Auctioned to the Kingpin (Sold To The Naughty List)

Chapter One

Killian

I’ve just come from burying my asshole father, and as I return to my office to pour myself a glass of whiskey, neat, I spot a package on my clean dark mahogany desk. “What the hell is this?” I snarl. Only one person is allowed in here, so she was the one who placed it on my desk, but it’s not that. It’s the ominous feeling that washes over me as I read over the script on the fancy package.

To be opened only by Killian J. King.

This package must contain the papers for his estate. I expected them to be delivered personally unless there’s something in here I won’t like. The phrase Don’t shoot the messenger is definitely a warning made for a man like me. I’m not too forgiving when it comes to bad news, and my father’s antics were always full of it. His death has been a mixed bag. I was glad to see the bastard go, but then he left me with a bunch of little problems along the damn way.

I open the envelope from Liars, Thieves, and Cheats, LLC, or like they prefer to be referred to—Landers, Thomas, and Colby, LLC. If I could put bullets in each of their heads and get away unscathed, I would, but they’re almost as dirty as I am. Shit, they are lawyers. They have their own circle in hell reserved for them.

Inside is my father’s will with a letter attached, and another mid-sized envelope. I tug the letter from the paper clip and read it.

Dear Son,

I’m gone, and I’m sure it’s what both of us wanted by now. I’m not sure you deserve everything I’ve built, considering you’ve told me I mismanaged it. Be that as it may, I want to leave it to you on one condition.

You marry by New Year’s Day.

I fall back in my leather chair, dropping the letter on the floor. My mouth falls all the fucking way open at the stupidity of this idea. He can take his shit and shove it, because I am my own empire. I run these streets, dominate the city, and I am the fucking Kingpin. I kill those who cross me and make people pay just to grace my presence.

“Who the fuck does he think he is?” He can rot in his grave.

I scoop up the letter and read on, thinking maybe he’s fucking around with me, just to see the rest of the arrogance before I toss it in the trash.

I’m sure you find it amusing as you consider tossing this letter in the trash.

I guess the fucker knew me better than he let on.

So, before you throw away my portion of the King empire and my command, just know that I’ll hand it over to the Mendez Family. My lawyers have already drawn the papers up for them to take control should you not fulfill your end of the deal.

Sincerely,

Your father.

The bastard got me.

I might not give a shit about his things or fortune, but I refuse to give it to those worthless pieces of shit—the same fuckers who had a hand in my mother’s death. How the fuck could he do this to me? He knew how much my mother meant to me, and he sided with them. I hope the he burns in hell.

There’s a knock on my office door, interrupting my burning hot rage. I want to tear this letter to shreds, but then, what good would it do me because I’m sure there are copies and valid documents instructing the transfer on New Year’s Day? The bastard had no love for my mother, and I hate him for it.

“Come in,” I bark out. My nervous assistant, Jenna, steps inside, and I suppose her nervousness is natural, given my mood.

She’s in her late twenties, smart and hardworking. Unlike the rest of the world, she doesn’t pay attention to my illegal affairs. She focuses strictly on her tasks, and that’s why she still works here. “Sir, there’s a call on line one for you; it’s Mr. Colby.”

My face must give away my mood because she takes a step back toward the door. “I’ll take the call, and then I’ll be leaving the office for the day.”

“Yes, sir. Should I clear your calendar for the day, or will you take calls from home?”

“Cancel them.” I wave her off because I need to be alone to deal with this worm on the line who has been my father’s little stooge for years.

Once she closes the door behind her and the sound of her heels has dissipated, I click line one. “What the fuck do you have to say, Colby?”

“You received the package, then?” he answers with a smile in his voice.

“Yes, and it’s bullshit.”

“I can assure you it isn’t. Everything in it is one hundred percent legal.”

“Yes, I’m sure it’s ironclad. I hadn’t gotten down to the bones of the document when you so rudely interrupted, so what the hell do you want?”

“I just wanted to ensure that you took the matter seriously.”

“Why don’t you come here, and I’ll show you how seriously I’m taking the matter?” I answer with a devilish tone that makes my meaning clear. I’ll bury him right next to my father.

“Let's not.”

“Exactly. My father was a twisted bastard and the reason I’m not looking for a wife. If I wanted someone to spend my money, I would waste it on shady lawyers like you. If I need a good fuck, a whore or my hand can do the job just fine. What I don’t need is to have a wife. How do I get out of this?”

“You could just not take your father’s deal, and it goes to your rival.”

“It’s like you really do want to join my father in the afterlife.”

“Not yet, little prince.”

“You forget I’m the motherfucking King. Now—I’m not going to have to stay married to her, am I?”

“Oh, yes. You haven’t gotten to the good part of the will yet either.” He’s giddy on the other end, as if I don’t want to snap his neck. My hand grabs the pencil on my desk and snaps it in two.

“What the fuck is it?”

“The whole point of you getting the property and the like is to produce a legitimate heir. The Mendez Family has many heirs. You will need to produce one with your wife.”

“What? I thought I got it if I married by New Year’s Eve.”

“Yes, but you also have to stay married until you produce an heir.”

“How will you know if she’s fertile?”

“Ah, that is where the next little thing is in there. Inside is an envelope with a special treat just in time for the holidays. A healthy bride of your choosing from a selection of candidates that will be worth your while. Good luck.”

I pull out the final envelope. It’s black with gold lettering and it reads: “You’ve been added to The Naughty List .”

