Scarred Heir (Cruel Empire #4)

Chapter 1

ONE

Milo

Her unique emerald eyes mesmerized me from across the bar. Drawing me in like a bee to nectar from a toxic flower. Too bad I didn’t know how deadly those metallic green eyes would become.

Two hours until midnight. Would I survive? In my world, there weren’t any guarantees.

A new year, a new start. Except I was the only Accetti here this year. My father was underground taking care of business, and my brother Marchello and his bride Lissia were on the run.

They had left me to defend our bloody, brutal, and cruel empire. Happy Fucking New Year.

I would protect what was ours without remorse or mercy, and I would never regret anything I had to do in the name of keeping us in control.

New York City swelled with tourists and spectators, flooding the streets to watch the ball drop. Most of them would never get to the resolutions they were so desperate to fulfill. Why? Because intentions were a waste of time. I preferred actions.

If I said I would do something, I fucking did it. End of story.

Lucas, my family’s advisor, and right now, the only one I had to assist me in running the business, hurried across the crowded club where I hosted a private party tonight. Drinks, gambling, entertainment, and most importantly, no shop talk.

“Hey.” I scanned the club, looking for anyone who didn’t belong, but my gaze kept landing on the stunning woman sitting at the bar alone. “You look like you have something important to tell me.”

“Nothing specific, but everything I say is important.” He ran his knuckles over the stubble of his jaw.

His hair had become streaked with gray strands since my father took a leave of absence.

Marchello’s stint as head of the family had caused Lucas more stress than he would have liked.

He probably lost sleep over what type of chaos he thought I would rain upon the business.

“At least in your mind.” I smirked as I took inventory of the sweaty bodies pulsating on the dance floor. “Our debut night seems pretty popular.”

“The guests are enjoying themselves, or should I say they like the free top-shelf liquor you’re serving.”

“There’s more Versace and Armani in this room than there is in some of the shops on Fifth Avenue.”

I had purchased this outdated eyesore of a club because of its sweet location in the middle of Manhattan.

It needed a ton of work, but I wanted to host a party tonight because it was important to show my face and let the other families know that despite my father and my brother being away, the Accetti family was still in control.

“There are no issues with the guest list?” I asked.

“The people we expected to be here are. A few of them brought associates or dates,” he said. “Security was able to identify most of them.”

“Who is she with?” I nodded toward the green-eyed woman in the black dress who had caught my attention a few minutes ago. “Every gangster in here is gawking at her, but no one has claimed her.”

I didn’t know if it was her killer legs that had me so intrigued or if it was because she kept crossing them and uncrossing them as she fidgeted with a cocktail napkin. Was she a lamb caught in the fox’s den? Or did she have a purpose?

“I don’t know who she came in with,” Lucas said, interrupting my thoughts. “Do you want me to find out?”

“I can manage that on my own.” I straightened my tie. “Maybe tonight won’t be as lonely as I initially thought.”

“Don’t get distracted.”

“Distracted over a midnight kiss?” I gazed around the crowded room. “I do need someone to fuck in the new year with.”

“I think you mean ring in the new year.”

“Oh, Lucas, do you even know me?” I laughed as I strolled over to where the woman who I hoped to get to know quite intimately waited.

She stared down at her empty martini glass as she twisted her hands. I positioned myself between her and an empty barstool, but she didn’t look up. I was close enough for her to feel my presence. I definitely felt hers.

“That’s a horrible habit.” When I placed my hand over hers, she snapped her head up and stared at me with those haunting eyes.

I lost myself in her stunning gaze for a moment, but quickly recovered. I was not the type to lose my shit over a pretty face. Now if the pretty face gave exceptional head, I had been known to give a Louis Vuitton bag in return.

“Fidgeting gives the impression that you’re anxious about something,” I said. “And when someone around me is nervous, I have to wonder why.”

“I’m not… uh, I’m not nervous.” She slipped her hands out from beneath mine. “Do you make it a habit of touching women without their permission?”

“I always have permission, but not everyone has permission to touch me.” I motioned for the bartender to get her a new drink. “I might make an exception for you.”

“I don’t…” When she stared at me, the dusting of freckles beneath both of her eyes caught my attention. “You’re awfully bold.”

“That’s one way to put it.”

She tucked her mahogany curls behind her ear and smiled at the bartender when he placed a fresh martini in front of her.

