Chapter 32 – Nico
An unholy fear saturated my body. It slid through my veins, burrowing in my bones to weigh them down like cement. I pushed the sports car to top out its speed. The streetlights and house lamps blurred as I wove through the neighborhood. Dangerous? Extremely. A pedestrian would never see me coming.
But right now, getting to Rae was the only thing that mattered.
I took the corner to the service drive at a breakneck speed. This car had a low center of gravity, and there wasn’t much body roll. Still, the wheels squealed and the undercarriage protested.
The gate was an impossibility. If I was in a truck, I would have slammed into it. Who fucking cared if I triggered the alarm? There were assassins on the property.
As I slowed to wait for the damned gate to slide up, I smacked my palm against the wheel. The only reason I hadn’t called out for the soldiers to sweep the house and the streets was because I didn’t know—didn’t know who’d sent the killers to Rae.
Until I ascertained if it was my grandfather, I couldn’t summon our men.
He has no reason to suspect….
I launched down the drive. Gravel sprayed behind my wheels. Until I put this threat down, no one was safe, except for maybe Giuseppe and his sons. They could be crossed off my suspect list.
A shadow moved near the side of the staff house. I shot through the parking lot, missing the short driveway, and blasted into the grass.
My foot slammed on the brake just in time.
Rae’s scream pierced the night.
She’s alive….
She was without a doubt the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. The black gown wrapped around her body like a dark enchantment. Fire burned in her eyes, and her hand was raised high with a fucking kitchen knife.
My heart slammed back against my spine, blown away by the specter of hell shimmering in the headlights.
Exiting the vehicle, anger spiked in my veins. “What the fuck do you think you’re going to do with that?”
Rae lowered her arm, but I didn’t miss the way her fingers shifted around the handle, adjusting her grip.
Careful…she might be stabby. The erection in my pants strained at the thought.
“No one’s given me a gun,” she protested.
A silent laugh shot out my nose. I forced back a smile as I leaned over her, flashing a terrible glare. “Why are you outside?”
Her chin tipped up. “Chasing bad guys.”
There it was. I knew it the moment I saw her in all the Valkyrie glory.
“That was fucking stupid!” I gripped her shoulders and tugged her forward. “Don’t you ever scare me like that again.”
Her nose scrunched up. “You? Scared?”
I slammed my mouth against hers to keep from answering.
The kiss was devastating. There was no other word for it. I poured my fear and anger, lust and hunger into the moment.
Rae slid her hands up my torso. I caught her fingers, yanking them in a vicious hold.
“No—” I sucked in a short breath. “Don’t touch me. My control is hanging on by a thread, and I’m not fucking you on a car tonight.”
“Then where are you—Nico!”
I tossed her over my shoulder and began walking to the main house. “Be quiet. I don’t want any interruptions.”
“More like you don’t want anyone to see you hauling your prize to your cave,” she muttered against my back.
My prize. My cave. My beautiful woman.
I liked that. I liked that vivid image too much.
“Exactly.” I bounced her. “Now hush.”
“Nico, the—umph.”
I jostled her. “Last warning, cherry-bomb. Next time you speak—”
“But the—”
My palm fell on the delicious swell of her ass with a sharp smack.
Her muscles tightened under the blow. That sent a painful pulse through my dick.
There wasn’t time to drive into the city.
I needed to taste her pussy more than I needed my next breath.
The only delay I was allowing myself was the one to sneak her into the upstairs bedroom.
“How dare you spank me,” she hissed.
The venom in her voice was a fucking drug. It slid through my veins with an intoxicating buzz.
But…she’d spoken again.
The slap echoed through the night. Once, twice—a third for good measure!
Rae squealed and wriggled against my hold. I strained to keep her in place.
“I said, quiet,” I snapped and spanked her again.
Stopping by the kitchen door, I shifted her to grab my keys from my pocket. Only…shit.
They were in the Jag.
I glanced back down the path. The headlights showed around the butler’s house, but the glow was mostly hidden at this angle.
“Oh, now you notice,” Rae drawled. “Missing something? I tried to tell you—Nico!”
This was fun. Her ass was likely as red as her Camaro. I groaned at the thought, as I absently massaged the cheek I’d just spanked.
“Nico,” Rae moaned.
Cazzo, she was as turned on as I was. Walking back down to the cottage seemed the only option. The idea of waiting was pure torture. I needed this woman naked. Under me. Writhing as I teased her to a delicious frenzy.
Rae smacked my ass.
I jerked straight. Her hushed laugh tickled my ears.
She did it again, and I raised my palm. Before I could smack her pretty ass, she unleashed a series of smacks that felt like taps.
I slid her off my shoulder and held her in front of me.
Lips pressed in a tight pucker, Rae held something in front of my face. Her brow arched conspiratorially. The little she-devil had a key.
“Alright, here’s what’s going to happen.
” I yanked it from her fingers, shoved it in the lock, and twisted.
There were thirty seconds to push through the door and silence the alarm.
Once that was done, I tugged Rae into the shadowy kitchen.
The low light from the single bulb over the sink made her eyes shine.
“You’re going to run. I suggest you go straight to my bedroom—no detours. No hiding.”
She smirked.
“If you show me you can follow directions, I’ll be merciful,” I growled and gripped her chin in a hard hold. She sucked in a sharp breath. “Do you understand?”
Her eyes narrowed, and I felt the argument building inside her. Part of me wished she would speak, so I could throw her on the island and paddle her ass with whatever utensil I found first.
Rae nodded once.
“Good.” I rubbed my finger against her pillowy lips. “Ready?”
She raised her hand.
“No talking,” I hissed.
Those amber eyes rolled. She bounced a little and shook her hand in my face. If it was about the car, she was going to find out just how much I didn’t care right now.
I sighed. “What?”
“Those guys, Nico? What if they’re still around?” she whispered.
My touch slid down the long line of her throat, exploring the area I was going to savage in a few minutes. “They’re not.”
“How do you—ouch!” She rubbed her ass, where I’d pinched.
“Because, I said so,” I growled, putting my face directly in front of hers. “I wouldn’t be contemplating how I’m going to give you orgasm after orgasm if you were in any kind of danger. Now…run.”
I released her.
Rae gave me a dark look but took off.
It was one of the hardest things I’d ever done to stay put. I took my time setting the lock, rearming the alarm. I needed to go deal with my car. I didn’t even want AJ to find it down at Theo’s place, parked in the lawn. But that could wait. It wasn’t nearly as important as what I was about to do.
Taking a deep breath, I slid my suit jacket from my shoulders and loosened my tie. Part of me almost wished she had gone to hide. But I’d seen the hunger in her eyes. She was headed straight to my room. To my cave. “Ready or not, little one, here I come.”