Marrying the Mob Prince

Evie

I’m grateful that I am not hateful.

Five men.

Five broken families.

Their faces splashed on the evening news as I finished my breakfast. The three bikers who’d attended the ill-fated diamond appraisal were found dead with horrific injuries. Days before, a shooting killed two at Olaf’s, a Legion dive that served decent bar food.

Articles blasted Boston’s endemic gang violence, pinning the blame on motorcycle gangs and their territorial disputes. The mayor held a press release decrying the bloodbath, calling on Congress to pass a bill that gave harsher sentences for repeat felons.

Months ago, I would’ve turned off the TV to mourn with everyone else, but I was glued to the screen. This had Tony Costa written all over it. He had to be responsible for the flood of anti-biker propaganda on social media.

“Don’t visit the club,” whispered Jennesy’s voice from the phone’s speaker. “Seriously, Evie. You don’t want to be here. Martha’s old man is on life support. He was shot at Olaf’s. She’ll kill you if you show up. Even my dad and I got into it because I went on one date with Christian.”

I rubbed my head, hating that he’d put me in this position. “How was dinner with Christian?”

“Amazing. He was so nice. Just like you said, a total gentleman. He took me to an Italian restaurant on the waterfront. Everything was perfect. I’ve never been spoiled like that.” She let out a heartbroken sigh that resonated in my chest. “I’m hoping this craziness dies down so we can go out again. I canceled our second date.”

That was my husband’s fault, too.

“Jennesy, I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry. I feel horrible.”

“Don’t blame yourself, babe. There’s nothing you could’ve done to stop him. Guys like Costa can’t be bargained with. He’s damaged goods.”

I opened my mouth, and then shut it. What was the point of defending my husband? Tony’s reputation had taken a nosedive, and swearing to Jennesy that he’d never hurt me didn’t make him an angel.

A baby’s cry broke through the speaker.

“I should get going. Ben’s getting fussy.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to you later. Give Ben a kiss for me.”

“Will do. Bye.”

A ringing sense of loss cut through me as I hung up. Visiting my cousin was out of the question, and would be for months. She sure as hell couldn’t visit me. They were probably retaliating against Tony right now.

Wasn’t isolating me from the club his plan?

A vein in my neck pulsed, but grief quickly swallowed my anger. My throat tightened as I imagined five coffins sinking into the ground. The club would never take me back. I’d always felt like an outsider, and I’d never gelled with biker culture, but they were my only family. Tony had ripped away that support forever. I was dependent on a man who didn’t love me.

This was proof.

Tony still thought of us as rats that needed to be exterminated.Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

I pictured the rage in the clubhouse, the drinking, the utter chaos that these deaths would cause.

For hours, I was glued to the TV. My stomach roiled with nausea that’d stuck with me all day, interrupted by a vicious craving for sweets. I was totally off-kilter. Stress-eating. A vicious headache pounded behind my temples. Light blared from the television, filling the rooms with a pulsing glow. I sat in my chaise, facing the Boston skyline.

The door opened.

“Baby, I’m home.”

His singsong voice landed on my ears like a slap.

I winced, burrowing into Tony’s faux-fur afghan. I had no energy to confront him, but a spike of adrenaline forced my spine to straighten.

A man-shaped silhouette stepped inside, his beauty marred by a pinch in his elegant brows. He grabbed the remote and stabbed the button, shutting off the noise.

Tony fingered balled up tissues littering the coffee table, prowling around until he found me. One look at me all bundled up, and he seemed to get it.

“It takes a monster to kill a monster, Evie.”

“Well, you definitely are one.” Pure acid bubbled from my throat as I fought the urge to launch at him. “What you did was evil. How could you?”

His lips curled in a contemptuous sneer. “I’ve done a lot worse, but this? This isn’t even in the minor leagues of fucked up.”

“You’re proud of that?”

“Absolutely.”

