The Dictator Read online

  I hated myself in that moment. Absolutely loathed myself. But her kisses and touches thrust me into a sea of desire, so I didn’t think about that anger. This woman pissed me off but also stole my obsession. I hated her but needed her at the same time.

  She moved her lips to mine and kissed me again, her soft lips giving me a purposeful embrace. She grabbed my hand and placed it over her stomach, right where our baby’s heartbeat would be.

  My fingers spanned her entire stomach, and I moaned into her mouth. I had no idea why this turned me on so much. A pregnant woman wasn’t sexy to me. Getting her pregnant had only made my life chaotic. But during moments like this, when we were just a man and a woman, it turned me on more than anything else ever did. I was the one who put that baby inside her, the one who made that little heartbeat. Now she was carrying it, carrying a piece of me. It was so arousing.

  She unzipped my jeans and popped open the bottom. She’d just swallowed my come on the drive there, but that must have been an appetizer for her. Now she wanted the entrée. She pulled my boxers down so my cock could be free. Then she yanked her thong to the side and slowly sheathed my length.

  Fuck, how did I keep forgetting how good her pussy was?

  Jesus fucking Christ.

  She straddled me and started riding me.

  My hand stayed on her stomach because I didn’t want to pull it away. I could barely think straight because her pussy felt so damn good. Fucking another woman sounded disgusting. Going to a bar and picking up two women sounded like the dumbest idea I’d ever had. Why would I want that when I could have this?

  Even if she betrayed me.

  She was manipulating me, doing whatever she could to save her life.

  I didn’t judge her for it. Anyone else would do the same.

  I just had to remember none of this was real. The passion, the lust, the connection—all of it was fake. When the moment came, I would have to forget all those feelings and pull the trigger.

  But for now, I couldn’t resist. “Fuck me, baby.”

  When we returned to the house, I turned my back to her and went straight to my bedroom. I’d just fucked her in the car and finished a minute before entering the driveway, but now I turned cold and distant again.

  She followed me until she reached her bedroom door. “Are we going to keep playing this game?”

  “No game,” I said without turning around. “I just don’t want you.” I got inside and hopped in the shower. The afternoon took longer than I expected, so I hurried in the shower and put on a pair of slacks and a blazer for dinner.

  When I was dressed and ready to go, I headed downstairs and stopped by the kitchen to see Giovanni.

  Siena was there with a pan of freshly baked cookies on the counter. She held up the image of the sonogram so Giovanni could see it. “Isn’t it amazing? This little person is inside me right now…with a little heartbeat.”

  Giovanni examined the picture with his black apron tied around his hips. He never made cookies because I didn’t eat anything like that, so he and Siena were obviously spending the day together. “It’s wonderful, Miss Siena. Honestly, I’m excited to have another Marino around the house. Mr. Marino is so predictable, he’s easy to take care of. It’ll be nice to have a challenge.”

  “I can always step it up,” I said coldly.

  Giovanni nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard my voice. “Sir, I didn’t mean anything—”

  “Don’t apologize to him,” Siena said. “You did nothing wrong.” She took the sonogram from his hands. “I was just showing Giovanni the baby we made together. He decided to share his family recipe for the best chocolate chip cookies in the world—that way I can make them for the baby someday.”

  My eyes narrowed in annoyance. “You’ll be dead the day they’re born. And I’m pretty sure a one-day-old baby can’t eat cookies.”

  She set the sonogram down and crossed her arms over her chest, looking fiery.

  Giovanni walked out of the kitchen without waiting to be dismissed.

  “Knock it off, Cato. Every time we get closer together, you pull this stunt. Just stop fighting it.”

  “We aren’t getting closer together. Nothing has changed.”

  “It changes every passing day.” She stepped closer to me and held up the picture. “And it should change every day.”

