Page 10 of Casino King

Brushing my fingers over her bruise, Tessa closes her eyes briefly, a little sigh leaving her lips as she leans the slightest bit into me. That little separation of her pouty lips is giving me visions of how they’d look stretched wide around my cock. I know I’m an asshole for thinking that while she’s hurt, but she’s reacting to my touch. To me.

She’s fucking amazing.

“I’ll be back, bella.” Standing, I stalk towards the door, but stop when I see Enzo still standing and looking down. Grabbing him by the throat, I slam him against the wall. “You were supposed to be watching her,” I growl out in a low voice so Tessa can’t hear me. “You let him touch her.” I squeeze his throat a little tighter. “I trusted you with her. And the only reason I’m not going to put a bullet in your brain right now is because she’s here and I don’t need her seeing that side of me yet. This is your one chance, Enzo.”

Releasing him, I walk out and straight into the waiting elevator. Punching the B button, it reads my fingerprint, and the doors close. The basement isn’t accessible to anyone but myself and my men. It’s deep below my casino and isn’t in the building’s blue prints, so no one knows it exists. The only entrance is through this private elevator, making it the perfect place to do my business.

Turning the next corner, I give my finger print and punch in the passcode to the door that grants me access to all of the rooms down here. There’s a conference room, security room, fully stocked artillery, and soundproof rooms for interrogations.

Tessa may not know it yet, but she’s mine, and what I’m about to do is my first act of my promise to protect her. To protect the strength I see in her eyes that I never want to see snuffed out by the evils of this world. I may have stayed away, but that was before she needed protecting, and before I touched her and saw the look in her eyes that made me never want to look away.

I pass a few of my men as I walk through the conference room and out into another hallway that leads me to one of the holding rooms. Nodding at Gino, who’s standing outside the door I need, he opens it for me, and I wait for the click of the door closing before I take a step towards the man handcuffed to a metal chair in the middle of this cement box.

I’m usually the one giving the orders to do the dirty work these days so it never traces back to me, but this time I’m making an exception. This is personal.

“Look at me,” I command, and the sorry excuse of a man lifts his head, his eyes going wide. “What’s your name?”

“T-Trent,” he stutters, his fear showing.

“Do you know who I am Trent?”

“Y-Y-Yes.”

“Do you know why you’re here?” My voice never wavers from its low, indifferent tone, and the little prick starts shaking like he’s freezing, while also sweating bullets.

He gives up on talking and just nods his head.

“You touched my woman tonight.” I take a step closer. “You put your dirty hands on her.” Another step. “You hit her.” Another step, and I’m towering over him. He shrinks down, somehow thinking that’ll save him from what I’m about to do to him. “Look at me,” I growl, the animal I keep caged wanting to come out, needing to see the fear in his eyes.

Lifting his head slowly, his eyes meet mine, and I give him a predatory grin as I shrug out of my suit jacket. I drape it over the empty chair in the corner and remove my ace playing cards cufflinks, rolling my sleeves up to my elbows.

Sliding my hands into a pair of leather gloves left on the chair for me, I unlock the handcuffs holding him to the chair and toss them to the ground. “Get up.”

“W-What?”

“Get up.”

“I c-can go?”

“Sure, why not?” I say with controlled casualty.

Standing back, I make it seem like he’ll be able to pass by me, but the second he takes a step, my fist slams into his face, taking pleasure in the sound of his bones crunching beneath my fist.

A scream is torn from him that sounds like music to my ears. His pain is my pleasure, and the blood trickling down his cheek is a beautiful sight.

Picking him up by his shirt, I throw him against the cement wall, gripping his throat tightly. The sound of Trent gasping for air fills my ears, and I smile sadistically as I squeeze his throat just a little more.

His hands try and scratch at mine, but it’s without much effort when all he gets is leather, and he slowly starts to fade before me, his eyes losing the will to live. But just when he’s about to pass out, I release him, letting him fall to the floor in a heap. He coughs violently, sucking in ragged breath after breath.

My foot rears back and kicks him in the ribs, and another scream is torn from him as the air he so preciously needs leaves his lungs in a rush.

Toeing him on the ground, I grip him by his shirt and haul him up onto his knees, punching him in the face again.

“Let’s see what hand you hit her with. Lifting his hands, I see the right one has a ring on it, and I know instantly that that’s the one he used. “I don’t think you’ll need this hand anymore, do you?” I taunt, and he whimpers like a fucking scared little girl.

I pull out a switchblade from my pocket, and Trent’s eyes widen. Placing his hand on his thigh, I stab the knife through the back of his hand and straight into his leg, pinning it down. His garbled scream echoes around my head and I grip his throat.

“You won’t be leaving here alive, Trent.” Pushing him to the floor, I grab him by the hair and hoist him up so his back is to me, not wanting to get his blood all over me.