes a stern voice, and my attention shifts back to my boss.
“Yes, Ivanov’s daughter has been missing for two days now.”
“And you wouldn’t have any idea where she is?”
“No,” I say, my face blank as I lock eyes with my boss’s hard ones. He watches me silently for a long moment, and I
fight the urge to tell him everything. This man has been like a father to me for over a decade. I owe everything I am and all that
I have to him.
But Katya is mine!
I am not handing her over to her father or my boss. I am not about to let these men control her fate.
Isn’t that exactly what you are doing?
I ignore the little voice at the back of my head. I am nothing like these men. Fine, maybe I am just like these men when it
comes to business, and it’s for that very reason that I intend to keep Katya to myself and away from them.
I know how they think.
I know that they would not hesitate to hurt her if it came to that.
No, Katya stays with me until I feel it’s safe. I vowed to protect her even if it cost my life.
“I heard she’s a redhead, a pretty one,” Nico says absently, breaking me from my thoughts, and my eyes shoot to him.
“Hm,” Matteo agrees. “I believe that is why Anton agreed to the alliance so quickly,” he says, his eyes never leaving my
face.
My fists clench at my sides, an action Matteo does not fail to notice. There is something in his expression that I don’t
trust.
“For her sake, I hope Anton isn’t the one who finds her, given his reputation for his treatment of women. Alliance or not,
something tells me his betrothed would not escape his wrath.” Nico plays with his fingers as he speaks, seeming unaware of
the storm his words are causing to burn within me.
Katya is purity and innocence in my world of violence, and I will protect that to the death!
“You know, if we find her first, we could stop the alliance and the war altogether and keep the poor girl safe,” Nico
continues, halting my building rage momentarily.
“What are you talking about?” I demand. “If we find her and don’t return her to Viktor, we’ll have both the Albanians
and the Russians on our asses. Anton won’t let this go any more than Viktor would. They both want this marriage alliance.”
Nico smiles, and I’m suddenly reminded that even though he may not want to take over for his father, he is still every bit
Matteo’s son.
“Ah, but if you found her first and convinced her to marry you instead, the alliance between the Russians and the
Albanians would be dead in the water. And as your wife, no one would dare to touch the girl.”
I suck in a breath as I look from Nico to Matteo. I hadn’t considered this possibility, mostly because I never imagined
Matteo would agree to it. But the smirk playing at his mouth suggests not only did he know what Nico was going to suggest and
agrees with it, but also knows exactly where Katya is.
“What do you think, Luca?” my boss asks.
“You know I’d do anything for the famiglia,” I respond, not yet ready to admit to the truth.
The idea of marrying Katya sends a bolt of want through my chest. Is it really possible that the thing I want most could
also be what stops this war? What Nico says makes sense. If Katya is already married, then Anton cannot use her to form an
alliance with the Russians. And he would never settle for anything less than the pakhan’s daughter as an acceptable bride.
Viktor would have nothing else to offer him, and their arrangement would fall apart. Without the support of the Albanians,
Viktor is no match for the Rossi family.
“Well then,” Matteo says with a clap of his hands, “it’s settled.” He stands and walks to his desk and picks up a piece of
paper, then he walks over toward the door, stopping to whisper in my ear as he passes me. “I’ll give you until this evening to
take care of this.”
He presses the paper into my hand, then reaches up and places a hand on my shoulder, squeezing with a force that makes
me fight back a wince. Matteo may be getting on in years, but he is still as strong as a bull. “And caro mio, this will be the only
time you ever lie to me.” The threat is clear in his voice.
“Si, Don Rossi,” I respond, eyes downcast. He leaves the room without another word.
Nico stands and follows him out, clapping my shoulder good-naturedly and shaking his head with a chuckle as he goes.
“I suppose I better get to the kitchen if we’re to be celebrating a marriage soon,” he calls over his shoulder.
Alone in the room, my shoulders sink as the tension slowly leaves my body. My meeting with Matteo went better than I
could have ever hoped, but I’m not so sure Katya will see it that way. I was a fool to think that I could ever hide something like
this from him, and I know his love for me is the only reason I’m still standing. With a sigh, I turn to leave, glancing at the paper
Matteo gave me as I do.
