Heartless Prince by Brook Wilder
Chapter 50
Lucas
The next day, after a few aspirins and a visit to the yacht so I could shower and change clothes, I dove into my work. I knew that no matter what I did, it wasn’t going to help me forget the tortured look on Leda’s face before she kicked me out of my own fucking penthouse. I had to channel that feeling into something productive.
There was one more capo that I had been told was spouting some shit about my role as Don, and as much as I didn’t want to make the tension any tighter within the Mafia, I couldn’t allow him to continue to disrespect me like that.
I had to make an example. Let them know that I wasn’t fucking around.
So, Rocco and I paid him a visit at his home in Bushwick. “You sure you want to do this?” Rocco asked in a low voice as we walked up the stairs of the brick building that housed the man’s apartment. “I can take him to one of the shops: give him the old one-two, maybe work the body, and carve up his face. You know. The usual.”
I shook my head, and cracked my knuckles absent-mindedly. “Yeah, I’m sure.”
“Why do I get the feeling you’re going to be the death of me?”
We climbed the rest of the way until we came to the apartment, and I pounded on the door. The smell of piss and garbage lingered in the hallway. Somewhere down the hall, a dog barked, followed by a baby crying before both were quieted by their respective owners. You’d think that someone as well paid as one of my own capos would have the dignity of living in a better place.
When I heard the locks flip, Rocco withdrew his gun and held it at his side in case we were greeted with the same cold steel. I knew that he would push me out of the line of fire if there was a hint of danger, and even take a bullet if he had to.
The door flung open, and it only took a matter of minutes for the man to realize who was beating down his door so early in the morning.
His eyes widened, but before his mouth could open, we were pushing into the apartment. “D-don Valentino,” he stuttered. “To what do I owe this pleasure of your visit?”
I gave him a cruel grin, stripping off my dark coat. “Enzo, I think you know why I am here.”
He nervously ran a hand through his blond hair, his eyes on Rocco’s gun. “I-I don’t know, Don, I swear it.”
I made a tutting sound and rolled up the sleeves of my dress shirt casually. “Now, Enzo. What have I told you about lying?”
“That lying only brings trouble,” he bit out, some of his surprise fading.
“That’s right,” I answered as Rocco locked the door. Enzo swallowed visibly. Poor bastard probably thought I was just here for a talk, nothing more.
It couldn’t be further from the truth. “I don’t like being lied to,” I told him, my fists balling at my sides. “Nor do I like my own fucking men talking behind my back about mutiny.”
“Don Valentino, please,” Enzo started in, holding up his hands nervously. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I chuckled darkly. “Is that so?”
“Yeah. Look, it was just some drunk talk.” He gave a feeble smile. “You know how it is. Put a couple of drinks in me and I can’t shut the fuck up about anything and everything. My mother always said my mouth was going to get me in trouble.”
“Well,” I answered, taking a step forward and placing a hand on his shoulder. “She was right.”
He didn’t even have time to react as I drove my fist into his solar plexus. My next blow landed on his nose, and I felt the satisfying crack of bone under my knuckles before blood started to rush out onto Enzo’s face.
“Fuck!” He screamed, attempting to defend himself.
I didn’t give him the chance and landed one punch after another until he was crumpled on the dirty tile floor. It wasn’t until Enzo quit moving that I stopped and looked at the blood pooling under his body.
“Now?” Rocco asked.
I stepped back, grabbing the blanket from the back of the couch and wiping my bloody fists on it. “Yeah, now.”
Rocco took my place and put two bullets in Enzo’s head, the silencer muffling the noise. Enzo’s mother was right. His dumb fucking mouth definitely got him in trouble.
After we left the apartment, Rocco called in the cleaning crew so that they could dispose of the body, and I spent the rest of my day in my office in one of the buildings that Cosimo had owned on 8th Street for the sake of owning it. He could have rented it out to tenants, considering the price of real estate in the concrete jungle, but he had told me that he preferred the solitude of an entirely empty building.
I hadn’t understood it until recently.
Pushing away from the desk, I stood up and walked over to the bank of windows that overlooked Washington Square Park. I was going to have to face Leda sooner or later, figure out how the hell I was going to explain my actions in a way that would make sense to her.
The truth was: I was fucking terrified about what I felt for Leda. She was the one weakness I couldn’t afford but couldn’t live without.
I hated it. If word got out, Leda would be turned into a pawn to get to me, just like I had done to her father. She could be bargained for or even killed just because it would be a convenient way to hurt me.
And if she died because of me, I’d never forgive myself.
I ran a hand through my hair, and contemplated my next move. I would have to tread carefully with this tonight if I wanted to walk out with my balls intact after she got done laying into me.
Hell, I deserved her anger. I deserved her hating me for what I had done to her, for the lies I had told her. For breaking her heart so callously after she worked so hard to make me happy.
Leda deserved a hell of a lot better than me, but as much as I didn’t want to admit it to anyone, I hoped she hadn’t given up on me.
I waited until darkness fell before I made my way to the penthouse, and forced the driver to stop by a florist so I could pick up some flowers for Leda. Rocco snorted when I slid back into the car, shaking his head.
“I hope you hid a few diamonds in there too,” he said. “Because you are going to need them.”
I clenched the bouquet tightly in my hand. “Diamonds are next on the list.”
He grinned. “They better be.”
When I finally reached the penthouse, I realized that maybe Rocco wasn’t wrong after all about the diamonds. The living room was dark, but I could see Leda’s outline on the terrace, staring out over the city. Quietly I crossed the room and walked outside, where the wind tugged at my hair. “Leda.”
