Chapter 23 – Markos
The Skorpios family ran a host of tourist attractions, including a large zoo.
I couldn’t imagine the paperwork and red tape with owning a bunch of exotic animals.
It would bring the focus of not only the government but various departments and committees, each one claiming to be vested in the interest of the animals, when really they were seeking a piece of the pie.
On the bench outside the lion’s cage, I watched the administrative building from under the bill of the Buccaneer’s cap.
There had been no movement since Alexios arrived at work earlier this morning.
While I didn’t expect these Made Men to do anything in broad daylight, in their prestigious business, I was making an active case study.
There’d been little said in Rouvin’s home office.
The boss was either discreet or boring; it was impossible to say which.
So now I watched his son, because waiting for Rouvin to slip up required more patience than I had.
While Anatole listened to his conversations, I was out hunting.
I wanted to know everything about the enemy.
Their movements and preferences. The fact that Atlas would disapprove of my spying only sweetened the moment.
A child pointed at me, which made his mother shush him as she hurried him away.
Pain pinched in my chest. I should be used to the stares, immune to the whispers. But they all shunned the hideous beast.
All but Serena.
I cracked my neck. No, she didn’t seem to notice my obvious flaws. She made me feel...well, I didn’t want to think too closely about what she made me feel. I knew what I was, and she did too. It just didn’t seem to bother her. The kidnapping, and probably the forced marriage, did.
It was the only way. She wouldn’t have chosen me willingly. A woman like her would never. I just didn’t give her a choice to refuse once I decided to make her mine.
That might just be my greatest sin on the blackened pages of the history of my life.
But enough of sorting through my thoughts. It was time to go. The baggy sports sweatshirt and ball cap did little to hide the scars on my face, which would be recognizable to any of the Skorpios moving about their business.
I made it through the zoo’s front gate before my phone rang. I let the call go to voicemail, only redialing once I was in my Jeep.
“Markos, screening calls?” Atlas demanded.
I laughed. “Never. I was just indisposed.”
A beat of silence passed. “Father Georgios said something interesting at confession this afternoon.”
Of course he did.
“Aren’t you supposed to be telling him your sins?” I muttered as I sped through traffic and merged onto the highway.
“Why do you always put the car phone on when you drive? Your Jeep has no roof, asshole. I can barely hear you,” Atlas shot back, annoyance lacing his voice.
And yet I was able to drive with the sports hat on. It wasn’t as big a deal as Atlas made it out to be.
“What did the old fart say?” I knew damn well what the priest had said.
“We’ll discuss it at Olympus tonight.” With that, Atlas cut the call.
I sighed. Sure enough, a text message followed with instructions for a meeting tonight at seven. And here I’d been planning to have the evening with my wife.
I should bring her with. Dark amusement flickered through me. Serena would hate it. So would Atlas, which was a double win in my book.
Picturing their peevish reactions occupied my thoughts as I pulled into the parking lot of the condo. A damn spring formed in my step as I climbed the thirteen flights of stairs. At the door, a stack of boxes greeted me. My smile only grew.
My little wife had been busy.
I picked up her brown boxes and pushed inside.
Serena wasn’t in the living room, but I could hear water running in the bathroom.
I set the boxes down on the kitchen counter and rifled through them.
Clothes, shoes, some books. Nothing unexpected or dangerous—just normal deliveries.
I wondered if she was trying to fill the emptiness of our arrangement with material things.
A knot formed in my neck, and I bent my head to pop it.
I should blow off the meeting tonight and make a point of doing something with her. She could buy whatever the hell she wanted. I was wealthy and didn’t spend enough of my own money. But now that the little goddess was mine, I didn’t want her to feel miserable because she’d been cornered.
Why? It’s exactly what you did to her? I shook out a dress and pulled the tag off.
She was the first catch that I wanted to keep, but not as a trophy to mount on the wall.
And she wasn’t a pet who’d spend her days in an aquarium.
She was...something more. The sad thing was a sea monster like me didn’t know the first thing about relationships.
“Honey, I’m home,” I called out, my voice dripping with sarcasm. The water shut off.
A moment later, Serena appeared in the doorway, wrapped in a towel, her gold hair a dark shade of bronze as it dripped onto her shoulders and down her back. Her eyes narrowed when she saw me going through her packages.
“Those are mine,” she said coolly.
