39. Natasha
39
NATASHA
H eat radiates through my core at the dark promise of Killian’s words. And while I’d initially wanted to make him come in my mouth as a reward for his bravery, the thought of him coming inside my pussy makes me throb with insatiable desire.
So I ease my lips up his hard length. And release his mushroom tip with a pop.
Killian’s green eyes dance with lusty anticipation as he looks down at me, his fingers still tangled in my hair. He has the perfect grip, just hard enough to make my scalp tingle but not hard enough to hurt.
And he guides me up toward his lips with a commanding kind of tenderness that sets my soul on fire.
“I think I might just have to keep you in bed with me for the next week to make up for all the time we missed,” he purrs as I straddle his hips.
My lips are mere inches from his. And his gaze is so captivatingly intense, it makes my heart flutter. “That sounds perfect,” I assure him.
Then I lean forward to steal a fiery kiss.
His tongue strokes out to dance with mine, and it still vaguely tastes like my arousal. A fact that turns my stomach molten. Without breaking our kiss, I reach between us to grasp his spit-slicked cock.
Then I guide the silken tip to my entrance.
And I slowly sink down on top of him.
Every inch of his hard length fills me with glorious satisfaction. And each time he twitches inside me, it makes my walls tighten. I keep going until Killian is buried to the hilt. Then I sit up slowly.
Arching my back, I reach up to comb my fingers into my hair for a seductive cowgirl pose.
And I do exactly as he asked, rocking my hips as I start to ride him.
With every rolling motion, I let him ease in and out of me several inches. And I grind against him with my clit.
“My sexy little vixen,” he purrs.
One strong hand finds the curve of my hip, grasping me as he supports my steadily increasing pace. The other hand reaches up to pinch and flick my nipples, sending zings of pleasure up and down my spine.
“That feels so good,” he groans, his fingers pressing into my flesh. And when he palms one breast, he gives it a sharp squeeze.
I cry out, the heat of my building release reaching its pinnacle quite rapidly. Killian’s near the brink as well. I can feel it in the way his cock swells, hardening until he’s almost too big to fit all the way inside.
Careful not to disrupt his stitches, I reach forward again to brace against the headboard. And I ride him harder. The bedframe groans beneath us, and Killian releases my breast to grasp my hips with both hands now.
“Oh God, I’m gonna come!” I gasp, my body jerking forward as my intensely building orgasm threatens to explode.
“Come with me, love,” Killian rasps, his tone on the brink of agony he’s so close to coming as well.
Collapsing forward, I kiss him deeply, my nipples brushing across the intricate lines of his chest tattoos.
And when that first pulsing release floods my channel, my walls clamp down around his hard length, begging him to come deeper inside me as I climax hard. Killian breathes heavily. His fingers press firmly into my skin as he holds me close, releasing his seed into my depths.
Core throbbing around his hard length, I can scarcely keep going. I’m overwhelmed by the relief that crashes through me, cooling my intense need as deep contentment seeps into my soul.
I slow on top of him, and my hips bend so I can rest my ear lightly over his heart—I just want to know he’s alright because he just spent the last three days unconscious. And no sooner was he awake than he wanted sex. Deep, passionate, scintillating sex that I’ve been desperate for as well.
But I’m not the one with stitches. And Killian only just woke up.
Still, his heart is beating soundly, his vitals seeming to have recovered completely from the excessive amount of blood loss. He sounds healthy and so gloriously alive .
We still together, me resting lightly on his chest, not wanting to add too much pressure. But Killian’s arms wrap around my waist. And as he holds me close, his lips brush across the top of my head every few moments.
“God, I love you,” Killian murmurs as we lie in each other’s arms, catching our breath.
“I love you too,” I murmur.
A gentle hand combs through my thick locks and brushes across my spine, raising goosebumps in its wake. And after a long pause, he says softly, “I’m so sorry for your loss, Natasha. I know how much your family means to you.”
Pain tightens my chest, and I close my eyes, allowing the agony to seep into my body. Then slowly, it disperses, creeping out to every cell of my being as I try to process what happened and why.
“Thank you,” I murmur, and I mean it. Because as hard as it is to think about my parents right now, I don’t want to forget about them, to forget all that they’ve done for me. And grieving for them somehow feels safe when I have Killian’s arms wrapped around me.
Because he won’t let me fall completely to pieces.
He knows just how to support me. To let me feel what I need to feel without getting lost in the darkness.
My thoughts turn to the Agosti men—the ones who targeted my father and mowed him and my sweet mother down for no apparent purpose.
Why? Why were they taken from me?
