All-In by Sierra Cartwright
Chapter Eight
It had been over a week since Zara vanquished Lorenzo from her life. Since then, she hadn’t slept more than a couple of hours at a time. She’d fallen behind on her work, and because her appetite was ruined, she’d lost several pounds.
No matter how hard she tried to harness her thoughts, she couldn’t stop replaying events they’d shared—making love, wearing his collar. Surely it had been real. At least some of it had to have been.
She’d been tempted to cancel today’s meeting with Avery and Makenna, but Elise had kicked her out of the office, saying a change of scenery would do her good.
When Zara arrived at the Royal Sterling’s teahouse, she’d ordered green tea, and now she was on her second pot.
“Zara?”
Interrupted from her reverie, she shook her head and gave Makenna a small, forced smile. “Sorry.”
“I have news.”
“Do tell.”
“I’m going to promote Riley so that I have more time to travel with Zachary.”
“That’s wonderful!” Zara exclaimed.
Makenna turned to Avery. “Are you accepting new clients?”
“I’ve always got room for you.” Avery had recently started her own accounting firm, and it was growing rapidly.
“I’ll be hiring more staff to help with the workload, but I’m planning to oversee things from home, even when I’m on maternity leave.”
“Uhm…” Makenna winced. “Should I ask about your rates?”
Avery waved a hand. “Be prepared. They’re outrageous. But I’ll keep you out of trouble, and that makes me worth every penny.”
“Having that worry off my mind is worth it.”
The conversation moved on to Avery’s baby shower.
“Did you receive the save-the-date invitation?” Avery asked Zara.
“I did, thank you. I added it to my calendar, and if it’s okay, you can consider this my RSVP.”
Makenna opened an app on her phone and entered the information.
“I just hope I’m not waddling by then. I swear to God these babies feel enormous, even though the doctor promises they’re not.”
“You’re the world’s most beautiful pregnant woman,” Makenna insisted.
“More like the most exhausted.”
As her friends discussed some final baby shower details, Zara blinked, recalling Lorenzo teasing her that he wanted to have six children, or at least keep trying for that many.
Was he now planning to have them with some other woman?
That thought arrowed a knife straight through her heart.
“Zara? Is everything okay?”
Realizing Makenna had been talking to her yet again, Zara refocused her attention. “I missed the question.”
“I was asking how business is.”
Without thinking, she responded honestly. “I’ve been a little off my game.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” Avery asked.
Though her heart was broken, she needed the support of her friends.
Makenna refreshed her cup. “You’ve always been there for us.”
Though she left out Lorenzo’s rumored Mafia affiliation, she outlined what had happened, beginning with her father’s financial mess and ending with the confrontation between the two men. “I should be grateful that I found out before we got married.” She pressed her lips together to hold back the ever-present grief. “But I’m not.”
She expected her friends to jump in and tell her that she should move on and forget him. But they didn’t.
Instead, Avery leaned forward. “I’m confused. How did Lorenzo know about the debt to begin with?” Trust Avery and her financial mind for zeroing in on that question.
Zara frowned. “I have no idea.” She recalled him attending the Christmas party, and her father being shaken by Lorenzo’s presence. Since then, he’d never dropped by. Until last week.
After waiting for a moment, Makenna spoke. “I don’t know Lorenzo well, but Zachary considers him a friend.”
Avery nodded agreement. “So does Cole.”
“Which makes me want to give him the benefit of the doubt.”
Intrigued, Zara encouraged Makenna to go on.
“I think you need more information. Certain things aren’t adding up for you. You say you should let it go, but how can you with so many questions?”
“Kenna’s right,” Avery stated. “I’m not jumping in to defend Lorenzo, and I care about you. But that night with Maverick, he protected you.”
And it wasn’t the first time.
Then Makenna made a promise. “Whatever you decide, we’re going to support you.”
“If you need to talk, call me or Kenna.”
The server brought a plate of petit fours to the table. “I shouldn’t. But…” Shrugging, Avery reached for one.
Since she’d lost weight, Zara did too.
A few minutes later, the conversation wound down.
After everyone had gone their separate ways, Zara debated what to do, and she decided Makenna was right. Before she could put Lorenzo out of her head forever, Zara needed more information, and she knew where to get it.
For one of the first evenings in memory, she didn’t have an event lined up, and when she exited the Royal Sterling, she asked Bryan to drop her off at her father’s office.