I stumbled from the chair, clutching my stomach as though it’d hold in the hurt. I couldn’t believe I’d admired him. I must’ve been desperate, searching for virtue where there wasn’t any, taken in by his charm, his support, his generosity, his willingness to go the extra mile, but he was deranged.

The fire in his stare dimmed.

He sighed. “Evie, you don’t understand.”

“You have a vendetta against the club. I’m your excuse to maim as many bikers as you can. It’s disgusting, but pretty easy to figure out.”

His nostrils flared, and he tightened his fists. “I honored my part of the deal. All they had to do was leave us the fuck alone, but Jett couldn’t handle that. He just had to undermine me.”

“Tony, you murdered five people.”

“So what? Have you ever heard of Darfur? Hundreds of thousands men, women, and children slaughtered. Did you bat an eye? Did you join Amnesty International? No. I off five piece of shit bikers, and you throw a fit. I feel zero remorse for taking out the trash.”

“So we should kill them all, shouldn’t we?”

“It’s a start,” he said without a hint of sarcasm. “I’ve seen how your people live, Evie. The chain-link fences. No landscaping. Kids running around with no supervision. Nothing to entertain them but a rusted playground. There are prison yards with more charm. It’s fucking sad.”

I threw up my arms. “God forbid we lack the resources for Japanese maple trees on our front lawns!”

“It’s not about the goddamned aesthetics. You grew up in a violent place that treats women worse than animals. I’ll purge this city of every biker scumbag if I have to, because it needs to stop.”

I faltered in the silence that engulfed us. Shock and disbelief rooted me to the ground. Hot tears slid down my cheek. I squeezed my eyes shut, warding off disturbing images of Tony slitting Patrick’s throat.

“There is something seriously wrong with you, Tony.”

“There’s a lot wrong with me. Has been ever since Legion kidnapped me.”

“I need to leave.”

“No, you don’t.” Tony grabbed my wrist before I stepped away. His arm looped my waist. He clasped me to his body, his reassuring scent clashing with his biting grip. “You’re staying here. You’ll get over this, and it’ll be all right.”

“How? Do you think my father will take this lying down? He’ll hit you back. Hard. Did you even consider the consequences?”

“I was too busy saving you from being raped. I had no clue where you were or who took you. You screamed before the phone cut off. You can’t imagine the fear. The utter fucking helplessness. There’s nothing I wouldn’t have done to rescue you.”

“What did shooting up a biker bar have to do with that?”

“That was a message to all those degenerates.”

“My point, you aggravating man, was that it was completely unnecessary!”

“My God, Evie. What planet are you on? They let K grab you. I would’ve given up my life to save yours, but no. They stood by and watched it happen!”

I wavered on my feet, more uncertain than ever. “We were outnumbered.”

“I don’t care! They could’ve stared down a machine gun, and I’d still be pissed off. They should’ve fought for you!”

“Sometimes y-you have to live to fight another day.”

“Evie. They knew what K does for a living and didn’t lift a finger to help-” His voice broke suddenly, and he squeezed his eyes shut. “I busted my ass to find you. I did everything in my power to get you home. Where was Jett? In a bar. Getting his drink on.”

I flinched, the energy leaving me like air from a ruptured balloon. Doubt hammered the glass walls surrounding my heart.

“I don’t believe you,” I said brokenly. “He wouldn’t do that. I’m his only daughter.”

His dark eyes reflected glimmers of light that weakened my knees. He blew a shaky breath and set his jaw.

“Evie, I’m so sorry.”

A heartbreaking silence followed Tony’s hushed words. They barely registered to my dizzied senses. I shook my head, weighing the structure of events against my husband, the only consistent force in my life. I was baffled. I shook off the pain and squared my shoulders.

Tony didn’t give a damn if he hurt me.

“You’re making shit up. You want me upset so that I’ll never see him again!”

“I don’t have to lie. I just have to tell you the truth.” Tony’s pained expression darkened, and he rubbed his temples. “Evie, do you remember what happened? After K took you?”

“Not-not really.”

Discomfort flitted across Tony’s brow before he melted into a multicolored blur. I wiped away tears as Tony grasped my hand and led me to the couch.