Though I knew my father didn’t particularly like doing business with the Italians, I never got the impression they were our rivals. And yet, Lucian came after them. At an event where they couldn’t even defend themselves. It seems inhuman. Cruel.
“What will you do about the Italians?” Killian asks, as if plucking the thoughts from my head.
I cringe, wondering if perhaps I was thinking them out loud. “Actually, I wanted to speak to you about that, but perhaps it should wait until you’ve had a bit more time to recover,” I murmur. Lifting my ear from his chest, I peer into Killian’s eyes.
But he shakes his head, his jaw set in a grim line of determination. “I’m ready now. If you want to talk about it, I’m all ears.”
“Well, when I spoke to Tatiana about marrying you, one of the things I mentioned was that an alliance could mean you would help us get revenge on Lucian for what he’s done.” I don’t want to make it sound like that’s the only reason I decided to marry Killian—because nothing could be farther from the truth. But it is something we should discuss. Because my sister will have expectations after giving her blessing.
Capturing my chin with his finger and thumb, Killian lifts it to look me in the eye. “I would do anything for you, Natasha,” he murmurs. “Most certainly, I’ll help you get revenge for what Lucian did to your parents. If you and Tatiana want my help, all you have to do is ask.”
Then he clears his throat, suddenly looking uncomfortable.
“What?” I ask, propping myself up to get a better view of his face.
“I do have something to tell you…something I didn’t think anything of until it was already too late. But now that I know, I do feel responsible for what happened at the charity ball to a certain extent.”
Ice drops into my stomach, and I put a bit more distance between us as I brace for what Killian has to tell me.
“I had a meeting with Lucian a few weeks back. He invited me to discuss a business deal. And I went for curiosity’s sake because the Italians have never shown any interest in an alliance with me before. But during our meeting, he made what I thought was a joke in poor taste about how someone should do the world a favor and get rid of your father.”
Killian cringes as air rushes past my lips, then he goes on. “I warned him not to attempt anything so stupid, and I walked out of the meeting. I refused to do business with him. But now…I wonder if I should have taken him at face value. If I had warned you…”
Sadness grips me as I see the possibility, the chance that we might have had to stop Lucian from killing my parents at all. And it had slipped through my fingers without me even knowing.
But I can’t let Killian take on that responsibility like he’s trying to. Because he didn’t know. He couldn’t believe anyone would be so ruthless. And honestly, neither could I until it happened.
Brushing my fingers gently across his furrowed brow, I smooth the worry from his face. “You couldn’t have known,” I murmur. “And that’s not a cross for you to bear. But helping my family get revenge will make up for the mistake in judgment.”
Killian releases a grateful sigh and pulls me down for a kiss. “Lucian will pay for what he’s done, I swear it,” he assures me softly.
And I kiss him deeply in return.
The hint of lingering tension settles in the room as Tatiana and I sit down with Killian and his right-hand man to discuss what’s to be done about Lucian Agosti.
We’re all sitting in Killian’s bedroom because one day isn’t nearly enough for him to recover from the stab wound he survived—regardless of what Killian thinks.
My sister eyes Killian with a newfound curiosity. Her once open hostility now presents itself as cautious interest. And her gaze flicks in my direction for reassurance every so often, like she can still hardly believe how much has changed in such a short span.
I don’t blame her. I can hardly believe it myself.
“Your men will be willing to work alongside mine to bring the Italians down?” she asks, her tone measured and matter of fact, though the question inherently sounds antagonistic.
“My men are professionals. And they obey me without question. They’ll do whatever is asked of them—even work alongside the Sokolovs,” Killian says calmly, putting on his businessman’s hat for my sister, but the hint of a smirk still lingers around his lips. It’s a look I find impressively sexy.
I’ve seen him playful, fierce, and deadly. I’ve never seen him as this calm, rational negotiator before. And I like it.
“But besides that, the Italians didn’t just kill your parents. They nearly killed me as well. And I assure you, my men are just as hungry for vengeance over that. This might just be the easiest alliance you ever form.”
Tatiana smiles, a hint of bitterness around her lips. But none of it gives itself away in her words. “Then, I think it’s fair to say we can split the territory we claim right down the middle. Keep it even on both sides.”
“Agreed,” Killian says, nodding.
And relief floods me as I realize peace negotiations might be just that easy when two reasonable parties are involved.
It also marks a new kind of peace between the Sokolovs and the Kings that we haven’t reached before in the history of our two great families. And while I know it’s only a start, it brings me hope that, someday, my role as the Sokolov family’s assassin might come to an end—and I look forward to a time when my lethal services might no longer be necessary.
But first, I do fully intend to end Lucian Agosti’s life.