She found him sitting behind his desk, staring morosely into a glass of scotch.
“Since when do you drink at work?” Without waiting for an invitation, she took a seat across from him.
“To what do I owe this honor?”
“I want answers.”
He finished his drink in a single swallow, then put down the glass with a distinct clatter.
“How did Lorenzo come to own us?”
“Bad decisions.”
“Look Dad. I’m not backing down.” Taking a breath, she stared at the man she’d worshipped and admired her whole life. “If you don’t tell me the truth, I’ll find it on my own.”
Anger flashed in his eyes.
“Fine.” She pushed back a chair and stood. “I’ll hire an investigator.”
“Wait.” He held up a hand.
Doubtful he’d be forthcoming enough to change her mind, she resumed her seat.
He swiveled to grab the decanter from his credenza. After pouring himself at least three fingers’ worth of the alcohol, he faced her. His features were haggard. “You mean the world to me, Zara. Even though your mother never met you, she loved you completely.” He took a breath.
“Dad—”
“Things looked bad. She begged and pleaded for the doctors to save you.”
“I have no idea why you’re telling me all of this.”
“Your mother always saw the best in people. In me. I was lost after she died. Drinking. Gambling.”
Zara closed her eyes against the horror of the picture he painted. But all those years ago, Jeffrey Berto made a horrible accusation. She had to know if it was true. “You owed money to Marco La Rosa.”
His shoulders slumped forward.
No doubt the mob charged usurious rates on the debt, with no way out. And the more he bet, the worse it had gotten.
This conversation was awful, but she intended to press forward. “And how does Berto fit it?”
His eyes were stricken, and that told her everything.
It’s true. All of it. Her heart twisted with the sick reality of her past and the blind love she’d given her father.
“I would have never let him hurt you.”
“If Lorenzo hadn’t saved me, he would have.” Her father’s betrayal was worse than anything else she’d ever endured.
He downed the scotch in a few gulps.
“Why was he there that day?”
“To collect money. A fucking goon sent to break my legs if I didn’t pay up. It was our goddamn holiday party.”
While she couldn’t excuse Lorenzo, her father was the one who’d bet money he didn’t have. “None of that explains why he owns us.”
“After he saw what happened with Berto, Lorenzo bought the debt from his uncle. He told me he’d kill me if anything happened to you.”
And it never had, because he’d been watching, for ten years.
“He owns a significant part of the business and the house. It’s his graciousness”—he spat the word—“that allows us to stay here.”
At any time, even now, Lorenzo could have destroyed her family.
“I swear to you by everything that is holy… I’ve been tormented every day of my life.”
“Not as much as I have.” Vibrating with anger, she stood and smacked her palms on his desk and leaned forward. “That’s why Grandmother left me money, isn’t it? Because she knew what you’d done.” When he didn’t answer, she sighed. “You will never mess around in my life again.” Pivoting, she strode from the room.
Bryan was waiting for her downstairs, and she asked him to drive her to the office.
Elise had long since left, but when Zara flipped on the light, she noticed a manila envelope in the middle of her desk. Her name was scrawled on the front, and the return address was Lorenzo’s.
Frowning, she snatched it up, then pulled out a sheaf of papers.
It took a second to recognize what the documents were, and when it hit her, she sank onto the edge of her desk.
The deed to her family’s house, in her name.
A scrawled note on a sticky piece of yellow paper leaped out at her.
Do with it as you will.
L
It was then that she recognized the date on the first page. The same day he’d saved her from Maverick’s attempt to drug her.
Which meant he’d intended to give her the home even before they’d made love.
Nerves and adrenaline racing through her, she called Bryan and asked when he’d be available again.
“Is half an hour all right, Ms. Davis?”
“Perfect.”
She used the time to change into her shortest dress with a plunging scooped back and cleavage-revealing front.
After slipping into her highest heels, she brushed her hair, refreshed her makeup, and carefully applied a coat of her signature Kiss Me lipstick.
When Bryan texted that he’d arrived, she rode the elevator to the ground floor, then slid into the backseat.
“Where to?”
“The Bella Rosa, please.”
* * *
“Hey, boss.”
Lorenzo pressed the button that would connect him to Rico.
“Ms. Davis is in the house.”
As expected.Despite his anger at the way she’d handled the situation with her father, Lorenzo couldn’t prevent the surge of raw hunger that pulsed through him. “Have Mario bring her up. But take your time.”
