Born into Sin: An Age Gap Dark Mafia Romance (Devils Will Rise: Melnikov Legacy Book 1)

10. Natalya

Ipace the floor of the guest room while I call Svetlana. It barely rings before she’s answering and asking me a million questions at once.

Laughing, I try to talk over her and say, “Breathe, Sveta. Too many questions, and I can’t hear a single one of them because you’re talking too fast.”

She pauses, taking the first breath since she answered. “What the hell is going on?”

I flop back on the bed and sigh. “So much I don’t even know where to begin.”

“Start with the other night. They said you were shot at and that Grigori’s in the hospital. What the hell happened?”

I fill her in on the details, and when I get to the part where Dominic carried me into his house, she lets out a soft hum of approval and says, “Now we’re getting to the good stuff.”

“Relax. He just wanted to make sure I was safe.”

“Uh-huh.”

I ignore her sarcasm and give her an update on Grigori and a very PG-rated version of events. Part of me wants to tell her every detail, but a bigger part of me wants to keep it just between Dominic and me. It feels private and just for us, and I really want what we shared to stay that way. I do tell her we kissed, though, because I’m only human and she is my best friend.

“Oh my god, is he a good kisser?” She sighs, and I can easily picture the smile on her face. “I bet he is. I mean how could he not be? He looks like pure sin, Natalya, and now that you’ve had a taste, you’ll never be able to get enough.”

I laugh, but she’s not wrong. I never will be able to. He’s always going to leave me craving more.

“My dad is going to kill us,” I say, voicing my worst fear. “He’ll never forgive me for this.”

Svetlana’s voice softens, and just the sound of it makes me feel better. “Your dad could never hate you, and you know that. Is he going to be thrilled that you’ve gone and fallen for a man who’s only a couple years younger than him, a man he’s now trusting to keep his precious daughter safe? No, probably not. When he told Dominic to keep his little princess safe, I’m pretty sure he didn’t mean while you’re naked and in his bed.”

“That is so helpful,” I tell her, but it makes me laugh, which was her goal all along. “And I haven’t been naked in his bed, just to set the record straight.”

“I’m guessing that’s not from lack of trying.” She bursts out laughing after she says it, and I can’t help but join in because she has no idea how accurate she is.

“You’re terrible.”

She lets out another laugh. “I can’t help it. You’re living the dream. I’m a little jealous, but I’m crazy happy for you.”

“I’m not living anything. I’m only here because my dad thinks it’s what’s safest, but that’s not going to last long, and then I’ll have to leave.” The thought makes my chest ache, and before I can start worrying and get all emotional, I say, “I need to get going. My dad’s going to be here any minute, and I know he’s going to want to see me to make sure I’m okay.”

“Try not to look as horny for Dominic as you did the night we went to his club.”

“I did not!”

She snorts out a laugh. “Whatever you say, principessa.”

I laugh at her terrible Italian accent and tell her bye, promising to let her know if anything else happens. As soon as we hang up, I send a quick text to Mia and Sasha through our sibling group chat, thanking Mia for the bag and letting them both know I’m fine. I know they’re getting updates from our parents, but I miss them and want to reach out. I smile when Mia’s message comes in.

I can’t believe you were in a gunfight. All the cool stuff happens to you.

Sasha’s response is right behind hers. Glad you’re okay, sis. Mia, I can tell keeping you safe is going to be my full-time job until the day I die.

She responds with the angel emoji and then throws in a few black hearts for good measure. God, I love the two of them. Still smiling, I put my phone away and start pacing again. I know I told Dominic I’d stay in here, but it’s not like me walking around downstairs is going to alert my dad to anything. It’d actually be weirder to stay up here in a guest room that looks like it hasn’t been used and is devoid of all my stuff. Dominic obviously didn’t think this one through.

Before I can talk myself out of it, I open the door and head back downstairs. I haven’t even gotten halfway down the staircase when I hear my dad’s angry voice.

“Why the hell didn’t you call me as soon as you got him?”

“He was found in my territory by my men,” Dominic calmly reminds him. “I wanted to see if he knew anything before I called you.”

“And how did you expect that to happen? Did you learn Russian while you were gone?”

I recognize my Uncle Roman’s voice, sounding just as pissed as my dad.

