Page 8 of A King So Savage

Ava’s shoulders slumped momentarily, but she quickly shook off the defeat. Raising her chin, she glared at him, those green glittering eyes so bright they practically shot sparks.

Kingston almost admired her for that. For standing so strong. So proud. So stoic in light of her predicament.

The next instant, he fell back in stunned astonishment as Ava launched herself across his desk, fingers aiming like daggers for his eyes.

Kingston quickly turned his head, resulting in a scraping of her hand down the side of his neck. The marks left behind were dull red lines due to her lack of fingernails.

“Bastard!” Ava snarled, teeth bared behind the curvature of her plump lips. Her actions caught everyone by surprise. Even Oliver gawked as the girl scrambled across the desk’s polished surface, finding purchase on her hands and knees.

Ava grabbed the first item within reach, the cut crystal paperweight. It was the size of a large apple, carved into a stunning replica of a lion’s head, and a perfect fit for the palm of her hand.

With a low, feral growl, she swung wildly, somehow catching Kingston with a glancing blow across his upper cheek. The sharp edge of the lion’s crystal mane sliced through his flesh, leaving behind a perfect half-moon-shaped wound nearly an inch long. It immediately welled up with blood.

The fact she injured him did not stop her attack. The girl seemed intent on braining him with the desk ornament.

“For the love of God,” Kingston hissed beneath his breath. With the quickness of a lightning strike, he grabbed both of Ava’s hands, squeezing with brutal intent until she dropped the paperweight with a low cry. The makeshift weapon hit the gleaming wood surface with a dull thud, rolling off the edge of the desk and landing on the soft rug underfoot.

He then jerked Ava forward until, with a pained, breathless “oomph”, she lay sprawled on her belly.

She twisted and squirmed, trying like hell to escape his grasp, teeth snapping at anything within reach. Those sharp teeth caught him a moment later on the inside of his wrist, and he grunted in surprise.

“Oliver! Jack!” Kingston barked as his prisoner fought like a wild animal. “Don’t just stand there like fucking idiots. Grab her legs.”

Oliver shook himself from his stupor and jumped forward. Grabbing at Ava’s legs, he was rewarded with a heel to the underside of his chin.

Meanwhile, Jack scored a knee to his abdomen that had him sucking in a breath of pain.

“Fuck!” Oliver swore before bursting out into laughter. “She kicks like a goddamn mule.”

Eventually, the three men managed to flip Ava onto her back.

While Jack and Oliver each held a leg, Kingston gripped Ava’s wrists in one large hand. The other tangled in the mass of her hair. He gave it a sharp tug and she squealed in furious pain.

“Calm the fuck down, Miss Blue. Before you experience something to really get upset about.”

She glared up at him as he loomed over her from his side of the desk. Effectively pinned, she still would not relent in her efforts to break free.

Oliver panted, his chin already turning red with a bruise. “It’d be easier wrestling a wet cat.”

“Will you just hold her, damnit? Use whatever means necessary,” Kingston said just as Ava twisted her head toward his wrist. The snap of her teeth echoed as he stayed just beyond reach this time. The spot where she’d gotten him moments before was bleeding now, but it was a minor wound. He’d suffered much worse in the past. This equated to the bite of a tiny mouse to a lion’s paw.

That slice on his cheek, however? That was another issue entirely. Blood oozed down his face and the area was throbbing. There would definitely be bruising. Possibly even a scar.

Giving another jerk to her hair, Kingston smiled with satisfaction as her eyes filled with tears. Then his hand slid to her throat, squeezing slightly while he bent over her.

“Last warning, naughty girl. Calm the fuck down or suffer the consequences.”

“Go to hell, you perverted monster!”

Her weak snarling was adorable, but Kingston had reached the end of his patience.

“King…” Paulie said in a quiet panic upon seeing Kingston’s jaw clench. “Don’t do it.”

The older man’s warning was ignored.

Releasing Ava’s throat, Kingston transferred his grip so he could hold her down with both hands. Stretching her arms above her head, he squeezed so hard the throbbing of her pulse hammered against his thumbs.

Fuck, she smelled delicious. An intoxicating perfume of sweet flowers and fear clung to her hair and skin. Kingston breathed deeply so it could permeate his lungs.

---