“Sure, boss.”
He entered his home office and pulled up video, scrolling until he zeroed in on her, walking to the Martini Bar.
Fuck me.
The back of her gown swooped down to her ass, and he had no idea how her luscious breasts didn’t spill from the front.
For a moment, he zoomed in on her beautiful, inviting lips.
Damn it. Every man with a pulse was going to fall at her feet. He growled. She was his, and soon he would goddamn well make sure the whole world knew it.
He kept a camera trained on her as she was seated at a round table designed for cozy get togethers.
With a snarl, he keyed Enrico. “No one better join her.”
“Sure, boss.”
On the table, her phone lit up. She read a message, then placed it back where it had been, facedown.
Moments later, her drink was delivered, and a young, stupid pup approached her. To her credit, she shook her head, denying the interloper, just seconds before his security team passed her table.
Then, as if knowing he was watching, she turned toward the camera and lifted her glass in a mock toast.
With more than a week’s worth of agitation gnawing at him, Lorenzo turned off the camera and strode to the living room where he paced in front of the window until the elevator bell dinged.
Then he folded his arms behind his back, waiting, wondering.
Mario opened the door, then stepped aside while she entered. “Thank you,” she said to his most loyal man.
Without a word, Mario left, sealing her inside Lorenzo’s domain.
In the bar, she’d been a bit more confident than she was now. Instead of placing her small handbag on the table, she clutched it in front of her.
“Something to say, principessa?”
“I…” Her voice trembled, but he made no move toward her, did nothing to help her out.
Being married to him wouldn’t be easy, and he’d warned her of that fact. And still, she’d failed the first test she’d endured.
“I don’t deserve it, but I hope you can forgive me.”
“Go on.”
She closed her eyes, as if she’d hoped that was enough to undo all the damage that she’d caused. Her lower lip quivered, but he refused to be swayed.
“May I come in?”
“Only if you strip off your clothes and drop to your knees as you beg me to give you the beating you deserve.” It was harsh, but her words last week had destroyed him, destroyed them.
“Is that what you want? What you demand?” She brought her chin up. “To punish me in anger? If that’s what it takes, I’ll submit to you. Do your worst, Lorenzo. Use a cane. I don’t care. I deserve it.”
Principessa.“Why are you here?”
“You’re making this difficult.”
“What did you expect? That I’d slit my wrists and open my heart to you again?”
“I’m so sorry for what I said, for what I did.”
“And?”
Her knuckles whitened as she gripped her purse harder. “I received your envelope. And my father texted that he also received one, giving him full ownership of the business again.”
“I hope he’s learned. It’s in better shape than it’s ever been. Up to him and your brothers whether or not they fuck it up.” Well past caring, he shrugged. “If you’ve come to thank me, you’re welcome.”
“Even before that, I’d decided to come here.”
“For what purpose?”
“To apologize.”
“I’m listening. Which is far more grace than you showed me.” Without inviting her to join him, he took a seat and continued to regard her.
She tipped her head to the side, acknowledging what he’d said. “It took me some time, and my friends, to help me see where things didn’t make sense. So I went to see my father today.”
“And?”
“He was my daddy, my whole world. I knew he wasn’t perfect, but I had no idea…” She shook her head, sending her hair swaying across her back.
He gave her the room to continue at her own pace.
“I understand you bought his debt from your uncle.”
So Davis had revealed more than Lorenzo might have expected him to.
“Why did you do it?”
“Do you have to ask?”
“For me?”
“Yeah. Berto is lucky I didn’t kill him with my bare hands that night. And your father is also fortunate that he escaped my wrath for what he tried to do to you.”
At the harshness of his words, her shoulders shook.
“I vowed no one would ever touch you again. Even me. You were too fucking young, thought you were grown up. And I wanted to make sure you gained some experience before coming to me.”
“You knew that I worshipped you.”
He nodded. “Being with a man like me means you have to make some difficult choices.”
“I understand now. You expect your wife to stand by you. Asking questions instead of jumping to conclusions.”
“I warned you I’m not perfect. I’m a ruthless sonofabitch who’s done things I’m not proud of and will do so again. You should seize this chance and run away.”
“Never again.” Boldly she met his gaze. “If you’ll have me.”
“It was never in question.”