“Thank you,” I said as he handed me a shot of my favorite Russian vodka. “You’re doing a fantastic job.”

“Thank you, Mr. Accetti.” He took the empty martini glass from the bar. “Whatever you need, just let me know.”

I lifted my glass and nodded at him as he went back to tending to the hectic bar .

“Happy New Year’s Eve.” I clinked my glass with hers before downing the shot.

“You’re Milo Accetti.” She took a sip of her drink. “This is your club.”

“I bought it a couple weeks ago.” I pushed my shot glass to the edge of the bar. “It needs work.”

“It has potential.” She gazed around the bar. “No one seems to mind that it needs work.”

“No one seems to mind the free booze and food.” I leaned against the bar. “You know who I am.”

“Everyone here knows who you are.” She went back to twisting her hands. “You’re pretty popular.”

“What’s your name?”

“Sable.”

“Like the fur?”

“Like the animal.”

I followed her gaze across the room where a group of men were huddled in a corner. Three of them were familiar to me, but I couldn’t identify the fourth one. He wasn’t wearing a suit; just a wrinkled dress shirt and no tie.

“Do you have a last name, Sable?”

“Everyone has a last name, Mr. Accetti.”

After she traced the sugar rim of her glass, she brought her finger to her lips and licked the sweet essence from her fingertip. Her last name could have been fucking Satan and I wouldn’t have cared.

“Your last name isn’t important to me.” I ran my finger along the rim of her glass, and then pressed it to the seam of her slightly parted lips. “I don’t need it for what I have planned.”

Her lips trembled as she darted the tip of her tongue out and licked the sugar from my finger.

How submissive .

If that action wasn’t hot enough, the blush that spread across her cheeks made my cock swell in anticipation.

“What are you drinking?” I asked.

“A lemon drop.”

I’d like to drop something down her throat.

As she continued to focus on the men across the bar, I assessed her appearance. There was nothing Manhattan about her. No filler in her lips, no eyelash extensions or polish on her unmanicured nails. Her eyebrows weren’t even filled in, and she didn’t have any highlights in her hair.

If she did have makeup on, it was understated. Not that the absence of any of those things took away from her stunning features. I just wasn’t used to a woman who didn’t enhance herself in some way.

The black dress accentuated her perky breasts and toned shoulders, but there wasn’t anything remarkable about it. The cheap, thin material stretched over her black bra. My sister-in-law Lissia would have tossed this unassuming woman out on the street for such an offensive display.

Who are you, and how did you end up practically in my lap?

“You’re staring at me,” she said.

“What else am I supposed to do when your attention is otherwise occupied?” I glanced at the men she seemed to be so interested in. “I suppose I could have them taken care of to insure your undivided attention.”

“What?” Her eyes widened. “No, please don’t do that.”

“I’m joking.” I glanced at the group of men, confident that I would eliminate them if I didn’t become her sole focus. “But why are you so protective of them?”

“I’m not,” she said. “I just don’t want you to do anything to anyone because of me. ”

“What sort of things do you think I would do?” I inched closer to her. “What is it that you think you know about me?”

“I don’t know anything about you.”

“We could change that.” I pointed to her martini. “Finish your drink. You really need to settle down.”

“I’m sorry, I um…” She took a quick sip from her glass. “I’ve never been anywhere like this before.”

“I can tell.”

“You can?”

“Well, forgive me, Sable , but you stick out like a sore thumb.”

“I do?” She smoothed out her dress and straightened her posture. “I didn’t realize everyone would be so flashy.”

“It’s a club in the most sought-out section of the city on the craziest party night of the year. What did you expect?”

“Not this.” She shrugged. “Definitely not this.”

“Who did you come here with?”

“My brother.”

“Does he have a name?” I nodded my gratitude when the bartender set another shot in front of me.

“Chance.”

“Hmm…” She had piqued my interest because I didn’t know anyone by that name. “And who did Chance come here with?”

“I don’t know.” She almost knocked her glass over when she moved her hand in front of her but caught it before it could topple onto the bar. “A few guys.”

I would have to put Lucas on finding out who she and her brother were, especially if I wanted to take that cheap dress off her after the ball dropped.

“I’m glad Chance put you in my path tonight.” I chugged my shot. “It was completely unexpected. ”

“Do you like the unexpected?”

“Not usually.” I took her hand. “Let’s go.”

“Where?” She slipped off the stool, anxiously looking across the bar. “I can’t leave.”