My lips tip up in a grin, and I chuckle in disbelief when I see it’s a marriage license, already signed by a witness and
notarized. All that’s missing are mine and Katya’s signatures. That old bastard. He really does know everything. It appears I
still have a thing or two to learn from my boss.
Time to get home and convince my princess to trade one marriage alliance for another. I smile to myself as I think of all
the deliciously dirty ways I can convince her.
Twenty minutes later, the elevator doors open to my home and out wafts a delicious smell that has my stomach growling.
There is soft music playing, and I follow the sound and smell to my kitchen to find Katya leaning over something cooking in a
pot, her hips moving in time with the music.
She looks perfect in my house, wearing my clothes as she stirs something in the pot. I don’t imagine I’ve used the kitchen
to cook since I bought this place three years ago.
“Katya,” I call out. She jumps back, her cheeks flushing prettily when her eyes lock on mine.
“Luca, you’re home.” She beams, flashing me a smile that has me falling deeper for this woman. “You’re earlier than I
thought. I’m making chili, but it’s going to take at least half an hour before it’s finally done . . . Wait, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong, princess,” I try to assure her.
“Then why are you looking at me like that?”
I approach Katya and press her back against the counter, careful not to let her get too close to the hot stove. She melts
against me, and I can’t resist leaning in for a kiss. Then another. With immense effort, I pull back and look into her storm gray
eyes.
“We need to talk. I have an important question to ask you,” I tell her.
Chapter Eight
Katya
Babushka, bless her soul, always told me that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.
She told me the story of how she used to make my grandfather his favorite dessert every time he visited the homeland.
My grandfather had promised marriage to a pretty politician’s daughter, but once he grew addicted to my grandmother’s
desserts, he immediately canceled his engagement with the politician’s daughter and married her instead.
I’m not sure of the validity of her story, but I was willing to trust her word when I made Luca chili. I figured if he was
well-fed, then I would find a way to appeal to him to let me leave, if not to say goodbye to my family, then at least to play in my
showcase performance for school.
I don’t hate it here with him. In fact, with Luca is the happiest I have ever been.
Having him pay attention to every word I say, watch me like the sun and moon hang over my head, and make love to me
like it’s his one goal in life.
What more could I ask for?
The past two days have been nothing, but pure bliss, but . . . I’m restless. I have a life to get back to, one I want Luca to
be a part of. My showcase performance is tomorrow morning, and Luca has forbidden me to attend.
I also want to see my parents, if only for closure on that relationship. I know too much has happened for me to ever
return home. And I know my father will never accept Luca. But I want to know why. I need to know. Why couldn’t he love me
the way he loves my siblings? Why couldn’t he listen to me? Why would he promise me to a cruel man like Anton Berisha?
Sure, I have always made it clear that I want no part in the family business. But I’m still his daughter, and they’re still my
family.
Luca’s return home and his heated touch have me shoving those thoughts aside to focus on the man in front of me. I want
to know how his meeting with the Italian don went. Nervous anticipation skitters under my skin as I reach over and turn off the
stove before following Luca into his master bedroom. His lips are on mine the second we’ve walked through the door. So much
for talking.
He’s much gentler than usual, his kisses long and drawn out, that for a moment, I forget everything but this.
God, he feels tailor-made for me. Everything about him, from the way he touches me to how he responds to my shy
caresses, makes it feel like we’re the only people on earth.
When I strip out of my shirt, leaving my body naked, it’s to see his rugged features tighten with lust. He runs his hungry
eyes over my body as he backs me to the bed. I spy the massive ridge on his pants, and the glint in his dark eyes is a testament
to his desire.
I bite my lip when my legs hit the bed and I fall back. Luca climbs on after me with nostrils flaring like a wild predator
scenting prey. “Don’t ever think of leaving me, Katya.”
His words sound like a threat, but instead of fear, all it does is make a hot shiver race through my body, and when he
drops his lips to my skin, raking his teeth along my sensitive flesh, he sends a pulsating flutter between my legs in ways only he
has ever managed to.
And when he kisses me, all I can think about is spending the rest of my life with this man. I long to feel this deep
connection with him every day for the rest of our lives.
“I won’t leave,” I promise, and his features soften but not completely.
Luca seems set on giving me more solid reasons to stay when he skims his fingertips over my nipples before dipping his
head and closing his hot mouth around the aching buds. My back arches with a sob as he sucks lightly at first before increasing
the pressure.
