“Yes, I am, love. Better remember that.”
I stare, unable to help it. The same design as Kenzo’s tattoo is on Ryder, but it seems to start on his back and wraps around his side. The snake curves around his pec and ends above his heart. The tongue is out and so lifelike, I can imagine it flickering, those red eyes locked on me.
Ryder throws me off balance. I’m used to being the scariest one in the room, but he scares me because in this room, I’m nothing. All that money, all that power, I should hate him. But I don’t. Not even a little bit. He craves my complete control, but my surrender as well. Total surrender, but I’m so used to fighting, and when he peels back all those layers of stubbornness and hate, what will he find underneath? That terrifies me, that’s why I lash out. Why I push at them, poke and prod until we all explode.
“What? Is this when I’m supposed to fall to my knees and beg for forgiveness?” I laugh. “Not my style, go fuck yourself and your stupid fucking Vipers. I’m done with you all.”
It was the wrong thing to say.
Chapter Twenty-Four
RYDER
Roxxane turns to walk away, so I snap out my arm, the reaction directed by my own anger and need. How dare she? She doesn’t get to walk away, she has to pay for her actions and words. Grabbing the back of her neck, I yank her around to face me and crash my lips onto hers. It wasn’t planned, but I can’t help myself. She isn’t allowed to walk away from me. Not now. Not ever. I would kill everyone in this fucking world for her, anyone who ever dared hurt her. She doesn’t get to turn her nose up at that and act like a brat. Not when there’s a scarred, hard-ass survivor underneath. She can’t know the true depth of feelings I have for her, that even though I try to stay impartial, that I try to hate her, I can’t.
Because I’m falling in love with her.
She freezes for a moment before melting ever so slightly, her lips fighting mine, meeting me head-on. It’s hard and angry, a fight like always with her. It’s a duel, a battle for dominance as I open her mouth and slip my tongue inside, tasting her sweetness. It explodes across my taste buds, the flavour of her now branded on me, and I know this was a mistake because I’ll never be able to go back. Never be able to not touch her, taste her, now. I just put my family at risk, and I can’t seem to care with her in my arms. All that anger, all that bravery and attitude, and she melts against me so easily. My little broken princess. She seems to realise it, and tries to push me away and starts to fight. Thrashing uselessly in my arms, she bites my lip until I taste blood, like I would ever let her go. No, she will be mine tonight. Tonight, I will satiate my lust, let all this desire for Roxxane out, and tomorrow…tomorrow I can be the Viper I need to be to protect my family. But for one night, I’ll be selfish. I will damn the consequences and take what I want—her. Chuckling huskily, I pull away, ignoring my pulsing cock as it aches to be buried inside her when she fights me like that.
No, she needs to learn obedience first, to surrender to me and my control. Only then will I let us bathe in pleasure.
I feel the pounding of her pulse against my hand as it lazily wraps around her throat. Leaning down, I murmur against her lips, unable to help myself. “There is nowhere in this world you can go, nowhere you can escape us, princess.” I crave her heat, her body, her mind, even her fight. She is my ever-growing weakness, a grey area blooming in my dark heart and stretching its colour across my soul until I can’t help but want to be a better man for her, to be the man she deserves. But I will never be, so instead, she gets me. She will have to learn to survive it and get used to it, because I have a feeling she’s going nowhere.
I wanted to punish her, maybe scare her, but I can’t seem to help myself. My cock is running the show now. I’ll sate my desire, then go back to keeping a cool distance. I can still control this, control her, and how I take her.
“Want to fucking bet? Let me go, and we’ll see.” She sniffs, but her lips are bruised from our kiss, her chest pressed against mine so hard, I can feel her stiff nipples just begging for me to play with them. I can see her need in the way her pupils are blown wide with lust as her gaze tracks down my face and back to my lips again, and in the slight tremor of her curvy body as I hold it against me. Roxxane hates that she wants me.
Feeling is mutual, love.
“Let you go?” I smirk. “Never. Now it’s time for your punishment.” She freezes against me, and I chuckle. “Didn’t think you were getting off that easy, did you?” I push her away, and she stumbles back, suddenly looking nervous, her chest heaving and cheeks adorably tinting red.
Circling her, I pick at the long shirt dress she’s wearing, the fishnets underneath letting me glimpse her pale, tattooed skin. Needing to regain some control, I push her until she’s bent over. “Stay,” I order, as I stand behind her.
Flicking open the button on my trousers, I slide my belt through the loops until it’s free, the noise loud in the silent room, and she shivers in anticipation. I tug up her dress to expose her ass and tiny red knickers, and I have to bite my knuckles as I stare at her to stop myself from dropping the belt and going to my knees to worship her like I ache to. I want to slam my cock inside her wet heat and hear her scream for me.
Me.
Not my brothers.
But I rein in that impulse, only just, my years of careful control shaky in the face of my greatest challenge. She’s wet, I can see it. Fuck. Shifting my cock in my trousers, I try to ignore the urge to just rip those taunting knickers away and thrust into her tight little pussy. No, punishment first. Then control. Only then will I have her. “Ryder, don’t you fucking—”
I bring the belt down on her unprotected ass. She hisses and falls forward, but I catch her around the middle, and when she’s steady again, I rub my hand across her plump silky ass, massaging in the burn before I swing the belt back and land it on her ass twice more. She cries out but stays standing, profanities and insults leaving her lips.
But she doesn’t move, doesn’t fight me...because she wants it. She wants my brand of control. She wants to surrender to me. She wants to be consumed by me, and I want that too.
Good girl.
Pushing aside her knickers, I feel her freeze against my fingers as I expose her to my gaze. I lick my lips and stare at her glistening lips, so wet. She smells delicious, and I bet she tastes just as good. Running my belt buckle across her center, I watch her cry out and push back, wanting more.
Laughing, I snap her underwear back in place, and when she can’t see, I lap some of her juices from my belt, groaning at her taste. “So fucking wet, love. Tell me again how you hate us when you’re dripping for my cock.”
“Fuck you, you cocky son of a bitch—” She whimpers as I bring the belt down again. Dropping it to the floor, I bite my lip at the redness across her ass. My marks. It’s hot as hell seeing her like this.
But she’s had enough punishment, and so have I. If I don’t have her soon, I’m going to come. I reach down and squeeze my cock. Not yet, I need her to understand who’s in charge. Who owns her body, as well as her mind. She needs to give herself over to me completely, and only then will she get the pleasure she seeks. I can’t let her know how affected I am.
How easily she breaks my control.
Turning away, I give myself a moment to breathe, and when all those roiling emotions are under better control, I sit down on the sofa, legs spread and arm thrown over the back as I stare at her still bent form. I run my eyes greedily down her thick, tattooed thighs and plump red ass. She’s fucking glorious, the most magnificent creature I have ever seen. She shifts uncomfortably, and I take pity on her. “Stand.”
She hesitates for a moment before doing as she’s told, whirling to face me, making me tut. “I didn’t tell you to turn, did I, princess? Shirt off,” I demand.
She bristles at the order, and I narrow my eyes. “Do I need to take the belt to your plump little arse again, love? I will, and this time, it will end in pain instead of pleasure. When I give you an order, you do it. Shirt off, now. Let me look at what I own,” I command.
“You don’t own me, asshole, no one ever could. Not you. Not your fucking brothers. There isn’t enough money in the world to buy me,” she snarls, and I have a feeling she’s right. It’s more of a pretence now that she’s ours. We all know Roxxane is not a kept woman or a toy.