Page 28 of Lethal King

“Yes, sir,” Maksim nods. “But I can probably already tell you everything.”

Mel struggles to keep up as we burst back into the house.

My embarrassment grows hot as the smoke clears from the hallways.

Bullet holes riddle the dark wood paneling. Lamps and busts and paintings lay on the floor, cracked and strewn about in the unnecessary panic.

Those two made complete fools of us.

“This is what I get for trusting security to anyone but myself,” I growl.

“I didn’t think it would be this bad,” Maksim agrees. “Fuck. I wish I could have been here to help.”

“I should have known better than to go through with it,” I respond. “At the very least, we should have used this opportunity to set a trap. It would have been so easy. She was five feet from me, Uncle Maks. Rozalia Dorn. The Black Cat. I fucking had her. Right in the palm of my hand. If there was a plan in place, I could have ended this all right here. Instead, I’ve spent the last month letting myself get distracted.”

My rage flares as we approach the throne room. But so does something else. Something wholly unwelcome.

My cock is starting to swell again.

It doesn’t matter that I’m drenched in blood; that I’m so angry I could tear this place down with my bare hands; that I’ll never entirely trust my subordinates again.

In the back of my mind, all I can see are those emerald green eyes; those plump red limps; that hour-glass figure.

My nails dig deep into my palms as I stop just before the door. Before I can fall any deeper into my lustful trance, Mel runs into my back, and I’m temporarily snapped back to reality.

“Oh no!” my little sister gasps. “What do you think happened to the kitten?”

“Fuck the cat,” I say. “We’ve got bigger problems.”

I didn’t see Rozalia leave with my crown. But I know both are long gone.

Still, I can’t help but wonder where that little kitten has run off to. Really, I should be thanking it—because If it hadn’t appeared out of the shadows back there, I might never have broken out of the trance Rozalia put me under. Shit. I was almost considering doing something stupid—not that I didn’t anyway.

I let the Black Cat go.

On purpose.

It was either that or pinning her against the wall so she could feel how hard I was.

Fuck.

At first, that hologram bullshit nearly had me fooled, but there was one thing Rozalia couldn’t hide with technology. And it quickly became clear that I wasn’t dealing with a ghost.

My cock could sense her warmth. I could smell her spicy scent…

And then the kitten knocked my crown from its stand, and a little blood rushed from my swollen member and back into my brain.

Mel was still out there in the chaos.

By then, I’d already figured out that Rozalia had come alone—well, figuratively. There was no army backing her up. Only her adoptive brother. But that didn’t mean my little sister was completely safe.

Maksim could only do so much against a bull like Tytus. And I’d left him to do it alone when I’d suddenly realized that Rozalia might try to beat us to the throne room.

So, I ran ahead and planted a few special parting gifts into the jewels of my crown. Then she came in, and I lost track of time.

That chaotic kitten helped me remember what my real duty was.

To protect my family.