Page 71 of Then We Shatter

“We don’t have fucking time for this,” he replies. “Just go if you have to go, Killian.”

“Fine,” I huff. I’m not sure what hurts more. Upsetting Rory or having to agree with Duke.

Chapter 26

Killian

The punch lands in the same spot where Duke hit me earlier. Shit it hurts and I cry out reflexively. That infuriates Katarina further and she wraps her hands around my throat, crushing my windpipe. My arms remain raised in surrender, the gift bag swinging from a curled finger as we pause our reunion to listen for footsteps outside her bedroom.

One of her bodyguards has been pacing up and down the second-floor corridor. Either he’s being extra diligent or he’s agitated. And that’s without knowing I’ve just sneaked in through the rabbit warren of secret passages Calder led me through to get up here. He’s set a timer on his watch. Ten minutes before he comes to fetch me.

“This isn’t a game, Killian. It’s my life,” Katarina hisses, her dark brown eyes as dark as the path I’ve chosen to take. “I hate you for what you’ve done to me.”

My eyes are bulging from the lack of oxygen and my head pounds. I could really do with drawing a breath right now, but I’d hate to interrupt Kitty mid-rant.

“I keep crying over you, Shorty. Crying,” she repeats for emphasis. “I’m not supposed to feel this way. I endured all the horrors a heart could take until it turned to stone. And then you came along and stole it.” Her grip on my neck tightens. “You were supposed to be fun.”

My chest spasms in a desperate bid to pull air into my lungs, but if I have a complaint, it’s that I can’t fully appreciate Katarina’s beauty while dark spots are dancing across my vision.

Katarina wears a crimson sequined dress that molds to her body so tightly she wouldn’t be able to walk if it wasn’t for the long slit along one thigh. Her long, raven hair shimmered when she saw me, no doubt because she was trembling with rage.

“You were this heady mix of sex, sin and danger,” she continues. “The perfect choice of lover to send Vasili apoplectic if he found out. Except he can’t find out. Not now. I’m so close to being free and you’re going to ruin everything. You can’t be here. You just can’t.” Those beautiful eyes puddle with fresh tears. “But you are. You’re here and…”

Katarina releases her grip and I have just enough time to gasp in a breath before her mouth crashes against mine. As she opens herself to me and I devour her with my tongue, I lift her feet off the ground and carry her towards the bed, breathing through my nose so we don’t break the kiss.

Dropping the gift bag on the mattress, I set Katarina back down so I can carefully hike up her dress. She’d definitely kill me if I ripped it. Katarina sinks back onto the bed and I quickly follow, snagging buttons and zips so I can pull down my pants. My cock presses against her center and when I feel a soft vibration, my chuckle is low and devilish. I’d set her toy to a continuous throb on my way over from the marquee.

“I’m sorry you’ve been getting all hot and bothered,” I say, slipping my hand between her legs and pulling her soaking wet panties to the side. “But I’m here now, Kitty.” The toy slips out easily and I immediately line myself up. “I’m here.”

With one hard thrust, I drive my cock into her to the hilt. Katarina’s back arches and I cover her mouth with my hand. She pulls it away.

“Wait,” she pants. She gives me a disapproving look as she snags the wig from my head and throws it across the room. “I’m not fucking Patrick.”

I roll my hips and she grinds against me. “That’s right, Kitty. You’re fucking me. I’m the only man who gets this pussy,” I warn as I thrust into her again. And again.

Katarina’s inner walls clamp around my cock, taking ownership of what’s surely hers, and her hips set a demanding pace as she grinds against me. Her lips flatten to hold back her cries and she hums through the pressure building inside her. I fuck her hard and deep and fast, our bodies clashing and her tits almost bouncing out of her dress. I grit my teeth, fighting the heat building in my core just long enough to make sure she’s there on the edge with me. We drop off this cliff together or not at all.

“Killian,” she gasps. “You bastard.”

“That I am,” I reply.

“You… Oh, fuck,” she cries out in a throaty whisper as she comes undone.

When she tips back her head, I nip at her exposed throat, feeling her pussy clenching and her body unraveling. “I’m with you, lovely. All the fucking way,” I say as my balls contract and I explode in a rush of searing pleasure, emptying into her with brutal thrusts.

A high like that deserves a slow descent, but there’s no time. I’m still catching my breath when I lift myself up, my trembling arms braced on either side of her so we can see each other clearly.

“I love you, Katarina Barkov,” I say. “I love you like there’s no tomorrow.”

“There is no tomorrow for us.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, zhizn moya,” I say, letting her know I figured out what she said to me back at the restaurant. My life. “You’re mine and I’m yours. Life doesn’t exist beyond us and I won’t let you fade into oblivion. Like it or not, I’m never letting you go, Katarina. You’re coming away with me. Tonight.”

“Killian, no.” Katarina jerks her hips and as I pull out, her face creases with pain that only a heart can feel. She thinks it’s the last time I’ll be inside her. “It’s going to start another war between our families. Do you want that?”

“Dad’ll immediately disown me, so the only fight between the McConkeys and the Barkovs will be who gets to beat the shit out of me first,” I say, keeping my voice surprisingly steady as I make light of turning my back on my family.

In truth, it’s kept me awake these last few nights, but I wouldn’t be suggesting it if I didn’t think they could manage perfectly well without me. Malachy proved that in Boston, and once they’ve had enough time to adjust to the idea of me and Katarina, there might be a way back. Maybe.