“Luca.” A whimper slips out as he pleasures me with his mouth, rocking his erection against my hip as he does so. He
kisses a trail up my body, and I cry out when he kisses the sensitive spot under my ear.
“I could cum just from kissing you, Katya,” he rasps, pressing the steel ridge of his clothed shaft against my bare sex.
“You feel how hard you make me, princess?”
I push up against his body, rubbing against his cock and no doubt staining his pants with my juices. “Yes.”
“Only you can do this.” His voice carries hints of frustration in it. “Only you have ever driven me to the point of
madness. With this body, and your perfect smile, and the way you talk, how could I not love you?”
I still. “L-love me?”
His words bring me pause, but he doesn’t take them back. Instead, he pushes up and drops his hand over my head, staring
down at me with enough desire in his eyes to send moisture pooling in my sex.
“Yes, Katya,” he breathes, leaning down and brushing his lips softly against mine. “I love you.” He kisses my cheek
before nipping at my neck even as he works down his zipper. “I love everything about you, from the way you look to your
beautiful, pure heart.”
“Luca!” I sob when I feel the hard press of his cock against my entrance, quickly wrapping my legs around his hips as
he slides in slowly past my drenched folds and into my slick opening.
“You are mine, Katya. There is little I wouldn’t do to make sure it stays that way!” he growls, capturing my mouth with
his in a long passionate kiss, one that sends my toes curling in pleasure.
I whimper against his lips as we make love, this time different from anything we’ve done before. I slide my hands down
his back and claw at his shoulders as he thrusts into me with slow powerful drives, sending a rush of wetness between us. My
thighs tremble, and ecstasy coils in my stomach as every thrust has him sinking deeper into me. “Luca . . . faster, please!”
He gives into my desire, sliding his arm underneath my thigh and draping my leg over his shoulder, bringing him
impossibly deeper into my sex. My eyes roll back in my head as pleasure shoots up my spine and down to the tips of my toes
when he starts fucking me earnestly.
“Mine!” he grunts, driving into me with powerful strokes, each move sending me closer and closer to the edge, and when
he drops his thumb between us, strumming my clit in circles, he sends me flying off the cliff.
My muscles clamp hard around his hardness as my lips part in a scream, my walls constricting around his shaft in
jerking moves that send him falling right after me. Luca comes with a bellow, driving his cock into me with a final violent
thrust as he pumps his warm seed into my womb. He fucks me through the orgasm, my muscles spasming around his length and
milking him of everything before he collapses on top of me.
We lie on the bed in silence, the only sound in the room our harsh breathing, and I can’t help but replay his words.
He said he loves me.
He . . . loves me.
“We should probably go and try your chili,” Luca says, dropping his elbow over my head and pushing up to look down
at me. I read the affection in his face, and it floors me.
That someone like him could love me.
“Okay,” I whisper, too choked up to say another word. But as we make our way back to the kitchen, it occurs to me that
he’d wanted to talk about something.
“How did your meeting with Matteo go? What was it we need to talk about?”
Luca takes his time dishing up two bowls of chili and carrying them to the breakfast counter where I’m waiting. As we
settle in to eat, he says, “Matteo, or rather his son, Nico, came up with a way to prevent both the war and your marriage to the
Albanian.”
Shocked, I look up at Luca sharply. “Matteo agreed to help me? He wasn’t angry that you kept me with you and didn’t
tell him right away?”
He smiles enigmatically and responds, “I forgot how difficult it is to keep anything from the old man. He’s known all
along that you’ve been here.”
“So, what is his magical solution to fixing everything?”
“It’s simple really. You’ll marry me instead.”
My jaw drops and my spoon clatters to the counter. I can’t have heard that right. Marry Luca? My father’s most hated
enemy?
But he’s more than that. He’s the first person to ever make me feel loved and cared for. He protected me even when he
thought it could cost him his life. How could I not want to marry this man? But is it what he really wants, or is he being forced
into this?
Gathering my composure, I attempt to keep my voice neutral when I ask, “Is that what you want, or would you do it just
to thwart my father’s plans?”
Luca sets down his own spoon and finally turns to me. My breath hitches at the intense look in his eyes and the emotion I
read there. “I would do nearly anything for my family,” he says. “But I would burn down the entire world, including the Rossi
empire, if it meant keeping you forever. There’s nothing I want more than to marry you, princess.”