  I pushed the picture down and gave her a glare. “Regardless of what happens between now and then, when the time comes, I will kill you. So don’t mistake my lust for anything else. I’m a man who keeps my promises, who carries out his executions. You’re no different. You just have more time than the average person.”

  She let the picture stay on the floor as she put her hands on her hips. Like those words meant nothing to her, she ignored them. “Where are you going?”

  “Out.”

  “Out where? I know it’s not to pick up some skanks.”

  I wished I could tell her she was wrong. “I’m having dinner with my mother.”

  “Oh…are you going to tell her about us?”

  Every time she referred to the baby as a real person, it made the situation feel more real. “Not right now.”

  “She’s going to be a grandmother. You should tell her sooner rather than later. I’m sure she’ll be happy.”

  Or disappointed that I was stupid enough to knock up a traitor. “Good night, Siena.” I turned around and walked to the kitchen door.

  “I’ll be waiting on your bed buck naked when you get home.”

  I stopped at the door and begged myself not to turn around. I didn’t want to be provoked by her comment, but the image of her naked body in my bed made me lose my breath for a moment. I turned back around and faced her. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you—unless you want to be fucked in the ass.”

  The three of us had a private room in Mother’s favorite restaurant. She talked about her garden, what happened on her favorite TV show, and how she was considering giving her downstairs bathroom a makeover.

  I kept picturing Siena naked on my bed.

  Would she be there when I got home?

  Or would she take my warning seriously?

  Because that was a serious threat. I would hold her down and drill her in the ass even if she told me not to. She’d been warned, so I didn’t feel bad for doing it. She shouldn’t test me. Maybe I wouldn’t punch her in the face, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t force anal.

  “Cato?” Mother’s voice came into my ears. “Are you alright?”

  “Yes.” I grabbed my glass of wine and took a drink. “Just a lot on my mind.”

  Bates gave me a knowing look from across the table.

  “You work too much,” she said. “And it’ll take years off your life. Doing manual labor for so many years really wore down my body. Even now, I’m still tired.” She held her glass and took a drink. “I really wish you would enjoy everything you have more often. Travel more. You’ve always talked about yachting around the Caribbean.”

  That was to fuck a bunch of women on a boat and drink all day. Now I was fucking just one woman. Didn’t work as well. “Maybe next spring.” The baby would arrive at that time of year, so I probably wouldn’t be traveling for a while.

  Mother wore a disappointed look, but she didn’t press me on it. “Anything else new with you?”

  “Giovanni made cookies before I left. That’s something you don’t see every day.” The most interesting parts of my life pertained to work, but I couldn’t tell her about all the threats I made that day, how much money I earned in investments, or that I was still waiting to find out if Connor Beck had struck oil or not. If he didn’t, I had to execute his whole family and put them in oil drums. But no mother wanted to hear that.

  “Cookies?” Bates asked. “You don’t eat cookies.”

  “I guess he was in the mood,” I said with a shrug.

  “Or he made them for someone else…” Bates grinned before he drank his wine.

  Mother knew our behaviors well because sh
e raised both of us. She could read between the lines better than anyone else. “Is there someone else living with you, Cato?”

  It was a direct question, and my natural impulse was to tell the truth. I didn’t like to lie, not because I was noble, but because lying was cowardly. It meant you were too afraid of the other person’s opinion to be honest. And in that instance, they had more power over you.

  “Yeah?” Bates pressed. “Is there?”

  I would punch my brother right in the face the first chance I got. He loved every moment of this. When I told my mom I’d knocked up a woman I wouldn’t marry, she would be disappointed in my foolishness. That would make Bates look pretty damn good.

  Mother set her glass down and watched me, knowing I wouldn’t lie to her.

  “Yes, there is someone else living with me.”

  Bates grinned.

  “Who?” Mother asked. “Who’s living with you?”

  “A woman. Her name is Siena.” I skipped the pregnant part.

  “I thought you said you weren’t seeing anyone?” she asked.

  “Because I’m not,” I said calmly.