“I’m sorry it took me so long to see the truth.”
And now, having received her heartfelt apology, he softened. A small part of him admired her loyalty to her father, no matter how misplaced it had been.
“You forgive me?”
He stood and extended a hand toward her. “Come to me.”
She did, and he drew her against his body, holding her tight. He kissed her, possessed her, made sure she’d never forget they belonged together.
Finally, when he was able to pull his mouth away, she looked up at him through her long, damp eyelashes. “Make love to me? Claim me? I need the connection.”
And so did he. “Go upstairs and put on your collar, then strip and meet me in the dungeon.”
He watched her go, the sweet sway of her hips tantalizing him.
Everything was close to being perfect once again.
Minutes later, he was in their playroom, and he readied the space for her, selecting a crop with a large star-shaped flapper on the end. Tonight, she wouldn’t get a choice in what they did.
After discarding his suit coat and tie, he turned back his shirtsleeves.
Wearing only her heels and the collar, so lovely in her submission, she joined him. Without him issuing a single instruction, she sank to her knees and lowered her head.
He offered a hand up. “Tonight, I want you in the swing.”
“I’ve never done anything like this before.”
“You’ll enjoy it. Or at least I will.” He held it steady while she placed her rear in the curved part.
Then he tucked her feet in the stirrups at the end and secured her arms far apart.
“I was worried I might fall out, but there’s no way, is there?”
“No.” The seat part was so deep that he’d have to help her out of it.
Lorenzo took his time arousing her, stroking her pussy, then leaning over to lick it, teasing her clit.
He slid one finger inside her, followed by a second, making her moan his name. Instantly his cock hardened. He ached to bury himself in her, but first he intended to give her orgasms she wouldn’t forget.
“Oh my God, I’m so ready.”
He squeezed her breasts and sucked on her nipples, making her writhe.
Then he left her long enough to pick up the crop.
Her eyes widened. “Where do you intend to use it?”
“Where do you think?”
Futilely she fought to close her legs. “That looks like it’s going to hurt.”
“I’m sure it will.” Returning to her, he parted her folds.
“Lorenzo…?”
He moved behind her and slid the star over her clitoris, and she moaned. “See? Not so bad.”
Rather than pulling away, she tried to arch toward it.
Over and over, he tapped it against her, until she reddened, and her clit became a hard nub.
Fisting her glorious hair, he spanked between her legs. This time, because she was more aroused, he used slightly harsher strokes. “Can you come from this, darling principessa?”
“No. It’s too much.”
Willing to bet otherwise, he continued, increasing the intensity.
“Oh fuck.”
He tugged a little harder on her hair. “Do it.”
“It’s…it’s…”
He pulled back his hand and unleashed his harshest spank yet, blazing the star into her pussy.
Screaming, she came, and he grinned in raw male triumph.
Still not done, he gave her a small kiss before walking away to toss the crop onto the counter. Then, as she watched, eyes wary and intrigued, he selected a medium-size phallus from one of the drawers. “I think you’re wet enough that you won’t need any lube for this.”
Her mouth parted slightly when he began to ease the toy inside her. As he did so, he parted her swollen folds, relentlessly driving her to another two climaxes.
Only then did he stop. “Now I think you’re ready for me.”
After he’d undressed, he stroked his cock as he looked at her gorgeous, naked body, red from his crop. “I could do this to you every day.”
“Yes, Sir.” It was as much of a whisper as it was a plea.
He took her, going in deep, enveloped in her feminine heat.
“I needed this.”
He fucked her hard, spilling his seed inside her. But the feral beast in him wasn’t satisfied. He wanted her again.
But rational thought prevailed. She needed some time to recover. And now that he had her back, he intended to make her his for eternity.
He wanted a future filled with moments like these, with her by his side.
Consumed with tenderness and a gnawing sense of urgency, he brushed back her hair, dropped a kiss on her forehead, then helped her from the swing.
Tamping back his impatience, but wanting to give her time to gather her wits, he took her upstairs and drew her a bath.
“You’re spoiling me.”
“Forever and ever.”
While she soaked, he took a shower.
“Your cock is hard again, Lorenzo.”
He glanced at her through the steam-soaked glass. “Still.”
“I’m lucky.”
Not as much as I am.
After he toweled dry and dressed in a loose-fitting pair of lounge pants, he returned to the bathroom with a robe for her.