“You said you learned something,” my dad says, jumping in again. “How did you translate?”

Dominic hesitates just long enough to have my dad growling, “You better not fucking say what I think you’re about to say.”

The rage in his voice has me picking up the pace as I round the corner and barge into the office I’d just recently been warming Dominic’s cock in. I try not to think about everything we did in this very room while I look up at my dad and uncles before finally meeting Dominic’s eyes. The look he’s giving me makes it clear he’s going to have some things to say once we’re alone again.

“Princess,” my dad says, walking over to me and pulling me in for a tight hug. He kisses the top of my head, and a wave of guilt washes through me. The last person on earth I want to hurt is my dad, but when I look past him and meet Dominic’s brown eyes, I feel torn like I’ve never been before. He watches me while I hug my dad, his face completely unreadable, and when my dad pulls back to see me better, I turn my head to meet the worried look he’s giving me.

“Are you okay?”

“Dad, I’m fine.” When he still doesn’t look convinced, I smile up at him and add, “I promise. Have you heard anything else about Grigori? Is he still recovering okay?”

My dad keeps running his eyes over me, making sure I’m not hurt. “He’s fine, honey. He won’t ever be able to do his old job, but he kept you safe, and he’ll be rewarded for that.”

“Yeah, he’ll be living the good life from here on out,” my Uncle Vitaly jokes. “His wife will spoil him rotten, and he’ll get to relax and work on his beer gut.”

“I’m sure he’ll love that,” I say, feeling guilty for Grigori and the forced retirement he’s about to be handed.

Uncle Vitaly steps closer. “Are you kidding? He’s always talking about how he would love to live in a cabin on the lake and spend his days fishing and drinking beer. He’s going to be thrilled. Danil just hooked him up with a beautiful cabin, and Grigori’s wife is already having their things moved so he can go there once he’s released from the hospital. She thinks it’ll help with his recovery to get him out of the loud city.”

My dad, refusing to be distracted, runs a hand over his jaw, and I watch his lip ring move with the motion. “How does Dominic know what was said?”

I give my dad a big smile. “Because I translated for him.” His jaw hardens and I can feel the anger start to radiate off him, so I quickly add, “I wanted to help, and we made sure that the man never saw or heard me. He has no idea I’m here, Dad.”

“And how the hell did you manage that?” he asks.

My eyes dart to Dominic. He’s standing near his desk, arms crossed over his chest and wearing a very obvious Let’s see how you get your sweet ass out of this one look on his gorgeous face. I force my attention back to my dad.

“He was blindfolded, and I whispered what he was saying. Then I told him how to ask certain questions in Russian. It’s not a big deal, Dad. It didn’t last long, and the guy had no idea I was there.”

My dad turns to Dominic. “I can’t believe you let her do this.”

Dominic sighs and perches on the edge of his desk, resting his hand on the exact spot where he’d eaten me out. His fingers drum on the hard wood, and I feel my face start to flush.

“I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think she was safe, Lev.”

I can’t take my eyes off the way he’s still softly tapping his fingers, and when I finally look up, his dark eyes bore into mine, letting me know that he knows exactly what he’s doing and how it’s affecting me. Uncle Matvey starts talking to my dad in Russian, telling him that maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea, but I can barely focus on that. All I can do is watch Dominic, and when he smacks the top of the desk with his open palm, I give a small jump and my heart races. Yeah, he’s pissed I disobeyed him and came down here. He gives me a very pointed look and smacks the desk again, letting me know it’ll soon be my ass.

My dad and uncles look over at the noise, but Dominic’s perfect mask is back in place and he’s no longer looking like he wants to bend me over and spank my ass red.

“Do you want to know what we found out?” he asks them.

“I want to punch you so fucking hard right now,” my dad says, “but, yes, obviously we want to know what the hell you found out.”

Dominic ignores the punch comment and says, “He works for the Zolotov Bratva. Apparently you recently beat the shit out of Alexei Zolotov. His dad runs the Bratva. He wasn’t pleased about you humiliating his son, so he thought going after Natalya would even things out.”

My dad thinks for a minute. “The only fight I’ve done recently was with some stupid fuck who talked a lot of shit but couldn’t back it up.”

