Chapter Six
KONFLICT KORVEN
Ihad never been that close to losing my fucking mind.
Reading Serenity’s letter, then having to stand there while she threw the shit back in my face, fucked me up.
I’d spent eleven months threatening my wife because I knew deep down, running my mouth like that was the only way to keep myself from crossing the line between hate and my devastating craving for her.
Now the blade had come for me, and damn, it cut deep.
When she looked me dead in the eyes and said she wanted to be fucked, possessed, ruined by anyone but me, rage and desire slammed into my chest so hard I almost blacked out.
I still don’t know how the hell I stayed put instead of giving her exactly what she was begging for, the same thing I’d been secretly dying to do to her.
She had no idea how bad I wanted her; how many nights I’d closed my eyes and seen her perfect warm skin under my body.
We would be the perfect mix of brown shades, skin on skin.
I couldn’t stop seeing myself tasting those lips begging to be sucked, feeling that pussy tightening around my dick so sweet and hot I forgot what the war was even for.
The thought of some bastard sliding his dick into the pussy I had been starving for felt worse than any bullet I had ever taken.
It felt wrong on a level that made my hands shake with the urge to kill something.
So when Krash brought Vixen to me right after her little meeting with my wife, I was already one step away from snapping.
She stood in front of me, eyes lowered just enough to show respect without losing her edge. “Mr. Korven, I have done nothing wrong,” she started, choosing her words carefully. It was obvious she already felt the danger in the room.
My jaw clenched. “What did you discuss with my wife?”
Vixen swallowed. “She requested my services. Asked me to prepare an escort for tomorrow. She said she wanted pleasure and that you already knew about it.”
“I am aware,” I replied, jaw clenched “And I have no intention of letting another man touch what’s mine.
” I stepped closer, watching her flinch even though she tried not to.
“He would be dead before the idea fully formed in his head. And your establishment would be ash by the time his body hit the ground if you were stupid enough to assign him.”
Fear rolled off her. “I did not ask for this. I worked for years to build my house to this level. I don’t create problems for your family. I will cancel everything.”
“No,” I cut her off. “Don’t cancel a damn thing. Give her exactly what she asked for. Prepare the room and bring her in. Make her feel like every fantasy she paid for is about to come true.” I held her gaze until she froze completely. “But the man you send to her will be me.”
Her eyes widened. “Why?”
“Do what I say and don’t ask questions. Empty your house for the night. No one sees her arrive. No one sees me leave.”
I pulled an envelope from my drawer and handed it to her. “This should cover the inconvenience.”
She grabbed the envelope and opened it. The little mask she kept on her face slipped for a second when she counted the money.
Vixen nodded. “She will have what she asked for. Tomorrow night. The room will be ready. No one will see you.”
“Good. You fuck this up and I burn everything you have built to the ground.”
She left without another word. I watched her go and felt my heartbeat pounding against my ribs like it was trying to break out and run to Serenity before the rest of me caught up.
The next day, I handled business on autopilot and stayed tense all day long.
When night finally settled over the city, I was ready to meet my wife.
I even got nervous picking out clothes, like this was our first date or something.
Weird as fuck, I know, but I had no idea what the hell to wear for this.
I wanted to look good for her, even though the whole point was not to get caught.
Yeah, very stupid.
In the end I just went with the safest bet: all black shirt, pants, boots. I took off my wedding band and left it on the nightstand. No way was I risking her seeing the ring she put on my finger, even if it would kill me to find out she took hers off just to go get fucked.
Vixen met me at a side entrance and didn’t waste a second. “Come with me, we need to get you ready,” she said, leading me down a short hallway into a small prep room.
The air inside smelled faintly of makeup. She pointed to the center of the room.
“Take off your shirt, please.”
I pulled off my shirt and dropped it to the side. She studied my tattoos—arms, hands, neck, and the ones across my chest, her gaze hovering at the mark over my heart. She laid out a tray of makeup, unscrewed a bottle, and loaded a sponge.
“We need to cover these. Anything visible. She might recognize something.”