“Our marriage certificate says what’s yours is mine.” I grinned, enjoying the flash of irritation that crossed her face. “Besides, I carried them up thirteen flights of stairs.” A lie. “I deserve a thank you. A kiss will do.”
Serena snorted. She crossed the room and plucked the dress from my hands. “Not happening, pirate.”
I snatched her wrist and tugged her into my body. The cap knocked from my head as I lunged forward to claim her mouth.
The kiss was fevered. Serena struggled in my arms, the towel loosening around her. I slipped my fingers through the gap, and my touch explored her damp skin.
She fucking shivered.
Biting her lip hard, I trailed my kisses along her jaw, tipping her head to expose her throat. I moved to suck hard on the delicate flesh. Tonight, she would wear my marks. Her moan of pleasure filled my ears, sending a painful throb to my groin.
Theos! She was divine.
I pulled back, breathing hard. “How wet does kissing me make you, prinkípissa?”
“It’s the shower water,” she snapped, but the fire in her eyes told me a different story.
I slid my touch lower. “I think you’re lying to me.”
“Just like you lied about bringing up my boxes?” She arched a brow. She could try all she wanted, but there was no hiding the breathless quality to her voice. Her pulse raced in her veins, mirroring my own.
Not breaking her stare, I cupped her pussy in my hand. “You’re soaked, little one.”
Serena didn’t push me away.
No, she subtly leaned into my touch.
“I just took a bath,” she said, but her words ended in a gasp as I flicked her clit.
I didn’t respond, only continued to touch, to explore—to tease.
Serena’s fingers bit into my arms, no longer struggling to escape me.
I slid two fingers into her slick opening, lazily moving them in and out. Her lips parted, and her rapid pants filled the silence.
“Put the dress on, we’re going to be late,” I instructed with one final curl of my fingers before I broke away.
The distance nearly sent me to my knees. Theos, she was perfect! I wanted to continue the exploration, see what manner of noises my little captive was capable of making, and throw her onto the counter to take a taste.
Soon, I promised myself.
Serena needed to ask for it. To beg me to take her. Until then, I would drive us both to the point of madness.
Rewrapping the towel tight, Serena fisted the dress. “Where are we going?”
I took down a tumbler from the liquor cabinet and filled it with sink water. “Out.”
Those lips, swollen and red from our kiss, pursed tight. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
I held up a finger. “Don’t fight me on this. Your presence is required tonight.”
With a snarl of frustration, Serena stalked back into the guest bedroom and slammed the door.
The fact that she was using that space today instead of the master bedroom wasn’t lost on me. Neither was the pile of boxes already broken down by the side of the counter. The dishwasher was running, and piqued with curiosity, I rummaged around the kitchen. The fully stocked kitchen.
This condo was only used for sleeping when I was in the city, yet in the space of a day, Serena turned it into a livable dwelling. I looked approvingly at the full cabinets, fridge, and pantry.
My plan to take her back to the village tonight quickly changed as I explored. Maybe a small honeymoon would be just the thing.
Twenty minutes later, Serena emerged. “Will this do, pirate?”
My dick jumped to attention at the sight. She was breathtaking.
The black dress hugged every curve, revealing the slender legs that I longed to have wrapped around me. Her hair was swept back with glittering clips, exposing the elegant column of her neck. The scent of dark flowers and vanilla wafted toward me.
“You’ll do,” I said, deliberately casual despite the way my blood rushed south. “You look good with my mark.”
Her hand flew to her neck where my teeth had left evidence of our heated encounter. A flush crept across her cheeks.
“I didn’t have any makeup for that,” she muttered.
I crossed to her, enjoying the way she instinctively backed up until she hit the wall. Caging her with my arms, I leaned in close, my lips brushing her ear. “Don’t you dare try to hide it. I want everyone to know exactly what we’ve been doing, prinkípissa.”
“We haven’t done anything!” she snapped.
“Not yet.” The dark promise hung between us.
Serena’s inhale was sharp, but her chin tilted up in defiance. “Where are we going that requires me to dress up?”
“Olympus.”
Her eyes widened slightly. “You’re joking.”
“Why would I joke about that?” I mused, gently plucking a strand of hair and pulling it over her shoulder. It was like fucking silk between my fingers. I wanted to wrap it around my fist as I drove into her.
Soon....