“I’m guessing that stupid fuck was Alexei?” Vitaly asks.

“I had no idea,” my dad says. “He kept his shirt on, so I didn’t see any tattoos. He’d spoken Russian, but it’s not unusual to find Russian speakers in a city this big. I never would’ve guessed he was in a Bratva. He was such a?—”

He stops, searching for the right word until my Uncle Vitaly laughs and says, “Pussy?”

My dad shrugs. “I mean, yeah. I fought him, won, and didn’t think anything else of it.” He looks back at Dominic. “So because I beat this little shit up, his daddy is getting revenge by attacking my family?”

“It looks that way, yes,” Dominic answers.

My dad looks back down at me, and I can see the determination and the my mind is made up look in his eyes. “You’re coming back with me. I’m going to assign extra bodyguards to watch the building, and you’re not leaving the apartment until this is taken care of.”

“I think I’m safer here,” I quickly say, looking to Dominic for help.

“She’s right, Lev.”

I try to hide how much it means to me that Dominic immediately stepped in to help. I don’t want to leave. I’m not ready to walk away from whatever the hell is going on between us, and I can tell he doesn’t want me to either. If he didn’t want me here, I wouldn’t be here. A man like Dominic doesn’t do anything he doesn’t want to do. He’s always in control, and I’m drawn to his dominance in ways I can’t explain.

“How the hell is she safer here?”

Dominic watches my dad and then looks to my uncles. “They don’t know she’s here. They have no idea where Natalya is right now, and we need to keep it that way. They’re looking for her, but this is the last place they’ll ever think to look.”

“He’s right,” my Uncle Danil says. “She’s safer here, Lev, for now at least.”

“We need to question him.” My Uncle Roman motions towards the hall. “Where is he? Downstairs?”

Dominic pushes off from his desk and starts walking out the door. “I’ll bring you to him.”

My dad and uncles follow, and since no one stops me, I tag along. Once we’re back downstairs, I see Dominic’s cousins sitting on the couch. The door where we’d questioned the man is closed, and I’m guessing he’s still in there tied to the chair.

Dominic points to the couch. “These are my cousins, Dario and Alessandro.” He then points to my dad and uncles. “These men run the Melnikov Bratva.” Starting from the left, he goes down the line. “Roman, Danil, Matvey, Vitaly, and Lev.” His brown eyes meet mine, and I hear the soft sigh he gives, clearly not pleased that I haven’t run my ass back to the guest room. “Natalya, you already know, of course.”

Sandro gives me a quick smile, no doubt remembering how I’d been wrapped around his boss not too long ago, whispering into his ear, but Dario keeps his attention on my dad and uncles. Eventually, he gives them a slow nod to acknowledge their presence.

My dad turns to rest his hands on my shoulders. Speaking in Russian, he asks, “Are you sure you’re okay staying here? If you want to leave, we can make it work. Maybe you could go to the farmhouse, or you could stay with Sveta?”

“Dad, it’s okay. I’ll be fine here. I don’t want to make things harder or put anyone else at risk. You don’t need to be worrying about this when you need to be focusing on stopping this guy. Will Mia and Sasha be okay? What about Sveta and Yelena?”

“All the kids will be on lockdown,” my dad says.

“Hell yes they will be,” my Uncle Matvey adds. “A threat on one of us is a threat to the entire family.”

Uncle Roman joins in. “If they can’t find you, it’s very possible they’ll go after someone else.”

They see my worried look, and Uncle Danil says, “Don’t worry. No one is allowed to go anywhere right now or be left alone. We already have extra men watching over everyone, and I’m going to find out everything I can about the Zolotov Bratva. We’ll also be questioning the guy Dominic’s men found.”

“We’re going to end this, princess,” my dad tells me, squeezing my shoulders and kissing the top of my head. “I love you. Now go upstairs because your part in this is done. I don’t want this asshole anywhere near you.”

“I love you too, Dad. Be careful.”

He gives me a big smile that pulls his lip ring to the side. “Always, princess.”

Uncle Vitaly sends off a quick text. “I’m going to pick up Val, Luka, and Max. I’ll meet you guys at the warehouse.” He gives me a grin, reminding me so much of Sveta. “It’s time to teach some interrogation techniques. These pearls of wisdom need to be passed down.”