I dropped onto the cushions, numb.

“On the phone, you mentioned a truck,” Tony murmured, glancing at his lap. “What do you think was inside?”

“Guns or drugs.”

Seconds ticked by.

Tony sighed. “You need to confront this, Evie. What was K buying?”

I frowned. “That’s club business. Dad doesn’t tell me anything.”

“Take a wild guess.”

I blinked, my heart pounding. “I don’t know, cocaine?”

“Wrong. What else could it be?”

Memories stirred under the black fog obscuring those forty-eight hours. A giant door opening. Bare legs.

I’d seen the cargo-rows and rows of women.

That hit me like a sledgehammer to my ribs.

Oh my God.

Tony’s touch skimmed my arm and clasped my shaking elbow.

“Girls. The MC sold him girls.”

* * *

The images slammed into my head like stills from a graphic crime scene. A dozen girls in varying states of undress, drugged out of their minds, crammed into tight quarters. K’s frowning face hovering above mine. Hay littering the floor.

I stared at a computer screen, immersed in the evidence connecting human trafficking with biker gangs. I connected the dots between Tony’s strange obsession with my tax records. He didn’t want diamonds from slavery linked to his name. No fucking kidding.

I was culpable.

I’d aided my father’s horrible acts. I could’ve lived with a drug possession charge but this? I shut the laptop and swallowed hard.

“I can’t believe my dad did this.”

Tony gave me a sad smile. “He sold you to me, didn’t he?”

My heart wrenched.

It was too much to take. My brain filled in the gaps with mounting horror. How many deals had I unintentionally helped? A pain fractured within me, stabbing deep like steel growing in my veins. The club girls-were they there by choice? Where did they go after they left? Where did the MC keep these captured women?

How many had I condemned?

I lost it, sobbing. I fell on my hands and knees, misery cleaving my body. Rotten feelings twisted up inside me. On some level, I’d suspected this. It made no sense why Dad rubbed elbows with traffickers unless he did business with them.

Tony dragged me into his embrace. I sagged into the wall of muscle. I shoved my face into the crook of his neck, making a mess of his shirt.

My life was a lie.

All of it.

“Evie, what can I do? Please…tell me what I can do.” He stroked my hair, the warmth from his gesture cutting me.

“I thought you were the monster. Turns out I am.”

“No, honey. You’re not.”

“I am.”

I pushed him away and staggered into the bedroom. A Harley-Davidson tank top draped the chair. I’d put it there months ago to fuck with him. Now my stomach turned at the cruelty of that taunt.

He must hate me.

Tony stood at the threshold, pale-faced.

I pressed my palms into my eyes, shaking. “I’m so sorry, Tony. God. I am such an idiot. I had no idea. It’s like you said. I was wrapped up in my problems.”

“Evie, I was angry and jealous. I regret everything I said that night. It’s not a crime to seek happiness.” Tony’s voice tightened as he wiped my cheeks. “You are nothing like your father. If you need any proof, look in the mirror. The fact that you feel this pain makes all the difference.”

“I should have known!”

“And I should’ve been the CEO of a tech company. Instead I became-”

“A man who fights for others, never himself?” I caressed his bronzed cheek, tracing his jaw line. “I wish you could see what I see.”

Softness dulled his gaze like black satin.

My swell of agony was beyond tears. I felt sick and out of control.

“Why do you want me? I’m one of them.”

“Don’t care.”

“I’m too biker to fit in at your high-society dinners. I’ll never be able to tell between champagne and prosecco. I can’t speak Italian.”

“Evie, look at me.”

When I didn’t, he lifted my chin. Concern furrowed his brows.

“I am crazy about my biker wife. I can’t tell you why, because there are too many things I admire about you. You’re talented, Evie. I don’t think you hear that enough, but you are. One day, I’ll be on the sidelines while you’re designing jewelry for celebrities, and I can’t wait for it. I like that you’re so compassionate, even when it’s inconvenient for me, because I know you’ll go easy on me when I screw up. I love that you want me for me. You’re perfect. I wouldn’t change a damned thing.”