I slid the six-by-eight card out and read the invitation.

Mr. Killian J. King, this is an exclusive invitation to a private event taking place on December twentieth at the private Montenegro Estate. The Naughty List is a special auction for exclusive clientele. We hope you will enjoy your stay.

I check my calendar and realize that it’s this weekend. Of course, I don’t plan on following through with my father’s demands, but do I want to lose his property to my enemy?

I call my lawyer. “Meet me in an hour.”

“I’m in the middle of an important case.”

“I said meet me.”

“Where?”

“My condo, downtown.”

“Okay.”

I arrive at the condo, tugging off my tie, pouring myself two fingers of vodka which I drink down easily, and then throwing back another glass. My security alerts me that my lawyer has arrived. “Send his ass up.”

I pace until I hear his approach. When he enters, he shakes his head. “You know, it would help if you told them I was coming.”

“Don’t give me shit today, or I’ll shoot you,” I grumble.

“Okay, okay. Someone is in a mood today. What is it?” I hand him the letter from my father first.

His expression hardens as he reads it. “What a fucking prick. Where are the legal documents?” He drops to the sofa as I hand him the fucking dreadful will. Every damn page seared into my brain, making me feel volatile.

“The bastard found a way to stick it to me after all these years,” I grumble, setting down a glass of vodka for my lawyer. Jason isn’t a bad lawyer. In fact, he’s considered one of the best. We are even friends, even though I’m pretty sure he can’t get me out of this. However, I need to be absolutely positive.

After ten minutes, he tells me what I don’t want to hear. “I hate to say it, but it’s the truth. Although he can’t make you do anything listed here, he also isn’t forcing you either, so this will is legal. When your father drafted it, he was of sound mind.”

“I know he was, because this is just like him. He hated my mother when she left him, so her death made him happy, so much so I wondered if he was involved in her death,” I growl. There was never any proof, but the man was a master manipulator, so it was possible he pulled it off.

He sets his glass down on the table and asks, “So, what are you going to do?”

“I don’t have a woman in mind that I’d prefer to marry and have my kid. Do you believe this invite is legitimate?”

“Yes. I know of a guy who married one of the women he bought from here. He’s actually obsessed with her, so it’s not a bad idea. At least you know if you knock her up, it’s your kid.”

“That’s true, and that’s probably why he set it up that way. If she’s going to have the King family heir, then it’s a safe bet that she’s a virgin, but I don’t need her to be. After all, I just need to be married by the new year. I don’t have to fuck my kid into someone by then.”

“That’s true.”

“Are you going to the auction?”

“I suppose checking out a dozen choices at once is a good idea.”

“I can draft up a prenup for you to protect your assets.”

“Trust me, this woman would be stupid to betray me, but yes, go ahead and get it together.” The idea of getting married twists my guts into knots. My mother left my father because he was a piece of shit, and so am I. I might hate my father because he made my mother flee, but I’m just like the bastard. I am not husband material.

****

The estate is beautiful and secluded; like they say—everything about this place screams exclusive. I’m greeted by the host, who claims everyone is here under their own volition. I don’t know how much that is true, considering how I’d been forced into this decision. Still, all I want to do is meet the women and get the show on the road. I have no time for pleasantries. Either there is a wife for me, or there isn’t. Who the fuck decides on a bride in a matter of days? My parents were an arranged marriage, and they’d had a tumultuous relationship that blew up in everyone’s faces.

I walk over to the bar and get a drink before the auction begins. “A whiskey, neat, please.” I toss a twenty into the tip jar and take my drink, turning around and stopping as I have the glass midway to my lips. I swore this situation with my father was on the verge of turning me into an alcoholic.

“Who the hell is she?” I mutter to myself, hoping she was on the fucking menu because I wanted to eat her up.

“Like what you see?” the host says, lingering by my side. Where the hell did that prick come from? For the first time in my life, I’d been unaware of my surroundings and that set my teeth on edge. Still, it didn’t matter because my goal was a wife and I may have just found her.

“Yes. Who is she?” I question, tipping my glass toward the young little thing in a tight dress standing next to the small snack table near the back of the room. She’s skittish as fuck, like she’s about to make a mad dash out of the room if anyone approaches her. Definitely so out of place and ripe for the picking.

“That’s Magnolia Hill, and she is one of the young ladies to bid on.”

My hand wraps so tightly around the glass that I hear it crack. “No, Magnolia isn’t. I’ll take her right now.”

“That’s not how this works, Mr. King.” Something tells me that’s not the damn case. He’s playing me, but he doesn’t know I’m not a man to fuck with.

I set the glass on the bar top and close the distance between us because I refuse to back down from my goal. If I’m marrying and finding a wife, I’m taking the one that gets me hard, and she most certainly does the trick. There is no other way to say that I’m done for. “I don’t care. I don’t want her on the stage. There’s no damn reason for her to be paraded around when I’ve made up my mind. No one will have her because I’ve claimed her as mine now, and I’m not the kind to take no for an answer,” I inform him. The lights are low in the room, but my expression and tone leave no mistake in my meaning.

“We can work something out, but I can’t lose money on this.”

“Understood. I will pay a fair amount for her.”

“Very well. Let’s discuss numbers.”

“Yes, let’s discuss it now because if she goes up there, I will have to gouge out eyes tonight. Yours included.” He pales and wisely swallows any complaint he had on his tongue. I lean in and say, “Trust me when I say it’s not as fast as people think. The process is slower and messy.”