Page 11 of A King So Savage

“You’d be surprised what men will pay for a sweet little thing like yourself, Miss Blue.”

“You can’t just sell people, you know.” She sniffled.

He smiled at her naivety. “Of course, I can. People do it every day. Heads of State. Kings. Princes. Presidents. Judges and politicians. They buy and sell what they want just like they do on the New York Stock Exchange floor. Flesh is a valuable commodity, Miss Blue. Some more valuable than others.”

“My father liked you. Did you know that?” Her voice was growing increasingly drowsy. “He liked you better than he did his own son. But then again, I don’t think he ever truly liked Carson so that’s not saying much. Dad worked himself half to death for you. But you don’t care about that, do you?”

Kingston’s teeth clenched at the reminder of Garret Blue. The brilliant attorney was the reason his father’s estate had settled so quickly.

The man never complained when Kingston requested their dealings be held in the library of the Blue family home. Garrett must have known how lonely Kingston actually was. How he craved the normalcy of family life. He’d even made friends with Carson before realizing the young man despised him for the close relationship Kingston formed with his father.

“It hardly matters now that both of your parents are dead,” Kingston said coldly, despising the ache which suddenly seized his heart.

Ava’s eyes grew darker with pain. Her bottom lip trembled. She tugged it between her teeth to stop its wobbling. But her chin still quivered, and driven by something he didn’t quite understand, Kingston stretched a hand toward her face. To comfort her or scare her even more, even he wasn’t sure.

Ava shrank away, tucking the sheet closer with her uninjured hand.

Her instinctive response angered Kingston more than it should have.

He gripped her chin, forcing the sheet to fall away. Hard, cruel fingers dug into soft flesh, and Ava responded with a whimper that sent lust zinging through every cell of his body.

“Don’t do that again, little lamb. Don’t ever avoid my touch. Until your brother repays his debt,ifhe repays, you belong to me. I will touch you as I please. Whenever I please.” Releasing her chin, he trailed his hand down her throat and over the swell of her breasts. “And you will allow it.”

Ava choked on a sob but did not move. She lay frozen, eyes wide. A scared little bit of sweetness waiting to be ripped apart.

“There is bottled water on the table beside the bed, and you will find the bathroom fully stocked with everything necessary to clean yourself up. A robe and nightgown are hanging on a hook behind the door. Food will be brought in for you later.” Kingston withdrew his hand and rose from the bed. “Get some rest now. You’ll need it.”

He quickly exited the cell, pulling the heavy door shut with a loud clang. The lock was engaged and the key was deposited back in his pocket.

As he strode down the wide, stone-lined corridor, he could not help but hear Ava’s little wail of sorrow. It echoed off the cold stones and Kingston’s pace increased.

* * *

“How’s our guest?”

Oliver entered Kingston’s study and thew himself into one of the chairs. Shifting his body, he propped one leg up so it dangled over the arm.

“She’ll survive,” Kingston replied. “I’ll remind you again that she’s none of your concern.”

“Aww, come on. I’m the one who snatched her out of that hotel elevator. I deserve some credit, don’t you think? A reward even, for doing it so efficiently and without detection. And all by myself, if I gotta point that out.”

“The fewer people involved with this, the better. Remember, there is a certain clientele who will be offered the chance to bid on her.”

“I haven’t received compensation,” Oliver said sullenly.

Kingston leveled a glare on his half-brother that would have dropped any other man to his knees. “You will be paid for that bit of work.”

“You could just let me have her for a couple of hours,” Oliver suggested with a drawl. “Give her to me as payment. Hell, I’ll even fuck her ass so she doesn’t lose value as a virgin.”

Kingston’s teeth clenched. Goddamn Oliver. He didn’t have time to babysit the man and keep him from raping their captive.

“If anyone fucks her, it will be me. Stay away from her, Oliver. I’m warning you. This isn’t negotiable.”

Oliver grinned. “Catching feelings for your little hostage? How’d you ever resist her when you were hanging out at her house, pretending to be friends with her brother? Sucking up to her father so he’d clear the estate faster than a Kardashian takes off her clothes. I imagine Ava Blue was a hot little piece even back then. Prancing around in some kind of sexy cheerleader uniform. Wearing those innocent white cotton panties trimmed in eyelet lace. Tell the truth, King. She gave you such a hard-on, you probably jacked off twenty times a day fantasizing about her.”

Kingston settled into his desk chair and popped open a small humidor containing a few of his favorite cigars. He refused to let his brother get a rise out of him, even if the needling was beyond tiresome. “I won’t deny it. I wanted her. Even if her brother was a back-stabbing asshole who hated my guts behind all his smiles.”

He cut the end of the cigar before igniting it with a custom-made lion’s head lighter. A gift from a man he assassinated only the year before.

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