Page 75 of Where the Wicked Reign

I pulled my hand from his and sat up. “I do know what you mean. What youreallymean. You want to prevent me from backsliding into denial when it comes to this thing between us. So you intend to keep me around you, so I don’t have time to think or over-evaluate everything, to regret it, or see the dangers in it.”

“Judging by all of that, you’re already heading down that path as it is. So I already have my work cut out for me.”

“Things are complicated and—”

“This is what you do, Caterina. You run and shut down. And, you know what? There’s always going to be a reason to. With anything. With this especially, because, as you even admitted to me, you’re afraid of losing control over that aspect of yourself.” He straddled me then, his hands coming down on either side of my head on the pillow. “You want true power, you want to ensure you’re never beholden to your father again? This is the way to do that. Partnering with me and mine. Working together. Embracing it, rather than closing yourself off to it. Your father resents your success. Worse, he sees it as a threat. Forcing you into this marriage, a marriage he believes will be hell for you and weaken you, is just the start. He’ll keep coming. He’ll try to break you. And fighting that off will leave you very little time to carry out your expansion plans. In fact, when the Leone Family fully targets somebody, they pull out all the stops, they run right over them. You know that as well as I do. With me and my boys at your side, we can prevent that from happening. We can bolster you. And you can do the same for us with your skills and know-how. Your position aspuppet master, as Milo refers to it. You’ve been operating from the sidelines for years, undercutting this and that, moving pieces around the proverbial board. Very carefully. Together, we can do that on a grander scale, while also protecting your business assetsandclearing the way for you to carry out your expansion.”

“Expansion?” a voice sounded. “Oops, getting some major déjà vu here.”

Nico grunted, then pushed off me, settling back on the other side of the bed, and enabling me to see Julian walking into the room.

“You can’t fuck her again right now. She’s too sore. I told you that last night,” Julian admonished Nico.

“I wasn’t intending to. We were just talking.”

“Ah, your heavy-handed kind oftalking, bringing out the intimidation, got it.” He ignored Nico’s glare and gestured at the little white bag he was carrying, telling me, “I’ve got a special ointment for that soreness in here, along with something to soothe and promote healing of the scratches and marks all over your body.” He came to my side of the bed and put the bag down on the bedside table. “Your unequivocally delectable body, I might add.”

I grabbed the covers and slinked down into the bed, holding them over my face. “Oh God.”

“I also dropped one of those vibrators I used on you last night inside the bag. It packs one hell of a punch and you definitely enjoyed it, so pleasure away, darlin’.”

“J, take it down,” I heard Nico telling him.

He chuckled. “She’s cute when she’s all embarrassed. Although, if you can still hear me under there, Cat, you shouldn’t be. It was a hell of a thing, and I’m honored that you trusted me to be a part of it.”

I clutched the covers more tightly to me.

“Julian, enough.” I heard movement, then felt Nico climbing off the bed. “Get out so she can shower and dress. Did your people get her some clothes like I asked?”

“Yeah, it’s done. They’re already hanging in this room’s ensuite bathroom. All the toiletries you specified too. And the gift.”

“Good. I’m gonna take a shower in your room, let her have some space.”

“Sounds good. I’ll push breakfast back for another twenty minutes.”

“Does that work for you, Caterina?” Nico called to me, rubbing my arm over the covers to get my attention.

“Uh huh,” I murmured.

He chuckled. “Good girl. All right.”

“Good?Hella dirty and wicked is more like it,” Julian said.

“Get the fuck out,” Nico admonished him, and then I heard a struggle, followed by heavy footsteps, and the door finally closing.

I waited a few moments when I didn’t hear any other sounds, and then I carefully lifted my head above the covers to see that the room was empty. Both of them had gone.

I breathed out a heavy sigh.

Twenty minutes.

I hoped that would be enough time to pull myself together.

AndI needed to check in with Hazel and let her know I would be working remotely today. From home—my home—as far as she and everyone else would know.

Nico was right. I did need to take a beat.

And, honestly, I didn’t actually want to leave right now.

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