Empress in Lingerie Read online

  I slowly moved to my knees.

  He came behind me then locked my wrists together with cable ties.

  Now I was bound and helpless, naked on a large plastic sheet, so my blood wouldn’t damage his beautiful house.

  He walked past me toward the camera.

  I didn’t want to die weak. I wanted to keep my head held high, to pass from this life with respect and dignity. But I wanted to try one more thing. “Take me. I know you want me, Bones. Take me and keep me.”

  He stopped at the camera but didn’t turn around.

  It was a long shot. But he just kissed my legs and my tummy, and that wasn’t something he would do with any victim. He may be a killer, but he was also a man. He had urges, and if he kept my panties, that meant he wanted me.

  He wanted me in the flesh.

  “That would only buy you a night. You strike me as a woman who would rather die untouched than sell her body to live a little longer.”

  When it came to survival, I was willing to do anything. “When you have me, once won’t be enough. You’ll want me more and more…and you’ll never stop wanting me.” It wasn’t a reflection of my capabilities in bed. I was just desperate to save my life. I would say anything to make this stop.

  He stood still, like he was thinking about what I said.

  And then he turned on the camera.

  No.

  He opened a suitcase and pulled out a long knife.

  Oh god.

  This was happening.

  It wasn’t some horrible nightmare.

  This was real. I was about to be murdered, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

  The only thing in my control was me.

  I refused to go out crying. I refused to beg. I would remain the strong woman that I’d always been. I took a deep breath and controlled my expression, doing my best to seem unafraid. My parents would watch this. I wanted them to be proud of my bravery, even if I was naked and helpless.

  Bones walked behind me, holding the blade at his side. He grabbed a fistful of hair and jerked my head back to expose my neck. Then he pressed the blade right against my skin. “Anything you want to say to your family?”

  My pulse was strong in my neck. I could feel it vibrate with my panic. This was the last thing I would ever say in this life. I wanted to make it count. “Mama, Father…I know you’re going to want to avenge me and hunt down this man for what he did. But please don’t. Let this war die with me. Live out your lives in peace and honor my memory over a glass of wine in the evenings. I fought him the whole way, and even now, as he takes my life, he doesn’t have me. Please do nothing. The last thing I want is for any more Barsettis to die because of this war. He wants you to come for him. Don’t give him what he wants. Please. I love all of you. Goodbye.” I closed my eyes and waited for him to slit my throat. I didn’t want to know when it was coming.

  But it never came. The blade remained against my neck but didn’t dig deeper.

  I continued to wait.

  His hand started to shake.

  I opened my eyes, looking at the red light on the camera. I wasn’t sure if I felt his hesitation or if he was just enjoying this surge of power.

  “Fuck.” He pulled his hand away, taking the knife with it. He cut my cable ties then walked to the camera. Instead of turning it off, he smashed it to the ground then stabbed it with the knife. In a violent rampage, he destroyed everything around him.

  I was too surprised by what happened to cover myself. I watched him smash apart the camera, stabbing it over and over with the knife. I watched his anger destroy everything in his path. His biceps bulged with rage, and his corded neck became more strained than usual. He finally threw the knife across the room, planting it five inches deep into the wall.

  Then he turned around and stared at me.

  Furiously.

  The vein in his forehead was pounding.

  The vein in his neck was throbbing too.

  All his muscles flexed and loosened over and over. A full minute passed as this stare down continued. He dropped the knife, but now it seemed like he was going to murder me with his fists.

  I didn’t know if I should be relieved or afraid.

  Then he rushed me, just the way he rushed me after I shot him. He moved me to my back on the plastic then dug his hand into my hair. His lips crushed against mine, and he kissed me harder than last time.

  I kissed him back, my naked body underneath his. I didn’t know what was going on, but now that the knife wasn’t pressed to my throat, I was high on survival. I wouldn’t die today. Maybe he would kill me later, but for right now, I was safe.

  So, I kissed him back. I was grateful when I shouldn’t be. I felt safe when he was the one who put me in danger. I didn’t know what changed his mind, but now that he smothered me with kisses, it didn’t matter.

  I pulled his shirt over his head, revealing his ripped physique. If the only reason he didn’t kill me was because he wanted me, I would let him have me. It’d give me enough time to figure out my next move.

  Then my thoughts faded away as he kissed me harder, giving me his tongue. He breathed into my mouth and moaned directly into my lungs. His hand dug into my hair, fisting it as he gathered more hair into his grasp.

  My hands explored his body, feeling the slabs of concrete all over his physique. His pecs were thick like rocks, and his stomach was marked with grooves between his eight pack. His skin was hot like fire, and my fingertips burned as I touched him. My hands moved to his back next, and I felt all the muscles I’d already stared at.

  He was so powerful.

  The most powerful man I’d ever touched. I felt like I was touching a beast that couldn’t be tamed. He was all man, from head to toe. I’d never been with a man who felt so purely masculine. He even kissed me better than any man ever had. Nothing about this was romantic. It was carnal and instinctual, but it frothed with distinct passion.

  How could I enjoy kissing someone I hated?

