Excerpt from Scarred Queen by Nikita Slater *** Who hit you? Reyes demanded, his voice lashing her. Casey shivered but lifted her chin defiantly. Who do you think? Don t give me that shit, Casey, he snarled, rage vibrating thickly in his voice. He took hold of her chin and impatiently brushed the hair back from her face so he could see the marks better. Did Ignacio do this to you? Of course it was my husband. Do you really think he would allow anyone else to do this without permission? she confirmed jerking her chin, but he refused to release his hold on her face. He smoothed a finger across the graze on her cheek, his touch gentle despite the seething anger threatening to boil over. Why the fuck would he hit you, especially knowing I would see you tonight? Reyes asked incredulously. Does he have a death wish? She stared at him, at the death glittering fiercely in his eyes. All for her, all over the momentary pain Ignacio had caused her. She sighed and brought her hand up, closing it over his and forcing
his hand away from her chin. Her bracelet slid along her arm as she moved, a reminder of the ownership another man had over her. Why do you think he hit me? I told him I didn t want to see you again, she admitted. She could feel the heat of his anger rise even further and flinched back, pressing against the railing of the balcony. She expected him to have the same reaction as Ignacio. To attack her for not wanting to see him. Instead he slowly reached out so she could see what he was doing and pulled her away from the railing. She shivered as the cool evening air washed over her bare arms and shoulders. He gently brushed her hair back from her face once more and touched the bruise with the back of his fingers. He hit you because you were reluctant to see me again. She nodded miserably and stood stiffly in his hold. He cupped the back of her head, holding her still and leaned forward to touch his lips against hers. She gasped, her lips parting in surprise at the extremely light touch of his mouth to hers. He took advantage by licking the cut on her bottom lip where she d bitten herself. She jerked back, but he held her immobile with one hand at the back of her head and another around her waist. He brushed his lips back and forth across hers, with gentle purpose.
Heat sizzled through her veins with the force of a lightening strike. She tried to concentrate on not passing out as every nerve ending in her body lit up with pleasure just from the soothing touch of his lips against hers and the firm hand wrapped around her body, forcing her to hold still while he overwhelmed her senses. Her legs wobbled on her heels and she probably would have collapsed if he hadn t been holding her up. Finally, he pulled back from the most perfect kiss she d ever known, his mouth only a few inches from hers when he spoke. I was going to kill your husband, carina. Now that I know he s put hands on you, I will make it so much fucking worse. He ll beg me for death long before I let that miserable fuck go to hell. Casey s eyes widened in shock and she opened her mouth to protest, but before she could, he interrupted her, his hands falling to her waist in a tight hold. I know what you will say and I want you to think, Casey. Think hard about who your husband is, what he s done to you and what you want. She shook her head, her hair swinging wildly. She pushed against his chest, but he wouldn t let her go. She dug her nails against his shirt, trying to hurt him, to force him to release her. His hold was unbreakable. Stop it, Casey. Hold still and listen to me. She whimpered and shook her head.
He shook her until her head snapped up and they were staring at each other, her eyes wide and fearful, his snapping with fierce energy and anger. He s fucking handed you over to me to use however I want. He gave you to me bruised and he grabbed her hand and lifted it, her wedding rings glinting in the faint evening light, wearing his fucking rings. Why? So I could fuck his wife, knowing I was taking a woman I want but can t keep? He s a disgusting, degenerate fuck and you know it. He deserves worse than the death I m going to deal him. A sob tore from her throat and she covered her mouth with one shaking hand. She moaned and tried to turn away from him, to deny his words. She didn t want to hear this. It was too much, more than she could handle. She s been sleepwalking through life for a decade. In the space of barely a week she was forced to deal with a whole barrage of emotions and now the man that woke her up was confessing plans of murder on his penthouse balcony. A laugh escaped her and she looked around wildly for escape. Nope. It was either a twelvestory fall or back through the penthouse into the cold presence of her bodyguard. Her life was a cage no matter where she turned. His grip on her waist tightened to the point of pain and forced her attention back to him. Don t you dare drift away from me, Casey. I know how you work, woman, and when we re together I won t let you have your little escapism tricks. When we re together we ll be together, he growled.
