Page 15 of Captured Innocence

Sophia was certainly no longer a little girl, but the reason she was here was yet to be determined. Very few people had shocked me over the years, but she’d certainly managed to do so.

Granted, I was no fool. Dancing with the devil could get us both killed.

The air of peace between our two families was predicated by keeping our distance from each other. What I had in the back of my mind wasn’t doing either. In fact, it was fanning the flames that would ultimately lead to a massive explosion.

However, if I played it right, perhaps I could gain more control in my endeavor to take over the regime from my father. The thought was far too delicious.

And evil.

But that’s what I was, a soulless and very selfish man, at least according to the few women I’d dated in the past. Still, the game had to be handled carefully. There was no reason to cause additional blood to rain in the streets unless absolutely necessary.

As I crushed Sophia against me, she moaned into the kiss and I captured the sound, my cock rock hard and throbbing. She was dazzling up close, entirely different than I remembered even from just a year before. She’d seemed sweet and innocent, her attire lovely but covering almost every inch of her. Tonight she was a true vixen, a seductress who acted as if she knew what she was doing. However, I could sense her vulnerability, enough so I would need to temper my actions.

The look she’d created for the evening was what every fantasy was made of. But it wasn’t anything like the young woman I’d met before, a girl with wide, innocent eyes and a verve for life, music, and all things artistic. That much I’d discovered about her, a budding flower in a world of aging men who already had one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel.

Where life was harsh to most members of the Five Families, she was fresh and untouched, a commodity in our world that should be kept under lock and key. She was a tool to be used in the vilest methods and I was the man to do it.

Now I was sounding more like my ancient father. Arranged marriages were typical in the Five Families, an abominable tradition that the younger generation had plans of eradicating.

One day.

However, our marriage would add great power, something I couldn’t ignore. Except the timing was all wrong. At this point, the only thing I could entertain was keeping her writhing underneath me and in my protected watch once I allowed her to leave.

The taste of her was far too sweet, a small part of me still arguing with my decision to allow her to stay. What I had in mind was degenerate by most standards and would take significant thought. She was far too young for marriage even at nineteen. However, she certainly wasn’t too young for a single taste.

Goddamn, I was a bad man. Could I do that to her?

Maybe there was a strange protective side of me with regard to her, although I had no idea why. She had a brother, although Enzo didn’t make it a point to keep her protected from the likes of me. Why was she here alone with only a friend instead of her usual bodyguards?

If I had to guess, I’d say the former innocent flower had lost some of her virtuousness. That made the thought of adding to her debauchery that much sweeter.

The feel of having Sophia in my arms was far too enticing, boosting both my testosterone and my adrenaline levels. The thought of driving my cock deep into her tight pussy kept me on the edge of something close to what I’d call sanity. If I had any humanity inside of me, I’d turn her away on her heel, sending her home like a good girl.

But I wasn’t that kind of man.

Why she’d dared step into my lair remained to be seen but who was I to refuse a beautiful gift? We were both legal and knew the score with our respective families.

Even if she was completely forbidden.

I cupped both sides of her face, rubbing my thumbs back and forth across her chiseled cheeks, marveling in how her scent had already stained my skin. As she clung to me, I could feel far too many eyes on us. I’d never tasted a single woman inside my club, preferring to separate business and what little pleasure I allowed myself. With Sophia, the aspect of everything being forbidden was too delicious to ignore.

While the thought of stripping her in front of my guests and having my way with her suited the kinky side of me, I refused to share any aspect of my possession or my good fortune with prying, lust-filled eyes. Seconds later, I broke the kiss, issuing a single husky sound before grabbing her hand and leading her off the dancefloor.

“Where are we going?” she asked once I’d led her to a private hallway leading to the rooftop vodka bar and lounge, which happened to be closed for the night.

“Wherever I say you’re going, princess.”

“Don’t call me a princess.”

“I’ll call you anything I want.” I headed for the elevator, pushing her inside. Leaving was preferrable but there was still business to attend to, another meeting in little more than an hour. Business before pleasure.

Or perhaps during.

She held her head high as I pushed my way through the crowd, acting as if the eyes watching her meant nothing. She’d been trained well, taught to perform like a dancing seal. That added to the longing to strip away her innocent façade, allowing her to taste pure sin.

The club was situated in an ancient building that had once belonged to Roman soldiers, the exquisite architecture allowing for various styles of dance and entertainment clubs within the several story building. It was a signature business for the family, making more money than I’d originally believed was possible. It also served as one of our many legitimate businesses that catered to helping us launder money from our more profitable trades.

As soon as we were inside the elevator, she backed against the steel wall, studying me more relentlessly than before.

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