I can’t help but laugh at his excitement. My family is so fucked up, but I love them all so goddamn much. I give them each a hug and tell them to be safe before turning to go back upstairs. I chance one quick look back to see Dominic staring at me. One corner of his mouth lifts up just enough for me to see the secret smile, and then it’s gone and he’s leading the others to the closed door. I know he won’t open it until I’m gone, so I go back upstairs. Knowing my dad won’t be coming up to look for me, I bypass the guest room and go back into Dominic’s.

Being in his personal space calms me, and when I lay down on the bed and hug one of his pillows to me, I can smell him on the sheets, the spicy cologne that I can’t ever seem to get enough of surrounds me as I snuggle in deeper. The huge picture of Bernini’s sculpture hangs on the wall directly in front of me, and I study it while I wait for Dominic. I’m just as intrigued by it as I was the first time I saw it and make a mental note to send Sveta a picture of it. I know she’ll love it purely from an artist’s standpoint. I wish I had even a smidgen of her artistic talent, but I can’t seem to get beyond stick figures. She gets so annoyed when I ask her to draw in front of me because I’m constantly interrupting to ask her how in the hell she does it. She keeps telling me I could learn if I practice enough, but I’m not so sure about that. My eyes run over Hades’s hand and how it’s gripping Persephone’s thigh. I’m not so sure the talent involved in something like that could ever be fully learned. I’m guessing I could eventually move beyond basic stick figures, but I’m pretty sure a lifetime of practice would never have me creating the next MonaLisa.

I’m still lost in the lines of the sculpture when I hear the door open behind me. Sitting up, I turn and watch Dominic enter the room, shutting the door behind him. He must be exhausted, but he walks toward me like a lion stalking his prey. His dark eyes run over me, lingering on the way my dress has hiked up my thigh.

I can tell he’s still angry that I didn’t stay in the guest room like he’d told me to, but when I start to apologize, he holds up his hand. My words die in my throat, not because I’m so quick to follow orders but because I’m surprised by the barely contained rage behind the movement.

“I don’t want to hear your apology, principessa.”

His accent is thicker, voice deeper, and when he puts his hands on his hips and shakes his head, I’m distracted by the olive skin of his forearms and the obvious veins that disappear under his rolled-up shirt. That vivid octopus tattoo is going to be the end of me. His angry string of Italian jolts me out of my haze, and I bring my eyes to meet his. He’s still pissed. That much is obvious. He keeps his dark eyes on mine and hisses out another sentence. I don’t understand a damn bit of it, but each word has my panties growing a little wetter.

I lick my lips and say, “Please tell me that means get naked and spread your legs for me in Italian.”

He barks out a harsh laugh, disbelief written all over his face. “I’m torn between wanting to spank your ass red and wanting to fuck you so hard you won’t be able to walk for days.”

A blush creeps up my chest at his words. I’ve seen this man’s cock. I know this isn’t an idle threat, and even though part of my brain is screaming at me to clamp my thighs shut and protect my innocent pussy, the other part must be stronger because it already has me opening my legs in invitation while I almost purr out a yes please.

Dominic notices and sighs. “Don’t fucking tempt me, principessa. I’m barely hanging on as is.”

“Then let go and take what you want.”

“Natalya,” he warns, closing the distance between us until he’s standing right in front of me. He towers over me, reminding me of our size difference, but instead of scooting away from him like he’s probably secretly hoping I will, I get up on my knees and rest my hands on his chest.

“Your dad was just here,” he reminds me.

“But he’s not now.”

He reaches a hand up, sliding his fingers into my hair and cupping the back of my head, holding me in place as he steps closer. Our chests are almost touching, and I can feel the rapid beat of his heart against the palm of my hand. Bringing his other hand to my face, he grazes the back of his knuckles along my cheek.

“How long before he notices the way you look at me?”

My breath catches in my throat, and I can’t look away. I’m caught in his stare, the intensity in his dark eyes and the hunger that’s right below the surface, boiling and ready to spill over. I’m tired of him holding back, so I take a breath and move my fingers to the top button of his shirt.

“Natalya,” he growls in warning when I pop open the first button.

I start on the second. “I can hide how I’m feeling.”