Stop it, she cried out, the words wrenched from her. She shoved harder against him, struggling in earnest now. Just stop, Reyes. We ll never be together! You think not? he snarled, turning to the balcony door and dragging her through. She squirmed against him, dragging her heels against the floor as he hauled her against the table, shoving her until she was almost sitting on the marble top. Her skirt had twisted until it was nearly hiked up to her waist. He glanced down and groaned then reached for her. She tried to dive away from him but his hands landed on the outside of her bare thighs with his chest against hers holding her still. He slid his hands up her thighs, his thumbs caressing the edge of her panties. Casey sucked air into her starved lungs and resisted the urge to tilt her hips to give him better access as scorching heat flooded through her belly and ran like a river through her pussy. Ah god, carina, Reyes growled against her throat rocking his hips into the cradle of her thighs and forcing her to feel the thick hardness of his erection. He licked her exposed throat, running his tongue down the side and then gently nipping the place where her neck met her shoulder. His teeth turned more savage with each word until he bit down hard enough to leave a mark. Let me have you let me fucking have you and I promise I will make it so fucking good. She slapped her hands down on the table behind her and dropped her head back, unconsciously giving him better access to the front of her body. He immediately moved his
mouth across her collarbone, taking stinging bites until he reached the hollow between her breasts. He sucked and licked her, touching her and seducing her body in a way she d never experienced before. He easily flicked the top of her dress to the side, exposing her breast to the cool air before covering it with his hot, skillful mouth. Casey s breath whooshed out of her and her arms gave out. He caught her before she could hit the table without ever taking his attention from her breast. She whimpered and cried out underneath him, squirming against the hardness of the table. She clenched her hands into fists to keep from grabbing hold of him and demanding he devour her the way she desperately wanted. She couldn t, she just couldn t participate, no matter how bad she wanted it. He reached for her skirt, shoving it up her thighs and then slid his fingers into her panties, touching her. She felt the rumble in his chest before he spoke. So fucking wet. Fuck, it was like you were made for me, Casey. She felt pressure as he slid his fingers further into her, felt the explosive pleasure of him sliding across her clit and into her pussy. Her eyes flew open and she gasped, Stop! He froze, his body going from warmly fluid to completely rigid over top of hers. He pulled his hand from her panties and reached for her. She cried out in fear as he dragged her into his chest, her legs still spread and dangling on either side of his hips. She could still feel the
insistent press of his cock straining between them and moaned, half in need and half in distress. She fucking hated this situation! Your husband told you to fuck me? he demanded, his dark eyes fierce on hers. Tears flooded her eyes and she nodded. Y-yes, that s pretty much what he said. And you re saying no to me? he asked, his voice a quiet snarl. The breath shuddered in and out of her and real fear of his retaliation began to replace her arousal. But she held her ground. She nodded and said in a shaking voice, I m saying n-no. Because you re loyal to that sick fuck? he demanded, his fingers tightening on her arms. Because I made a vow to be loyal to that sick fuck, she cried out, hardening her voice and forcing the tears in her eyes back. Yes, this situation was fucked, but she was a mafia wife and she had her principles. He smiled, his face hard and strained, but his eyes gleaming triumph. Good girl, Casey, he said, his voice thick with passion. You are my good fucking girl.
I I don t understand, she whispered, frowning, trying to figure out what was happening. Was she about to raped? Coerced into sex? Or kicked out of the penthouse for being a good girl? He chuckled and pulled her further into his chest, embracing her lightly, running his hands down her back soothingly. She lay stiffly against his chest and listened to the beat of his heart against her ear and the rumble of his voice as he talked. Your loyalty is stunning, carina. You give it to a man that doesn t deserve it because you must. Because you promised and you know no other way. Now I am going to crush that man and turn your loyalty to me. You will become my queen. Mi Reina. Her heart sped up, pounding with each word. He was going to take her away from Ignacio, give her another cage, turn her into another version of her current self. Mafia wife. And she would hate him for it. She pushed back, shoving away from his chest to look him in the eyes. No, she told him. I won t be your queen. ***