  “Then who is this woman?” She began to grow frustrated the longer this didn’t make sense.

  “This is going to come as a big shock, Mother.” I held her gaze before I told her news that would change her life. “Siena and I are having a baby. She’s living with me in the meantime so I can be there for her throughout the process.”

  When she brought her hands to her face to cover her mouth, she knocked over her glass of wine, but she was so overwhelmed by the news she didn’t even notice.

  Bates righted the glass. “Yep. Cato knocked up some lady.”

  “Honey.” She lowered her hands from her mouth, her eyes watering. “You’re having a baby?”

  “Yes.” Now I waited for her to give me that look of disapproval, that disappointed expression every man feared from his mother.

  “I’m going to be a grandmother?” she whispered. “Honey…that’s the best thing I’ve ever heard.”

  Bates couldn’t hide his shock.

  She grabbed my hand on the table. “When is the baby due?”

  “In the spring,” I answered.

  “Aw, that’s wonderful.” Mother rose out of her seat to hug me. “You have no idea how happy that makes me.”

  I’d never expected my mother to react this way, to be so supportive over a mistake. “I’m glad you feel that way.”

  “You’re going to have your own family.” She patted my back before she sat down again, still teary-eyed. “That’s so wonderful. I have to meet Siena. I bet she’s lovely and will give you a lovely baby.”

  That was a situation I hadn’t foreseen. “Uh, maybe in a few months.”

  “In a few months?” she asked. “She’s barely a few months along. It’s not like she can’t get around.”

  Having them interact was a terrible idea. Siena could easily tell my mother what my plan was, and my mother would be so appalled that she wouldn’t let me go through with it. Only one woman in the world had the power to affect my decisions—and that was my mother. “We’re still reeling from her pregnancy, so maybe when everything dies down, you two can meet then.”

  Now my mother looked livid. “Cato, this is the mother of your child. The mother of my grandchildren. You bet your ass I want to meet her.”

  Bates smiled again.

  I gave in just to make her happy. “Alright.”

  “Good,” she said. “Are you going to marry her?”

  “No.” I would never marry anyone, whether there was a baby involved or not. “She and I aren’t together, like I said.”

  “But you’re living together?” she asked incredulously.

  “She doesn’t have the resources to take care of the baby on her own. Living with me just makes it simpler.” I hated explaining my personal life to my mother like it was any of her business. “I want to be involved to keep them both safe. I’m afraid if she’s alone, someone might try to hurt her because of me.”

  Mother grabbed her glass again and took a drink. “What’s she like?”

  “Beautiful,” I blurted, choosing that single word to describe her completely. “Absolutely stunning. I’m afraid if we have a daughter, she’ll inherit Siena’s looks…and make my life a nightmare.”

  Mother smiled. “I knew she would be beautiful. My son has very particular tastes. What else can you tell me about her?”

  “She’s an art collector. She decorated my home, and that was how we got to know each other.”

  “And her family?” she asked.

  “Her parents are both gone,” I answered. “She has one brother.”

  “Oh…that’s too bad. Is there any chance the two of you could work it out?” She tilted her head as she looked at me, unable to keep the hope out of her eyes. “Call me old-fashioned, but I think a mother and father should stick together if it’s possible. You’re a family now, Cato.”

  “No. There’s no possibility.” My tone turned stern, subtly warning my mother I didn’t want to discuss this anymore. “We’re having this baby together, and that’s it. We have a good relationship, so that should be easy.”

  She took a long drink of her wine and dismissed the conversation, knowing I’d had enough. “Well, let me know when the time is right. I really want to meet the woman carrying my grandbaby.”

  I walked up the stairs and down the hallway. My anger was still rampant because Bates threw me under the bus. Then my mother pressured me about meeting Siena, which was the last thing I wanted to happen.

  Now I really hoped Siena was on my bed—beautiful and naked.

  Because I wanted to fuck her in the ass until she cried.