Sunshine parted the clouds, his words chasing out the gloom. Perfect and talented. Coming from Tony, that was…huge. Not the I-love-you I needed, but close.

I love him so much.

My heart burst with sweet pain as Tony kissed my cheek. His mouth burned a trail down, pressing into my jaw, my chin, melting tension everywhere, and then he found my lips.

I clutched him tighter.

He was so insanely gorgeous that I caught myself leaning forward. His ruggedness was a vital power wetting my tongue. At first glance, indistinguishable from outlaws, but was making this city a better place.

A lump stuck in my throat.

Groaning, he licked the curve of my smile. Then he angled his head to deepen the kiss. My senses blazed as his soft lips caught mine with an unbearable tenderness.

Tony.

I rose on my tiptoes, hungry for more. Every stroke dragged me from the cliff and submerged me into a warm pool. Euphoria tingled my skin at his closeness, never so strong. I dug into his back. I needed more assurance.

I pulled away, eyes burning. “Tony, do you forgive me?”

“There’s nothing to forgive.”

“I need you to say it.”

“Evie, I’m the opposite of a priest. I can’t offer you absolution.” Tony pushed me toward the bed, darkening. “But I can give you a hell of a distraction.”

The mattress hit my knees.

I sank, dizzy.

Tony climbed in after me. His body settled beside mine. We kissed, his fingers teasing my shirt over my body.

My breasts tumbled free, and he let out an appreciative groan. He dragged the shirt up my arms, stopping short of freeing my wrists. Then he scooped one globe, thumb playing with the nipple while his grip tightened on my imprisoned hands. He kissed my neck, his mouth tracing a sinful path to the aching points demanding his attention. He lowered his head, licking. He laved them in velvet-heat, circling, sliding, flicking, each stroke more frenzied than the last. He suckled gently, forcing a tortured moan from my lips.

Tony released my bound hands. He played with the sensitive skin on my wrist before skimming my arm. Goosebumps rose where he touched me. An eager shiver trembled my belly when he splayed his hand over my stomach, groping his way to my hip. He glided under my pajama pants and yanked them down.

Cool air touched my pussy before his palm cupped my mound. He teased my clit. A tremor worked its way up my thigh. He delved inside, not quite penetrating, but gathering my wetness. He drew away, sucking his shining knuckles before finding the tight bundle of nerves between my legs. He pressed my clit, rubbing in gentle circles, the electricity creating a lightning storm.

The intense bolt of pleasure derailed my thoughts. He slid his thumb up and down my pussy, stroking me into a frenzy, loosening my tense muscles. Tony showed no signs of relenting. His stare drilled into me.

He sat up and unbuckled his slacks, shedding his clothes in seconds before the tanned, sculpted god climbed over me. He flipped me over and hauled me to my knees. His erection jabbed my backside. I bent over the bed, submitting to the hand on my back. He grabbed my thighs with both hands and pushed, widening my hips. I braced for his cock.

I wanted him to rut me.

I needed the pain.

His hair brushed my skin, and then heat engulfed my pussy. He swirled and sucked, leaving no part of me neglected by his tongue. I tightened as a quiver shot up my legs. Tony’s firm slap landed on my cheek, but I couldn’t stop squeezing. His mouth on me dissolved all rational thought. I screamed, eyes shut, praying for release.

“I told myself I’d act like a gentleman. You’re making that difficult.”

“A gentleman can’t fuck me the way I need.”

Tony lazily slapped my ass. “Which is?”

“Your cum inside me.”

My cheeks burned, but Tony didn’t run away. He licked along my seam, diving into my wetness again.

“I want it.”

He purred. “Where do you want it, baby?”

“Where your mouth is.”

“I see. Well, you’ll have to beg harder than that.”

Then he went back to it, holding me still. I couldn’t utter a word. I moaned at being tongue-fucked by such a powerful man. He applied pressure on my clit. Ecstasy flashed like a thunderclap, blinding and strong, and then gone in an instant.