I have to force my words past the lump in my throat as I throw my arms around Luca’s neck. “Then let’s get married,” I
whisper in his ear. He pulls back and smiles before kissing me softly. Then he reaches for a piece of paper I hadn’t noticed on
the counter. When he shows it to me, I see that it’s a marriage license and he’s already added his signature. The only thing that’s
missing is mine.
“Is this real?” I ask.
Luca shrugs and smiles. “It’s not exactly the correct order of things. But I don’t think anyone in this city will question a
marriage license witnessed by Matteo Rossi.” I smile back at him and take the pen he offers me, signing my name with a
flourish.
“We’re married,” I say, turning to the man who is now my husband, well, we still have to file the license with the
records office, but that’s a minor detail.
“There’s just one thing left to do now to make it official,” Luca says with a wicked grin.
“Oh? What’s that?”
“We have to consummate our union, of course.” And with that, he scoops me up and carries me back to the bedroom,
leaving our dinner forgotten on the counter. We make love in our bed, and the connection we share is unlike anything before.
Afterward, we grab a shower together, making love again under the hot spray. There is no resisting this man, my husband, and
his perfect body.
Once in bed again, my gentle giant draws me into his arms under the covers, pulling me flush against him, and soon, he’s
out like a light.
I stay up for hours, listening to the sound of his breathing and thinking of how much I want to spend every evening for the
rest of my life feeling warm and protected in the arms of the man that I love.
I love Luca more than I have ever loved anyone in my life, and I want to live out the rest of my life with him, but . . . I
need to leave.
At least for a few hours.
I’ll be back before he even notices that I am gone.
“I love you, Luca,” I whisper, leaning down and placing a soft kiss on his lips before climbing out of bed.
My heart hammers in my chest as I quietly slip into my clothes and exit the bedroom. I am half afraid he will stop me, but
I don’t hear anything as I grab the key card he left on the entry room table.
I have a moment of hesitation as I step into the elevator, but I don't turn back. I need to do this.
I can’t let go of everything I’ve worked for, and at the same time, I need to close the door on my past. I’ll show Luca that
we can be together without him having to lock me up in his apartment to protect me.
As the elevator doors slide closed, I can’t help the heavy feeling that settles in my chest.
Chapter Nine
Luca
Mila
Life after my father’s tragic death has been one disappointment after another. Things only get worse when my mother abandons me, leaving me at the mercy of my
abusive stepfather. When I overhear him on the phone one night offering my virginity as payment for an outstanding debt, I know I have to get out. With nothing but the
clothes on my back, I flee and run straight into the arms of a man I never thought I’d see again. Gunner promises to protect me, says it’s his duty to my late father, who’d
trained him to be one of the best pro boxers our city has ever seen. But I want more than his protection. I want Gunner to claim me, love me, and never let me go.
Gunner
When a slip of girl crashes into me as I’m leaving the gym one night, the last person I expect to see is my late trainer’s daughter. It’s been seven years since I’ve seen her,
and now, despite the fear in her eyes and dirt on her skin, it’s clear she is all grown up and breathtaking. I might be a former pro boxer, but even I can’t fight the temptation
to claim Mila for myself. I owe it to her father to keep her safe, but I quickly realize that the best way to protect Mila is to make her mine. Anyone who wants to get to her
will have to go through me, and I’ll die before I let anyone touch what’s mine.
Tempting My Stepbrother
Soulmate Stalker
Fake Athlete
Fake Assistant
Standalones:
Courting Curves:
Sweetheart Campus:
Coaches Pet
Boxsets:
Big Alpha’s:
Glamorous Brides:
His Weakness
His Mistake
His Apprentice
His Promise
Dearly Devoted:
Hacking my Stalker
Saved by my Stalker
Auctioned to my Boss
The Matchmaker
Forbidden Match
The police won’t listen, and I have no choice but to seek help at Benedetti’s, a bar known for its criminal clientele. But I’m
barely inside the door before a dark eyed devil drags me back out and demands to know why I’m there. I shouldn’t trust him,
but I don’t have a choice when he’s the only one willing to help me.
Too late, I learn who he really is, and now I’m left to wonder… when this is all over, will he save my life only to
break my heart?
KÖYHTYNYT KREIVI.