Page 31 of Stolen Compliance

“By design,” I finally reply.

The whore pouts. “But I thought we had a good time?”

Clenching my teeth, I wonder what I ever saw in this one… As he bats his eyelashes at me, the glint from the dim lighting making his dark-brown eyes sparkle, Luca shifts beside me. Uncomfortable or turned on by the performance?

Either way, the reminder of his presence is exactly why I chose this one, brazen as he can be. His eyes, his blond hair—though his is as fake as his eyelashes—even the color of his lips, all remind me of the man sitting next to me. Luca is taller, more muscular, and has the hardened aura of a man who’s seen the bloody side of this life, yet there are parts of him that are still soft, still innocent. Even after everything he’s learned since being here.

It draws me in, and I hate it. That sick, twisted part of me ready to throw the hatred and humiliation to the side, no matter how much I am determined to hang onto my anger, and coax out the parts of him that scream how much he wants to be on his knees.

It’d be easy. He hasn’t given up trying to make amends or be my friend or whatever the fuck he’s doing. He’s the timid yet energetic little bunny Dominic has labeled him as, and it calls to me in ways I haven’t felt since Dominic twisted me up with his words and hands and unmatched violence.

Yet still I want him, need him even. And if that doesn’t say how far down I’ve fallen, nothing will. Especially not when I have images of Luca in the same position I was last year. Only worse, because there’d be two of us.

Fuck it. Downing the rest of my drink, I embrace the burn and stand.

The whore’s face lights up and then falls just as quickly as I say, “Keep my friend here company, I’ll be back.”

I’m not worried about leaving Luca. There’s security and Dominic and Kari are around. I simply need a few minutes to myself to cool down so I don’t give in and fuck or kill the bastard.

Thankfully, the VIP lounge has its own bathroom, and I step inside to piss and take a few cleansing breaths, reminding myself why touching our special guest without permission from the Boss is a bad idea. The problem? The guy throws out fuck me vibes just by breathing.

It was easy to ignore when he first arrived, especially after he helped Dominic “put me in my place”, but now? The pain and humiliation of the punishment has worn off and my resolve is being grounded down to nothing. Not when I can so easily see him skewered on Dominic’s thick cock, or my own. Hell, we could probably get both in him and he’d take it.

But the risks aren’t worth it. Not when my father is still keeping me at arm’s length and the sting of that is hard to shake. I might not know what to make of the guy myself, but even now, after all the torturous training and the grooming that comes with being his heir, he still is setting up to sell his daughter to the highest bidder. Simply so he can have a backup plan should I disappoint him even more than I already have.

Gripping the edge of the sink, I shake my head to clear it. Nothing good comes from those thoughts. Trying to win the approval of a man like Sergio Martelli is the same as waiting around for Dominic to grow a pair of balls not attached to his position and training methods. Neither will ever happen.

Deciding I’ve hidden for long enough, I make my way back out. The party has somehow gotten louder in the few minutes I disappeared. Checking my watch, I see it’s five to midnight, so I’m not surprised. I am thankful that means this day is almost over and I can soon crawl into my bed, where I’m safe enough to fantasize about things I’ll never have.

A commotion across the way catches my attention, and I watch as Kari drops a big man to the ground at the table beside ours.

It’s quite impressive, a spitfire like my adopted sister dropping grown men like they’re nothing but kicked puppies. Whichever poor sucker gets stuck with her will learn quickly who is really in charge.

Kari says something to the guy sitting slack jawed at the table, and then she reaches up to touch her ear—I’m assuming to call security to escort the asshole on the floor out of the building.

Whatever she says, the other guy doesn’t like it as he jumps up to rush at Kari, almost tripping over his downed friend in the process.

Before he gets there, though, Luca slides in, grabbing the fucker and taking him down even faster than Kari did the friend. He has the asshole on his knees, arm bent back behind him at an unnatural angle, and though I can’t hear it over the music and crowd below, I’m sure he screams as Luca takes it a step further and twists his wrist the same time he bends the arm further back, surely snapping the bone.

It doesn’t take long for me to cross the space. I check on Kari first, but she’s only glaring daggers at both assholes, her sharp heel digging into the gut of the man she took down.

Luca’s guy has tears rolling down his face, and I wince at the awkward way the newbie is holding his arm back. He’s more than likely going to have a very long and unpleasant healing time. Good.

“Everything okay?”

“It will be once these fuckers are banned from my establishment.” Kari spits on the one she’s stepping on when he tries to wheezedly protest.

The security guys come up just then, and I beckon Luca away to let them and Kari take care of the issue. Kari won’t appreciate us getting in her way.

I take Luca to the alcove near the bathroom and look him up and down. “You fancy yourself a hero? The Boss is going to only pay closer attention to you now after saving his principessa, and Kari won’t do you any favors—she’s capable of getting shit done.”

He scowls. “I know. I was right there when she handled business. But what type of man does nothing when someone needs help? Man, woman, anybody. Fucker is lucky I only broke his arm and didn’t gut him for what he and his friend said to her.”

The shadows of the alcove turn his eyes to molten dark chocolate, and his beauty stands out in a way that has my already-hard cock granite in my pants.

“Kari won’t thank you for stepping in, but I will, newbie,” I tell him, leaning in to ghost my lips against his. His breath catches, and I breathe him in, smoke, alcohol, and something uniquely him drawing me closer. “I think…despite your protests, you’re enjoying playing with fire. It’s going to be fun watching you burn.”

There’s cheering and the ringing of bells and obnoxious confetti poppers sounding downstairs, cluing us to the tick over of the new year.