  I moved for his jeans next, ready to tug them down so he could fuck me. My offer of sex must have changed his mind. Something about my words got under his skin, made him rethink what he was losing.

  I didn’t regret the offer I made. I was still alive, and right now, that was all that mattered.

  But when I moved for his jeans, he ended the kiss. He moved off me abruptly, like our kiss made him even angrier than he was a moment ago. Huffing and puffing, he got off me then stormed away, leaving his shirt behind.

  I lay on the plastic covering, naked and smelling like him. I stared at the ceiling, feeling my hard nipples slowly flatten. Perspiration marked my body because so much adrenaline had circulated through my body. I almost died five minutes ago.

  The only reason I was still alive was because Bones changed his mind.

  I just hoped he didn’t change his mind back.

  4

  Bones

  I sat behind my desk, still shirtless because my temperature had never decreased after I hit my boiling point. I was full of rage, full of ferocity. I stared out the large window to the mountain beyond, looking at the untouched white snow. In the winter, the outskirts of Lake Garda were breathtaking and beautiful. The solitude kept me calm, stopped the bad thoughts from descending.

  But right now, they couldn’t be helped.

  Flames licked the wood and made popping sounds. My bottle of scotch was untouched on the desk. I’d already had plenty for the day. The sun was setting because I’d been sitting there for hours.

  And hours.

  Her panties were still in my pocket because I intended to jerk off with them after I got rid of her body.

  Because I was a sick fuck like that.

  My fingers rested against my temples, and I stared out the window, watching the light fade and no longer reflect the powder of snow.

  I had the knife at her throat. I had the blade right against her skin. I could feel her frantic pulse as her heart pumped adrenaline in her veins. I got off on her vulnerability,
on her submission. She knew her life was about to end, and there was nothing she could do about it. My revenge was finally in my hands.

  But then her little speech turned me cold.

  She took all the power away—and she didn’t even realize it.

  She viewed her death as a sacrifice, a way to satisfy my need for revenge and to spare her family at the same time. Like a martyr, she wanted her death to mean something—to be the final end to the war that had existed for three generations.

  Once again, she made me respect her. I respected her selfless view. I respected her strength. I respected the way she didn’t cry in her last moment or shit her pants. She held on to her dignity even when she was buck naked.

  Not just any woman could manage that.

  I wanted to kill her because she was a Barsetti.

  But I actually liked this woman.

  How did you kill someone you liked?

  Fuck. Me.

  I stayed in my office for a long time, refusing Richard as he tried to serve me lunch and dinner.

  I didn’t have an appetite.

  Now I didn’t know what to do. If I wasn’t going to kill her, then what? Just let her go? That’d make me look like the biggest pussy on the planet. I’d lose all my self-respect. And she would tell her family what I did, so they would come after me. Not only would I lose my revenge, but I would also lose my life.

  Fuck, this was bad.

  “Sir?” Richard stepped into my bedroom.

  I just got out of the shower, a towel wrapped around my waist. I slept terribly the night before, thinking about her panties in my drawer. I kept wishing I’d killed her, and that led to self-loathing. So I tossed and turned all night. “Call me Bones, Richard.”

  “You’ve been telling me that for a long time, but it doesn’t feel right.”

  “Well, it doesn’t feel right listening to you address me like that.”

  He stood with his hands held together in front of his waist, dressed in jeans and a collared shirt. He was the caretaker of the house, managing it when I was gone, but I didn’t consider him to be a butler, so there was no reason for him to wear a tuxedo.

  “Yes?” I turned back to him, trying to read his silence.

  “Your guest is asking for you.”

  I’d been avoiding her because I knew what she would ask. But I couldn’t avoid her forever, and real men shouldn’t have to avoid anything. “Is she outside?”

  He nodded.

  “Send her in.”

  “Alright.” He walked out and shut the door behind him.

  Vanessa appeared a moment later, wearing a new pair of jeans and a t-shirt that Richard had supplied for her. It didn’t fit because the clothes were a few sizes too big, but this woman could wear a damn poncho and still be model material. Without makeup or doing her hair, she had natural beauty that always made her gorgeous. Something about her high cheekbones and beautiful eyes made me hard under the towel.

  I stared her down, the fire reflecting in her emerald eyes, making them smolder even more. I watched her look me straight in the eye, like she was doing everything she could not to stare at my nearly naked body. She’d already seen me shirtless, so I didn’t see why it mattered. “I can come back at a different time…”

  “Say whatever you came here to say. Don’t waste my time.”

  “Okay…” She cleared her throat, concentrating on my eyes. “I just—”

  I dropped the towel in front of her, not caring if she looked at my dick. Even when I was soft, I was impressive. But when I was hard, I was a behemoth.

  “Uh…wow…okay.”

  I turned to my dresser and pulled out a pair of black boxers, a wide grin on my face. I pulled them up to my waist then turned back to her. “I’ve seen you naked. Now you’ve seen me.”

  Her cheeks were slightly red, despite her olive skin. It was the first time she appeared somewhat flustered. Even when I threw her on the floor and threatened to kill her, she didn’t lose her cool. But looking at my fat cock made her shy.

