King of Wrath (Kings of Sin #1) by Ana Huang

I blamed the next words out of my mouth on the residual impact of his strike.

“I kissed Vivian over Thanksgiving.” Willingly. Of my own accord.

We’d done more than that, but I sure as fuck wasn’t discussing our sex life with Kai.

The engagement photoshoot kiss had been forced. Bali had been…hell, I didn’t know what Bali had been other than a mind fuck.

Vivian had been asleep or pretending to be asleep after I got out of the shower, and we’d avoided discussing what happened in the week since. She probably thought I’d rejected her for whatever reason, and I was too disconcerted to correct her.

Kai gave me a strange look. “You kissed your fiancée. So what?”

Fuck. The kiss had screwed me up so much I’d forgotten he didn’t know I despised her family.

To him, our engagement was business, but most arranged marriages still involved physical intimacy before the wedding. If not sex, then at least something as simple as a kiss.

“It was different this time.”

I shouldn’t have done it. The kiss, opening up about my family, all of it. Yet I did it anyway.

Somehow, someway, Vivian Lau had burrowed under my skin, and I didn’t know how to get her out without losing a piece of myself in the process.

A knowing glint passed through Kai’s eyes. “Mixing business with pleasure. It’s about time.”

“Look who’s talking.” Kai’s idea of fun was translating academic texts into Latin for no reason other than he was a showoff and bored as hell.

“What can I say? I prefer the company of words to people. Except for you, of course.”

“Of course.” He was so full of bullshit.

He laughed. “Cheer up, Russo. Liking your fiancée isn’t the worst thing in the world.”

Maybe not in his world. But it was in mine.





My efforts to avoid Vivian disintegrated when I returned home and promptly ran into her in the foyer.

“Oh my God. What happened?” Her horrified expression confirmed what I already knew—I looked like a mess.

And if I had any lingering doubts, the mirror hanging opposite the front door smashed them into smithereens.

Bruised jaw. Blackening eye. A cut over my brow.

Thank fuck I didn’t have a board meeting in the next two weeks.

“Kai.” I removed my coat and hung it on the brass tree. My tone was indifferent, but an unsettling warmth unfurled behind my ribs at her concern.

Vivian’s brows pulled together. “Kai hit you? He doesn’t seem like the type. He’s usually so calm and…nice.”

Just like that, the warmth turned into annoyance.

“I told you, he’s not as nice as he seems,” I said in a clipped voice. “But to clarify, we sometimes blow off steam by boxing. He happened to land more hits today since I was…distracted.”

Thinking about you.

“You box for fun.” Vivian set the vase of flowers in her arms on the marble side table. “That makes so much sense.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means you have a temper.” She straightened the stems, oblivious to my scowl. “I’m sure boxing helps, but have you ever thought about anger management classes?” A teasing note ran beneath her voice.

“I don’t need anger management classes,” I growled. First, she was the reason Kai got the upper hand in the ring. Now, she was insulting me? “I’m in full control of—” I broke off at her laugh. Realization dawned. “You’re teasing me.”

“It’s too easy.” Vivian’s smile faded when she faced me again. Her eyes swept over my face, lingering on the nasty cut above my eye. “You should ice your bruises and clean that cut, or it’ll get infected.”

“I’ll be fine.” They weren’t my first or worst injuries from the ring.

“Ice and disinfectant,” she said firmly. “Now.”

“Or what?” I shouldn’t be indulging her, but she was so endearing when she tried to boss me around that I couldn’t resist.

Her eyes narrowed. “Or I’ll place every candlestick in this house at uneven intervals and make sure your foods touch every. Single. Meal. Greta will help me. She likes me more than you.”

I took back what I said about her being endearing. She was fucking evil.

“Meet me in the guest bathroom. I’m getting the ice.”

I didn’t take well to people telling me what to do, but a reluctant wisp of admiration curled in my chest as I headed to the bathroom.

I leaned against the counter and checked my watch. I had a mountain of paperwork to review, and God knew I should stay the away from Vivian until I sorted out my aggravating feelings toward her. Yet here I was, waiting for a goddamn ice pack.

My injuries didn’t even hurt. Much.

The door opened, and Vivian entered carrying two small ice packs.

“I told you I’m fine,” I grumbled, but a spark of pleasure lit in my chest when she brushed gentle fingers over my jaw.

“Dante, your skin is purple.”

“Purple black.” A smile tugged on my lips at her cutting look. “Precision is important, mia cara.”

“Are you trying to get a matching injury on the other side of your jaw?” she asked pointedly, pressing one of the packs against my face. “If so, I can help with that.”