Because he’d left me.

I whined as he backed away, the building crescendo screaming for its climax.

He flipped me onto my back. He lifted my leg over his trunk-like thigh and fitted his cock to my entrance. He seized my hair, releasing a feral growl.

Then he shoved.

He sighed with relief as he anchored himself, filling me. I bit my lip as my walls strained to accommodate him. He withdrew and rammed me with his greedy cock again. Then he fucked me with the force I’d craved.

I whimpered from his brutal thrusts, but Tony made no sound. His forehead touched mine, his gaze boring into me with an unspoken promise: I belonged to him. He would protect me at whatever cost.

He jerked his erection back and forth with a mad frenzy, just like the night he’d taken my virginity. The sight of me helpless seemed to spark the deviant in him, the savage that took without asking and somehow fucked the pain away. I needed this. Needed him.

I loved him so much it scared me.

Tony plastered his chest to mine, his mouth seeking my neck. Blasts of air scorched my skin as he panted, rolling his hips. “I can’t control myself when you look at me like that,” he whispered, his voice rumbling through my body. “You’re so fucking pure. It gets me so hard. It makes me want to dirty you up and come inside you, even though I know I shouldn’t.”

“I want it, Tony. I really…I need it.”

“Beg for it.”

“Please, Tony. I’ll be good. I’ll do anything.”

“Hmm. Still not convinced.”

“Give me your fucking cum!”

He stopped mid-thrust, glaring. “What was that?”

“Please give me your cum, sir.”

Tony pounded me roughly. When I screamed with my orgasm, he reached his climax. My walls contracted around his cock as he buried himself, holding me tight.

A warm jet blasted, in tandem with his thrusts. I glowed. Aching. Gloriously wet. Tony collapsed. I grinned. He smiled and pulled me into his chest, tucking my head under his chin. His hand sought mine, intertwining with my fingers as he held it over his heart.

It was the most intimate we’ve ever been. I lay on my back, exposed, vulnerable, but he clutched me like I was his only means of survival. His grip made my knuckles ache but his eyes closed in lazy contentment. He broke the kiss, sighing.

I smoothed the cowlick teasing his forehead and kissed his stubbled cheek. He let me, lying there like a contented housecat. My heart squeezed as he gripped me harder.

He was such a complicated man, but I was beginning to understand him. I loved his flaws. I loved him. And I wanted him to be with me every day because when he was, I felt cherished and beautiful. Like I could conquer anything.

Passion rose inside me like a flame, clouding my brain, and then it burst out of me.

“Tony, I love you.”

His eyes opened to half slits and he stared. He didn’t react. He seemed to hold his breath. He glared at me as though waiting for me to admit it was a joke.

“I love you.”

His body stilled, and his expression sobered.

My pulse raced. Seconds ticked by, his silence deafening. “I said I love you. I fucking love-”

Tony slammed his mouth into mine, shutting me up. Then he flipped me onto my stomach and forced me to my knees. He entered me with a painful thrust, startling me. His hands ground into my hair and he ripped my head back. My scalp stung as he traced my lips, easing his finger inside.

“Say it again,” he ordered.

“I love you.”

He introduced a second digit. “Again.”

I repeated it, the sound muffled.

He slapped my cheek, the smack tingling my nipples with arousal.

“Again.”

“I love you.”

His hand slipped around my throat. He held it loosely, pounding me until my knees shook, and I collapsed on the bed.

I inhaled, the air trapped by his fingers. My eyelids flitted from the lack of oxygen, the act burning my body instead of filling it with fear. I loved him. I trusted him. Blackness teased the edge of my vision as he fucked me, and then his hand left my mouth.

I shattered.

I floated on clouds, coming so hard my breath came in agonized gasps, and then I cried into the sheets. Tony bit my shoulder as he climaxed. We were two broken halves, trying to make ourselves whole, and God, it felt so good.

He held me tight as he whispered,

“I love you, too.”