He raises a brow at me. “Since when?” The pad of one finger runs along my cheek. “I know when a woman wants to fuck me, sweetheart, and you’ve been giving me fuck-me eyes since I saw you at the farmhouse. Someone’s going to notice.”

My fingers still at the casual fuck-me eyes comment. I’d been hoping this might be something more to him, but if he’s just going to lump me into the large pool of women who just want a quick fuck from him, then I have no desire to take this any further.

His head tilts as he watches me, immediately noticing the change in my demeanor. Keeping my gaze focused on the button my fingers were just working on, I say, “I think I might have misread things.”

When I start to pull back, he grabs my wrists, holding me in place. “Misread what?” His voice is soft, but there’s an edge to it.

“What you want.”

“And what do I want, principessa?”

Pulling one of my hands up, he drags his nose along the inside of my wrist, inhaling the scent of my skin. My heart races at the intimate touch and the gentle way he’s holding me in place.

“A quick fuck,” I whisper. “A one-time thing.”

He gives a sexy laugh, the heat of it hitting my sensitive skin before he places a kiss on my inner wrist. His eyes meet mine, and the heat in them has me parting my lips.

“Quick is not something I want with you.” He kisses my inner wrist again. “Hours, days, years.” He pauses, gauging my reaction before whispering “A lifetime” against my skin. “And as far as the one-time thing you’re so worried about, that was never going to happen. I knew the second I laid eyes on you that one time would never be enough.”

“Dominic,” I whisper, watching him slowly kiss a line down my arm.

“I know you’re scared and this is all new for you, but please don’t ever insult me like that again. I would never treat you like that. I would never fuck you and toss you aside. I want you, Natalya, all of you, and once I have you, I’m not letting you go.”

The wet heat of his tongue runs along the inside of my elbow, causing a shiver to run down my spine and a growing ache to bloom between my legs. His lips press against the spot he just licked, sucking me gently and making me rethink my position on elbows not being sexy places on the body. I had no idea the crook of my arm was so goddamn sensitive.

“Damn,” I whisper, making him give a soft laugh before lifting his eyes to mine.

“I could teach you so many things, principessa, but the choice is yours. If you don’t want this to go any further, then you need to tell me now. I’ll walk out that door and never lay another hand on you again.”

My heart races at the thought of him leaving, and my hand grips his forearm like I have the physical strength to hold him in place. His lips quirk up in the sexiest grin at my instinct to latch onto him.

“What’s option two?” I whisper, already knowing I want nothing to do with option one.

“Option two?” He hovers his mouth over my skin and meets my eyes again. “That’s where I spend the night fucking this sweet body and making it mine, principessa, and once it’s mine, it will never be anyone else’s.”

My eyes grow heavy-lidded at his words and I try to pull my arms free so I can wrap them around him, but he tightens his grip on me. Holding me in place, he gives me another slow, teasing lick along my inner arm.

“Dominic,” I whisper, needing to touch him. “Please.”

Ignoring me, he straightens back up and looks down at me. “Choose wisely, sweetheart. Once I slide into you, it’s the only cock you’re ever going to have. I will never share you, and I will never let you go.”

My head is spinning with everything he’s said, and my anxiety starts to rise. I know how I feel about him, and I know it’s not going to change, but what about him? So I ask the question that terrifies me.

“What if you decide you don’t want me anymore? What if you don’t like it? What if I’m not good at it and you decide you want someone else?”

The thought of him with another woman causes an ache in my chest, but I’d rather know now instead of later. His face softens when he looks down at me. He lets go of my arms so he can cup my face and press his body to mine.

“I haven’t even looked at another woman since I saw you step out of that car, Natalya. You’re all I can fucking think about. I would never be unfaithful to you.” He gives me a sexy smile and drags his finger along my jaw. “And there’s no way in hell you could ever be bad in bed. You’re way too goddamn sexy when you come on my face. Your soft whimpers, the way you rock your hips and pull my hair, fuck, principessa, you were made for me.”

He drags the pad of his thumb along the seam of my lips and lets out a sexy groan. “If you’re going to choose option one, you need to do it now.”

“Why’s that?” I smile against his thumb, unable to resist teasing him a bit.