She started sponging the cool makeup over my skin, working methodically to cover every line of ink on my arms, hands, and neck. When she moved toward my chest, I stopped her, my palm flat over the tattoo near my heart.
“Not this one. Don’t touch it.”
She looked up, nodded, and kept her attention on the rest, careful not to go near the tattoo that mattered most and a few more on my chest.
“This is waterproof. No matter how much you move or sweat, even if you shower, it won’t come off.
You’ll need this to remove it,” she explained, showing me a small vial.
“Use it when you’re done. I’ll give you a few bottles before you leave.
” Next she handed me a small case. “Contacts. Green. She can’t see your real eyes tonight. ”
I slid them in, blinking at how strange and unnatural my gaze now looked.
Finally, she handed me a black mask and the voice-modulating collar. I pulled the mask over my eyes, clipped the collar around my throat, and felt the buzz as it powered up. I spoke a few words under my breath and heard my voice drop into sounds that didn’t even belong to me anymore.
“Where is she?” I asked.
“In the last room. She arrived masked. No one saw her face and the house is empty, as requested.”
I walked down the corridor alone, my heart pounding in my chest so hard it hurt. I knew this was wrong on a level that should have made me turn back, but nothing in me wanted to retreat. If this was the only way I was ever going to touch her, I was taking it.
I pushed open the door and stepped into the room where Serenity was waiting. I scanned the space, searching for her. When my eyes landed on my wife, for a second, all the air left my lungs.
Maginifique.
She was gorgeous. Too beautiful to even be real.
Her skin had a touch of bronze that made her look sun-kissed even indoors.
Her curves filled out the lingerie so perfectly it looked painted on.
A mask rested over the upper half of her face, leaving her lips bare and ready to be kissed.
She had pulled her beautiful hair up into a high bun, and my brain was already imagining my hand grabbing a fistful of it, bringing her to me so I could taste every inch of her skin.
She sat on the edge of the bed, legs crossed at the ankle, the line of her thighs enough to make my dick throb against the fabric of my pants.
Even half-hidden, she looked sinful, and something in me knew she wasn’t meant to be touched without kneeling first.
Her pupils met mine, and I felt it, that same invisible pull I had known since I was twelve years old.
I walked farther into the room, letting the door close behind me, my hands already itching to feel her.
She stood and moved to close the gap between us, hips swaying sensually enough to steal my breath and stop my heart.
God, she really was insanely beautiful—it was unreal.
I realized I was about to get what I’d been craving, what I’d been yearning for.
And fuck, the anticipation was eating me alive.
When she started to circle me, my pulse kicked harder. Her fingers grazed my arm first, then slid across my bare chest, tracing the few tattoos Vixen hadn’t covered. Heat followed every point of contact, shooting straight down to where I was already hard for her.
“Name?”
“Knox,” I answered, the modulator turning my tone into something darker.
“Are you ready to give me the pleasure I deserve?”
I looked at her—really looked—at the lips I had thought about for years, at the throat I had imagined under my mouth, at the body I had sworn I would never touch and had wanted every night since.
Before I could think, I reached for her hand, closing my fingers around her wrist and pulling her into me.
The soft shocked and breathless sound she made when she hit me lit something savage in my blood.
Feeling her pressed against me for the first time, so warm and soft, right where I’d wanted her for years, almost knocked the air out of my lungs.
My free hand lifted on its own, settling against the side of her face, claiming a right I had been starving for.
My thumb dragged across her lips and she parted them.
Desire slammed through me when I felt the heat and tremor in her breath as she exhaled.
“If ruining you all night is what you expect from me, then consider every inch of this body owned and taken tonight.”
Her eyes darkened behind the mask and that look damn near ended me.
I couldn’t wait any longer.
I dipped my head and caught her mouth with mine.
The first contact was supposed to be rough, a warning of who the fuck she was inviting into her bed, but the second my lips touched hers, something inside of me gave in.
The kiss came out slow instead, deep, tender in a way that scared me more than any gunfight ever had.
Her lips were soft and warm, moving against mine like they had always belonged there.
Her taste was a mix of heat and something sweet, everything I had been denying myself.