  It was cute.

  I stood in front of her in just my black boxers. “Yes?”

  She crossed her arms over her chest, pressing her tits tightly together. “Are you going to finish getting dressed?”

  “I am dressed.” Some people thought a suit or armor was the most intimidating clothes to wear, but I disagreed. A strong naked man was far more intimidating. I didn’t need a bulletproof vest for protection. The muscle all over my body was all the protection I needed.

  Vanessa lost her voice again, obviously uncomfortable by my nudity. She did her best to cover it up, but I was starting to read her better.

  “Did you sleep well?”

  “Yeah.” Her voice was strong again, like she was relieved at the change of subject. She saw my hard dick, and if I was hard, it was because she was in the room. My bulge was still in the front of my boxers, and the more flustered she became, the thicker my girth became. “I hadn’t slept in over forty-eight hours, so I couldn’t stay awake even if I wanted to.”

  I’d slept like shit. But the night before, when I’d intended to kill her, I slept like a baby.

  “So…what’s going on?” she asked bluntly. “Are you going to let me go?”

  That wasn’t an option. “No.”

  “Then what?” she pressed. “It won’t take long for my family to realize I’m missing.”

  “They haven’t called you yet.” I’d been keeping an eye on her phone. Once her parents called and she didn’t answer, I’d have to prepare for the worst.

  “I never go longer than a week without talking to my mama.”

  I loved the way she called her mother that, with deep affection. I hated the Barsettis, but I admired her loyalty to them. Even under threat of torture, she refused to betray them. She didn’t want them to be killed trying to avenge her death because she cared more about their safety than her honor. She was a strong and fearless woman, taught to fight with everything she had. She didn’t sit around and wait for someone to rescue her. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

  “If you’re going to keep me, then what are you going to do with me?”

  She offered herself to me, offered to bed me until I was satisfied with her. But she warned me that one night together wouldn’t be enough. I would just want more of her. That kind of promise aroused me, hearing a woman speak of her bedroom skills with such certainty. I could take her up on that offer, but she only extended it to save her life.

  That wasn’t why I didn’t kill her.

  I refused to give an answer. I’d never had a long-term prisoner before. People were dead within the first twenty hours of my captivity. There were dozens of bodies weighed down to the bottom of Lake Garda—all because I put them there.

  Vanessa picked up on my silence. “Why didn’t you kill me?”

  “Who said I still won’t?”

  She stiffened slightly, but her gaze hardened in response. “If you didn’t do it then, you aren’t going to.”

  The corner of my mouth rose in a smile. I loved the way she challenged me, the way she spoke her mind. “I’ve never thought you were a stupid woman. Don’t start being stupid now.”

  “Then why didn’t you kill me?”

  I stepped toward her, intimidating her with my size. I moved closer until I was standing over her, the backs of my fingers reaching up to touch her cheek. She didn’t have any perfume, so I smelled her natural scent, the smell of the shampoo that was in her bathroom. My fingers brushed against her soft skin, remembering the way I backhanded her so hard. My cock twitched in my boxers. “I didn’t kill you. But that doesn’t mean I’ll ever let you go.”

  Her eyes slowly narrowed on my face. “Excuse me?”

  “You heard what I said.”

  “You can’t keep me here forever. My family will find me.”

  “You don’t have to be in my captivity to be mine, Vanessa.”

  Her eyes narrowed further, analyzing my words in that smart little brai
n of hers. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “You’ll find out soon enough.” I grabbed the waistband of my boxers and pulled them down, revealing the ten inches of my length. I was fat in all the right places and long the way women liked. I could make a woman come so easily because I could feel her so intimately. My dick stretched them wide apart, firing off their nerves in pleasurable ways. My dick could go deep, could hit them in the sweet spot with every thrust. I knew Vanessa was attracted to me. Under threat of death, she kissed me as hard as I kissed her against the van. Then I kissed her again after I spared her life. She was the kind of woman who fought against the overwhelming odds, but when it came to my kiss, she had no fight in her at all.

  And now she stared at my dick.

  She guessed right when she said I wouldn’t rape her. My father had done something terrible to her aunt and her mother. There was no way I could pretend his actions were acceptable. And out of respect for that, I wouldn’t do it to her. It was the only way I could make amends for what my father did.

  But that didn’t mean I didn’t want revenge.

  She stared at my cock for nearly thirty seconds before she looked at me again. “You want me to fuck you?”

  “It’s the least you could do since I spared your life.”

  “You just said you might kill me later,” she countered.

  I tried not to smile at her wit. “Give me a reason not to.”

  She held my gaze, absolutely still. She wasn’t even breathing.

  I waited for her to make her decision, to either walk off or stay. She had every right to say no. She could tell me off and walk back to her room without any repercussions. Or she could let me have her, make me feel better about the stupid decision I made to let her live.

  “If I fuck you, you have to let me go.”

  I considered what she said, disappointed in myself for negotiating with someone who had no power. But my dick was getting harder when I was so close to fucking her. I wanted to pound her into my bed, show her how a real man fucked a woman. “I’ll let you leave the house.” I chose my words wisely.