  I stepped into my room, and my eyes immediately darted to the bed, expecting to see that beautiful white skin against my dark comforter.

  She was there, buck naked like she promised. She lay on her back with her body propped up by her arms. Her long legs stretched out across the bed, beautiful and sculpted. Her brown hair was across her shoulders, and her makeup was darker than usual.

  I was hard in three seconds.

  With my heated gaze locked on to hers, I stripped off my blazer and dropped it on the floor. My shirt came next and then my belt. I stopped thinking about why I was angry in the first place and just felt the anger instead. Siena called my bluff in the kitchen, and I would make her regret it.

  I stripped down until I was naked and approached the bed. “I warned you.”

  She sat up on her knees so our eyes could be level. “And I know you’ve been thinking about this moment all night. The second you walked in the door, you looked at the bed like you’d be livid if I weren’t there.”

  “Because I want to punish you.” My knees sank onto the mattress. “Because I wanted you to call my bluff.” I inched closer to her then grabbed her by the neck. “Because I want to fuck you in the ass so hard you cry. And when you beg me to stop, I won’t. I won’t feel bad about it because I warned you. I warned you not to come here tonight.”

  She ignored the hand around her neck and leaned in to kiss me.

  I turned my mouth away and rejected her. Then I pushed her onto the bed, making her stomach hit the sheets.

  That’s when I saw the jewel in her asshole.

  Jesus Christ.

  She looked at me over her shoulder. “Do your worst, Cato.”

  My cock twitched so hard it actually hurt.

  “You know there’s no one else you’d rather have in this bed. You know you couldn’t stop thinking about me tonight. You know you don’t stop thinking about me every single day when you’re at work. You know your finger won’t squeeze that trigger when the time comes. You know you want me too much. And when you fuck me in the ass, you’re only going to want me more.”

  Fuck.

  I tried to hide the desire in my eyes, but it was impossible. I’d never been this hard up for a woman in my life. I hated her so damn much, but that didn’t stop me from wanting her s
o damn much.

  I opened my nightstand and pulled out a bottle of lube. I squirted it onto my length and rubbed it to my balls, getting myself as slick as possible. That was a small asshole, and this was a big dick. I moved on top of her and stared at the beautiful jewel looking back at me. “Been fucked in the ass before?”

  “No.”

  I was just about to pull out the jewel, but I stopped to take a breath. “You have no idea how much this is going to hurt.”

  “I can handle it.”

  A shiver ran up my spine, the pleasure radiating to every extremity. I pulled out the jewel and stared at the small asshole left behind.

  It was perfect.

  I crawled farther up her body until my chin was above her head. Then I pointed my cock at her opening and pushed gently, watching my thick crown press against her without slipping inside. Her asshole tightened the second she felt me. “Relax.” I pushed again and slipped through her muscles, the lube making it possible. When a few inches of my length were inside, it felt so damn good. Her ass was a million times tighter than her cunt. I pushed again, feeling her tense up the farther I went. I watched her grip the sheets and breathe harder as I shoved my big dick in her ass. We hadn’t even started yet, and she was beginning to understand just how much it hurt.

  I moved my lips to her ear. “I told you.” I kept sliding in until my length couldn’t go any farther, at least her body wouldn’t allow me to. I still had several inches hanging out, but most of my shaft was inside. I closed my eyes as I treasured it, felt how warm and tight she was. I usually had to pay money to fuck a woman in the ass, at least if I wanted to fuck her hard.

  The second I started to thrust, I knew I wouldn’t last long.

  Fuck, it was too good.

  She clawed at the sheets and suppressed her moans of pain as she kept taking my big dick in the ass.

  “You can say stop, but I won’t stop. You can cry, but I won’t stop. And just so you know, I hope you do cry.” I rocked into her harder and worked my hips back and forth as I took her. She had the nicest ass and the most beautiful back. With that long brown hair trailing down her spine, she was such an erotic sight.