Defiant Queen (Mount Trilogy #2)

“He had to be the center of attention, have the most say in any conversation. I was the one who grew up in that distillery like it was my second home, and he’d been there for all of five minutes before his ego was nearly too big to fit through the door. I was the CEO, but he marginalized me at every opportunity. We were supposed to be a team. That’s what he promised me. But he didn’t understand the first thing about teamwork.”

My hands curl into fists. I wish I’d killed the fucker personally, because obviously he did more damage to her than I realized.

“Hyde was a low-level con, through and through. You weren’t equipped to see it coming.”

“Maybe not, but I was dumb enough to fall for it,” she says, blinking back tears.

Hoping Saxon made that piece of shit suffer, I hold up a hand to stop her. “You didn’t stand a chance, and I’m not insulting you when I say that.”

Keira turns away, lifting both hands to her face, and I imagine she’s wiping away tears. Tears that motherfucker is still causing from the grave. This ends now.

I wrap a hand around her arm and turn her to face me. “Stop. He doesn’t deserve another fucking second of your time, let alone another tear.”

“I just feel so stupid. And then I’m barely free of him and you swoop in, probably because you realized I’m such a fucking idiot and an easy mark. I didn’t stand a chance against you either, did I?”

I release her and drop my hands to my sides, consciously flexing my fingers out from the fists they instinctively curl into.

I lower my voice, but every word is perfectly clear. “Don’t fucking compare me to that piece of shit. I am not Brett Hyde.”

Another tear tips over her lid, and I can’t stop myself from reaching out to cup the side of her face. She flinches as I touch her, and I hate causing that reaction. I swipe a thumb beneath her lid and catch the next one that falls.

“I don’t need to overshadow you in your element. This is your world. I expect you to go out there and conquer it.”

She sniffles and brushes away the remainder of the tears—and my hand. She doesn’t realize I never offer comfort, and having it rejected is a sharp jab into a raw spot I didn’t know I had.

I step back, gripping the bar with both hands, and wait for her to lift her gaze back to mine. When she does, I tell her the absolute truth.

“And no, you didn’t stand a chance against me. I always get what I want.”





Keira





I don’t know if Mount’s last statement is meant to rile me up, but that’s exactly what it does. I offered him honesty, and he responded with dominance. Like always.

So I’ll give him what he expects from me. Attitude.

“And what do you want right now, Mount?” I stress his name because, for a moment, he seemed like a man I could confide in, and now he’s the arrogant bastard I’ve faced since the beginning.

“What I’ve wanted since the beginning. You.”

His hand moves at lightning speed, snatching mine and pulling me against him. I can’t miss the hard bulge shielded by the thin material of his suit pants as he turns me in a circle.

“So, this whole act tonight was just to get me into bed?” I look up at him in defiance and watch his eyes narrow and his expression darken.

“I don’t need an act for that. You’ve already agreed to all my terms. Whenever I want, and willing.”

My jaw clenches at his reminder. “Do they teach classes for that kind of arrogance, or were you born with it?”

All softness I felt toward him melts away like snow in the bayou, and it feels like we’re back to square one. Except I’m in Dublin. And he brought me here.

Facing this man is like taking on a Category 5 hurricane. My conflicting emotions surge within me.

Mount’s laugh is low and harsh. “You think I’m arrogant now? You’ve barely scratched the surface. For the record, just because I let you take the lead in your world doesn’t mean you get to call the shots anywhere else.”

“You’re impossible.” I hiss the words, but my body is already responding to his, and it’s taking all my self-control not to rub up against him like an animal in heat. Every bit of pressure heightens the sensation, thanks to my piercing.

“Pot, meet kettle,” he says.

“Fuck your pot and kettle.”

“All I want to fuck is you.” His gaze burns over my skin, and his nostrils flare as his free hand wraps around the back of my thigh, dragging upward until his palm skates under the fabric of my dress to grip my ass. “And you want it just as bad.”

“Not tonight.”

He lowers his lips close to my ear, and whispers a single word. “Liar.”

I have two options—murder him in this gorgeous hotel suite and spend the rest of my life on the run, or give in to the insanity and climb him like my body is dying for me to do.

“I still hate you.”

His teeth close over my earlobe. “No, you don’t. You just hate that you want me as badly as I want you.” He tugs and my nipples harden into points. “Admit it, and I’ll give you what you want.”

“This isn’t a new game. We both know you can make me want you, and it won’t mean anything except that you know how to play the game better than I do.”

He releases his hold on me completely. Surprised, I stumble back on my heels, catching myself on the bar.

Mount takes a step backward and shrugs off his jacket, leaving it folded over the back of the living room sofa. With another step back, he loosens the knot of his tie and tosses it on a chair. One more step, and the top two buttons of his shirt are undone, revealing the tanned, thick column of his neck. Another step, and the remaining buttons are undone and his shirt falls open, revealing his hard chest and rippling abs.

He stands in the middle of the suite, tucking his hands into his pockets as he meets my gaze. “I want to hear it now. Before I drag you to the brink and you’re willing to say anything for me to let you come.”

I lick my lips and flatten them. My inner muscles are already clenching, wetness soaking my thong as my body anticipates what’s coming next.

Murder or pleasure. What happened to my life that these two choices became equally viable outcomes to the same issue?

Mount happened.

“Fine. I’ll admit it. You win.”

Mount shakes his head slowly. “This isn’t about winning. This is about making it crystal fucking clear in your head that you crave what I give you. You don’t just want me to take control—you need it.”

He’s right. There’s no way I can deny it. We both know I’m a shitty liar.

“Then take it,” I tell him.

Again, his ridiculously handsome face moves slowly from side to side. “No, tonight you’re going to give it to me willingly.”

“What do you mean?”

He tips his head toward the floor-to-ceiling windows, hidden by opulent window treatments. “Open the curtains.”

My brain spins at his order. Where is he going with this?

“Why?”

“Ask another question, and I swear you won’t come tonight.”

I bite down on my lip because my natural instinct is to question his every order. But the idea of being denied orgasms all night, while he undoubtedly can give me many, isn’t something I want to contemplate.

His dark eyes flare with heat as I step toward the drapes and yank them wide open. The lights in the room are low, but still bright enough to give a clear view inside.