“Luxurious. Thank you.”
They made their way to the bedroom.
There, in the middle of the floor, with the blinds open to the farthest reaches of Sin City, he took her hand and lowered himself to one knee.
“Lorenzo…?” She blinked in confusion.
“This isn’t the way I planned it.” He’d wanted an experience she’d never forget—her name in neon lights, a band to serenade them, maybe a gondola in Venice. But he was an impatient man, and maybe every year he’d propose again in some different way. She deserved it. “Zara Davis, I love you. I’m committed to you today and for every day of the rest of my life. I will do my best to make you happy.”
Her eyes filled with tears, and then, shockingly, so did his as emotion clawed at him. “Please, do me the honor of being my wife?”
She clasped her hand over her heart. “Yes! A thousand times yes. Yes, yes, yes.”
He slipped her custom-designed ring on her finger.
Eyes wide, she stared at it and traced the outline of the square-shaped diamond. “I love it.” She smiled at him. “Thank you.”
He stood and swept her into a loving embrace, sealing their commitment with a long, soulful kiss before carrying her to bed.
“Champagne?”
“The thousand-dollar-a-bottle kind?”
“Nothing but the best for you.”
“Yes.”
He grabbed the bottle and a couple of glasses, then told Sally to turn off all the household lights, except for the one in the bedroom that he wanted at fifty percent brightness. “Enable do-not-disturb mode until nine a.m.”
“Seriously, Mr. Carrington?”
“Seriously, Sally.” It was a first for him. “Please inform Mario as well.”
“Of course, sir. Good night.”
In the bedroom, he uncorked the bubbly and filled their flutes. He offered Zara a toast to their future, then touched his rim to hers.
They snuggled in the bed, sipping the champagne, and she admired the way her diamond caught the light. “The ring is stunning, but how is it even possible that you have it? We were supposed to go shopping for it together.”
“I kept the appointment with the jeweler. I couldn’t wait a moment longer to propose properly. If it’s not to your taste, we can get you a different one.”
“No. It’s…” Blinking back tears, she tried again. “It’s exactly the one I would have chosen.”
“I’m delighted. In that case, we’ll get married tomorrow.”
“I thought… But…? What about the big wedding you want?”
“I told you I’ve waited long enough. We can have a second one, if you wish. Or just one of the biggest receptions the city has ever seen.”
“A reception sounds perfect.”
He plucked the glass from her hand and placed it alongside his on the nightstand. Then he traced her collar. “I’ve loved you since the moment you walked out onto your father’s balcony, holding my jacket.”
“And I’ve loved you since you saved me and returned my mother’s necklace.”
He rolled her beneath him and sank inside her in a single thrust. “Mine.”
“Mine.”She dug her hands into his hair.
Her fierce possession made his dick even harder. “I want you to stop taking the pill as soon as you’re ready.”
A smile played with the corners of her mouth. “How about tomorrow?”
He froze. Children would be the one thing that would make their lives complete. He wasn’t foolish enough to believe it would be easy or even possible. But her willingness to try was the thing that mattered the most. “You’re ready?”
“Yes. I want to create a future with you.”
They made sweet love and drifted off to sleep with whispered promises of love between them—promises made, promises that would be kept. Forever and ever.
◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊
Thank you for reading All-In. I love Lorenzo hard, and I hope you do, too. Because of who he is, he was a challenge to write, but his ruthlessness and fierce love for Zara intrigued me from the beginning. The scene where they first met ten years prior was one of the easiest bits of writing I’ve ever done. I saw it, so real and vivid.
Lorenzo is one of my favorite heroes of all time.
If you like the mysterious Titans, I invite you to discover Billionaire’s Matchmaker.
Billionaire Rafe Sterling needs a wife. Now. But he decides he will not marry anyone other than the matchmaker hired by his family. Not only will she be his wife, but she’ll give him everything he demands.
DISCOVER BILLIONAIRE’S MATCHMAKER
Have you met the delicious, ultra-sexy Dominant Titan heroes of the Quarter in New Orleans? She only agreed to a weekend together. Now the overwhelming billionaire Dominant is demanding Hannah’s heart forever.
★★★★★ Full of real, raw, beautiful emotions with vibrant characters. ~Amazon Reviewer
DISCOVER HIS TO CLAIM
Turn the page for an exciting excerpt from BILLIONAIRE’S MATCHMAKER