“So I can bury my head between your legs again and convince you that you made the wrong choice.”

I smile and kiss the pad of his thumb. “You”re very confident in your skills.”

He gives another deep, sexy laugh and my whole body melts at the sound. I love seeing him like this. The armor is down, the weight of the world no longer sits on his shoulders, and with the big, unguarded smile on his face, he looks so much younger than his forty-three years.

Leaning closer so our lips are almost touching, he whispers, “I’m very confident in your body’s reaction to me.”

To prove his point, he closes the distance and gives my top lip a soft suck while dragging his fingers down my spine. I let out a soft gasp and melt against him, opening my lips for more.

“Do you see how perfect you are?” he murmurs, teasing me with another soft lick. His hand trails lower, tracing my spine until he reaches my ass. Filling his palm with one cheek, he gives me a squeeze and presses me even tighter against him. The hard length of him digs into my stomach, and all I want to do is get him naked and inside me.

“Do you want this?” He rocks his hips and nips at my lip again. When I nod my head, he squeezes my ass harder. “I need to hear you say it, principessa.”

“Yes, I want this,” I whisper, already reaching up to start on his buttons again.

“You want what?” His mouth lifts in a sexy smile as he rocks his hips again.

“You know what I want.”

He smiles even bigger at my tone and the way my cheeks are turning red. Pulling back just enough for him to see me better, he drags a finger along one of my flaming cheeks.

“I know exactly what you want, Natalya, but I want to hear you say it.” His finger runs over my mouth, lightly grazing my lips. “I want to hear those filthy words come from your sweet mouth.”

Cupping my face and ass, he lightly grazes my cheek with his nose, breathing me in before he whispers, “Say it, sweetheart. Say, Dominic, I want your cock inside me. Tell me that you don’t care that I’m more than twice your age or that I’m friends with your dad. Let me hear you say it, principessa.”

The hand on my ass slips lower before he snakes it under my dress and inside my panties, filling his palm with my bare cheek. He massages me, digging his fingers in and kneading my round ass until I’m practically purring at how damn good it feels. When he dips lower and cups my bare pussy, he growls something in Italian and holds me tighter.

“You’re so fucking wet.” His accent is thicker, and the sound of it has me wetting his fingers even more. When he feels it, he groans and rests one finger along my soaking wet slit, pressing in just hard enough to part my lips without sinking fully inside. When I clench around his finger, he groans and growls, “Jesus fucking Christ, principessa. You trying to pull me in?”

“Maybe.”

“Tell me.” He presses in just a bit harder. “Fucking beg me for it.”

I’m all set to hold out because I like the push-and-pull we have going, but then he brushes the pad of his finger along my clit, and I’m done for.

“Please,” I beg.

When he just raises a brow at me, I add, “I want your cock inside me, Dominic.”

I’m rewarded with another soft stroke along my clit.

“I don’t care that you’re more than twice my age.”

My knees nearly buckle when he drags his finger along my sensitive folds, making every part of my body throb with need.

“And?”

I meet his gorgeous eyes. “And I don’t care that you”re friends with my dad.”

“Good girl,” he groans and very slowly slides his finger into me. “This is mine, principessa. Say it.”

“This is yours,” I whisper, clutching his shirt as he fingers me faster.

“What’s mine?”

I let out a frustrated groan that has him fighting a grin. “My pussy,” I tell him. “My pussy is yours, Dominic.”

“Only mine?”

“Yes.” Sliding my hand down, I grip the hard length of him. “And what about you?”

I don’t miss the soft laugh he gives. “What about me?”

“Is this mine and only mine?”

I massage his cock, feeling it grow even bigger as he strains against his pants, desperate to break free and claim me. He closes his eyes, rocking his hips and leaning into my touch. The sight of him so obviously enjoying my touch is the sexiest goddamn thing I’ve ever seen.

“Is it?” I ask again, and this time when he opens his eyes to meet mine, the raw hunger in them steals the breath from my lungs. Keeping his finger buried inside me, he brings his other hand to wrap around mine, squeezing me so I’m gripping his cock tighter.

“This is yours, principessa, and only yours. No other woman will ever have it. I’m not a good man, sweetheart, but I am a man of my word, and I’m giving it to you now. I am yours, and you are mine. I’m done fighting it.”

