Page 14 of Kissed By Shadows

“I should punish you for disobeying my order, Princess,” Roman says, pulling me close, my head resting back against him as tingles spread all across my skin, my breath panting out of me. “But I suppose it’s not your fault. I take it you’ve not played with knives before?”

“I’ve only ever had one dick before, and that was a few hours ago, so no. No knives,” I reply in a husky voice, not realising the words my orgasm-addled mouth has spoken until Hunter jerks up, his hand gripping my face.

“Did they force you?” he snarls, his eyes wild as he looks into my eyes. My pulse pounds, my brain taking a second to catch up to the change from bliss to fright.

“Um, no… Well, not exactly,” I fumble, heat making my body smoulder.

“What the fuck do you mean, not exactly?” Hunter questions, and swallowing, I decide I’ve already fucked up so I might as well spill the whole truth.

“Part of the deal my father made was giving them my virginity,” I tell him, watching as rage fills his eyes, making them burn like the hottest flame. Roman grips me tightly, Rowan completely still next to me. “But Nik was there, and he…claimed me.”

“Nik? Nikolai Petrov?” Hunter’s top lip curls, and I see why Nik didn’t want to enter the estate. “Did he force you, Peaches?”

A shiver consumes me at the nickname, there’s just something about it that does things to me. Blinking, I shake my head.

“No. He made it good, really good,” I tell him, ignoring the way my cheeks feel as though they’re on fire. I can’t let themthink Nikolai is that kind of monster. “He made sure it was him and no one else, and I’ve known him forever, had a crush on him for years, so it wasn’t like that.”

“But you didn’t really have a choice, Princess? You had to fuck someone?” Roman asks, and suddenly it’s not embarrassment colouring my cheeks, but anger.

“As much of a choice I had here,” I snap, my nostrils flaring as I tug my face from Hunter’s grip. Satisfaction flows through me when Hunter winces and Roman lets a long breath loose behind me.

“Fair point,” he concedes, his hand finally releasing my hair but brushing it to one side before placing his lips against my neck. “Let’s get you inside and to bed. You’ve had an exhausting day.”

My head spins with the way he’s being so kind, the loss of his warmth only lasting a moment as he gets up, then pulls me to my feet. My feet tingle, the blood flowing back to them after so long on my knees.

“And your protection?” I ask, not taking my eyes from Hunter, who’s tucking himself back into his jeans. His gaze snaps up to me, then he slowly gets up, forcing me to crane my neck to keep eye contact. We’re so close that the entire front of our bodies brush and I can feel every breath he takes. His rosemary and mint scent fills my nose, and it takes a lot of effort not to bury my face into his neck and just breathe him in.

“You have it, Iris,” he says softly, his large palm coming up to cup my cheek in a gesture that feels too intimate, even after what just happened between us. “But I meant what I said about obedience. The Russians don’t fuck around, and I can’t protect you if you don’t listen to me.”

I lick my lip and his thumb drifts over it. “Okay, Hunter.”

“Good girl,” he murmurs, a shuddered breath falling from my lips at the praise. Damn, who knew I had a praise kink? Learnsomething new every day, I suppose. “Now go with the twins and get some rest. We’ll talk more in the morning.”

Roman takes my hand back in his, stepping away and pulling me towards one of the front doors, Rowan grabbing my bag and following us. I turn to glance back and find Hunter staring after me, his brows drawn. On the one hand, my body wants me to go to him, to let him wrap me up in those strong arms and tell me that everything will be okay.

On the other hand, he just effectively forced me into giving him a blow job in order to gain his protection. I can’t help wondering if that will be my only payment or if I’m his to use now?

And I can’t help wondering if I mind.

CHAPTER SIX

“FLAMES” BY TEDY

HUNTER

Iwatch as the twins lead Iris into our flat, the endorphins still racing around my body from the epic blow job she just gave me.Shit.I probably shouldn’t have done that, because I owe Iris more than I can ever repay.

But my crew don’t know the details of what happened with Willow last year, only the twins do, and I can’t be seen giving someone a free ride, no matter how gorgeous they are, inside and out. I am not a good man. I have done some terrible things to protect those I love and I would do them again. Forcing her onto her knees is the least of a very long list.

And fuck, having her lips wrapped around me after fantasising about it for months has me growing hard again.

Growling, I swipe my hand through my hair as my phone buzzes in my back pocket.

Unknown: I need you to take care of her, protect her. I will owe you a debt, one that I will happily pay once I’m able to. But know that whatever you ask for, will be yours.

My eyebrows droop. Who the fuck is this? My mind goes back to what she told us, about what happened this afternoon between her and that Russian, Nikolai Petrov. My lip curls, the thought of anyone else touching her heating my veins, making my fists clench. Could this be from him? But then that would go against his father’s wishes if she truly was sold to them.

We’re now in the middle of a potentially explosive situation involving the Russian Bratva, a group not to be fucked with. Their reach is vast, their power great. I’d like to think we can hold our own, especially with the twin’s connections to the Irish families, but can we withstand the might of the Russians?

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