As soon as the words leave his gorgeous lips, he’s pressing his mouth to mine and kissing me like he’ll never be able to get enough. He fingers me from behind as he sucks my tongue further into his mouth. The soft strokes against my inner walls pull feral groans from my body as I clutch his shirt with one hand and his cock with the other, using both to pull him harder against me.

“I’m going to need you to get naked now.” I pant the words out in between kissing him, feeling his lips pull up in a smile.

He slides his finger out of me with a deliberate slowness that has me arching my back and letting out a needy whimper that would embarrass me in any other situation.

“You’re so beautiful when you’re like this, principessa, so desperate for what only I can give you.” He keeps his eyes on mine as he brings his wet finger to his lips, slowly sucking it clean. “I will never get tired of tasting you. So fucking delicious.” He cups my face and runs his tongue along the seam of my lips, giving me a hint of my own juices. “I think I might be addicted to you.”

He’s not joking when he says it. Instead, he looks completely serious and slightly stunned.

“You don’t have to look so dumbfounded by it,” I say, coming to my own defense.

“But I am.”

“Nice, Dominic. That’s exactly what I want to hear right now.”

He smiles and runs a hand up the side of my dress. “You’re so fond of pink, but I think red might suit you better. When you get upset, you release your claws, principessa, and go for blood.”

When I start to argue, he brings a hand to my neck, tightening his fingers just enough to cut off my words and startle me into silence. He smirks at the angry, wide-eyed look I’m giving him.

“Like I said, claws, sweetheart, but don’t try to bleed me just yet. I never wanted relationships or love or kids. The very idea of it has always terrified me and made me feel like I couldn’t breathe, but then I came back to America and watched you step out of Svetlana’s car in that pink dress and those fucking heels.” He groans and shakes his head. “Those fucking goddamn heels. I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind. I can’t stop thinking about you and wanting you and wishing I had you. It’s driving me fucking crazy.”

I grip his wrist and he loosens his grip on my neck just enough so I can speak. “And what about now? What do you want now?”

The dark look in his eyes as he takes in the sight of me should be a warning. It should remind me of how dangerous he is, but instead it just makes me want him all the more.

“What do I want now?” His voice is low and strained, and I can tell he’s trying to keep himself in check.

“Yes,” I whisper. “What do you want?”

“I want to fuck you. I want to slide into you so deeply that you’ll never be free of me. I want to mark you as mine. I want to hear you scream my name and beg me for more, and I want to fill your pussy with so much cum you’ll be dripping it for days. I want every fucking part of you, principessa, and I don’t know what in the hell to do about that.”

“Then do it,” I say, surprising the hell out of him. “Do everything you just said.”

“You want me to fuck you raw?”

“Yes,” I tell him, meaning it. If it were anyone else, I’d be yelling fuck no and getting my ass the hell out of here, but this isn’t just anyone, and the idea of Dominic fucking me skin-to-skin and coming inside me has my whole body humming with pleasure and about to burst.

“You don’t know what you’re asking.”

I smile and start working on his buttons again. “I know exactly what I’m asking, so are you going to give me what I want or not?”

He gives me another sexy grin, the ones I’m quickly becoming addicted to, and tightens his grip on my neck, pulling me closer so our lips are almost touching.

“I’m not convinced you can handle it, principessa. I’ve been using all my willpower since you came into my home, and I’m about at the end of it.” He kisses me hard, letting me feel his strength, the power behind his touch and the way his body is softly shaking as he tries to restrain himself.

“I’m terrified I’m going to break you in two, little one.” He groans and bites my top lip before sucking the pain away. “I don’t want to hurt you,” he admits, and the pain in his voice has me reaching up to cup his face.

“I trust you, Dominic. I know you won’t give me more than I can take.” He still doesn’t seem convinced, so I kiss him again and say, “I trust you with my body, and I trust you with my heart. I know you won’t break either one.”

Letting go of my neck, he slides the palm of his hand down so it’s resting on my heart. His brown eyes meet mine as he whispers, “Never, principessa.”

Kissing me gently, he murmurs against my lips, “I’m trusting you too, Natalya. I’m trusting you to not break my heart, because I wouldn’t fucking survive it, sweetheart.”