She turned, her eyes falling on the flowers. “Really, Lucas? You think that I’m going to be swayed by cheap-ass flowers?”
Okay, first of all, these flowers weren’t cheap. But that wasn’t the point.
She was spoiling for a fight.
“You’re right,” I maintained my own composure. I had caused this anger in her, this hurt, and it was my job to diffuse it and smooth this over so she wouldn’t be looking at me like she wanted to hurl me over the terrace.
I threw the flowers onto the nearby lounger. “This was a stupid idea.”
Leda wrapped her arms around her waist. “What the hell do you want?”
Killing a man had been easier than this.
“I lied to you,” I started, figuring it was easier if she knew that up front. “Everything I said yesterday was a lie.”
Leda’s hard expression didn’t change. “Why?” she challenged.
There was hurt in her voice. And I hated to hear it because I knew I caused it. She was going to force me to say it, and I could only hope that once I did, my cock would be buried in her before the night was over. That we’d wake up in each other’s arms, and all of this was just some bad nightmare.
“I care about you, Leda.”
She scoffed and dropped her arms. She wore a crop-top sweatshirt that gave me an ample view of her flat stomach, and a pair of yoga pants that molded to her ass so tightly that she might as well be wearing nothing at all. Her hair was in a messy bun, and her face was withdrawn and pale. I wanted to see her smile for me, to give me that look that sent my blood roaring to my ears and my cock.
I wanted her to be happy again.
“You don’t know the meaning of caring,” she was saying as she went to move past me.
I reached out and grabbed her arm, forcing her to meet my gaze. “Don’t do this.”
“Do what?” she asked, pursing her lips. “Don’t give you the time of day? Fine, I won’t.”
Tamping down my sudden flare of anger, I didn’t let her go. “I don’t think you heard what I said.”
“Oh, I heard you!” she exploded, pushing her finger into my chest. “I heard you just fine! You care about me. Big deal! It’s not going to fix this, Lucas!”
“Don’t you fucking walk away from me!” I raged at her.
Her eyes widened, and a cold boulder settled into my stomach. Those weren’t the words I wanted to tell her. I wanted to tell her that I was falling for her, that she made me feel in ways I’ve never felt before. But somehow, those words couldn’t come forward. Somehow, I could only keep hurting her.
“I’m sorry.” Loosening my grip on her arm, I cleared my throat. “I fucking lost control.”
Her gaze narrowed. “Is that all you have to say? That you lost control?”
My teeth clamped together. “You don’t understand. I’m a Don. I can’t lose control.”
I always had to be in control. I had learned long ago to be in control of every aspect of my life. Because if I was, no one else could be. But with Leda, everything she did took that control out of my hands. She could ask me to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge right now, and I would seriously consider it.
I cared that much about her.
Leda let out a bitter laugh, her gorgeous eyes flashing with anger and tears.
“You know what, fuck you!” She exclaimed. “Why can’t you just admit something for once and not worry about your fucking title or how you need to be in control? Why can’t you be honest with me?”
The anger curled in my stomach. “Careful,” I warned her, grinding my jaw.
“Or what?” she asked angrily, her finger stabbing against my chest. “Tell me, Lucas! What the fuck are you going to do? Are you going to throw me over the terrace?”
I narrowed my eyes. Did she really fucking think that I was going to kill her?
“Or are you going to fuck me to teach me a lesson?” she challenged. “Are you going to show me what a Don truly is like?”
My cock roared to life as I grabbed her around the waist and pushed her against the wall, trapping her underneath my body. “Is that what you want, Leda?” I asked harshly, feeling the excitement override the anger. “Do you want me to fuck you to show you what a Don is really like?”
She pushed at my shoulders hard, but I refused to budge. Instead, I covered her mouth with mine. This wasn’t a kiss full of passion but one colored with anger. My lips bruised hers and Leda let out a muffled cry, her hands batting at my shoulders. But slowly, slowly I felt her kiss me back, confusing the hell out of me.
Blood pounded at my ears. I wanted to be buried inside her so much that I could taste it. The thought of being with her overrode any fears I had that she was going to wipe her hands of me because of my actions the night before.
She wanted me. I could taste it in her angry kiss. I could feel the passion vibrating through her body.
She wanted this just as much as I did.
Tearing away from her lips, I gripped her thighs, prying them open. “Take those off.”
“No,” she told me, lifting her chin. There was defiance in her gaze, and it only drove me crazy with need. With a growl, I gripped the fabric and ripped the yoga pants open. The scent of her arousal hung heavy in the air, and a shiver of need rushed through my head. My ears were practically ringing, and the only thing I cared about was to bury myself inside of her.
With my free hand, I unleashed my throbbing cock. Leda squirmed under me futilely as I hauled her upright. My knees pinned her thighs against the wall and my cock pushed into her soaking wet cunt.
“Fuck,” I groaned as I pushed myself deeper, expecting her to return the favor.
“I hate you!” she shrieked instead, clawing at my shirt. “I fucking hate you!”
I pulled out a little before I slammed back into her, feeling her body quiver in response. My hand came up against her throat, and this time, I closed my fingers enough to feel her pulse quicken.
“Tell me how much you hate me,” I whispered against her neck, biting the tender flesh there.
“I hate you!” she strained, this time with a sob as I continued to thrust. “I fucking hate you! You fucking bastard!”
“Yeah, just like that,” I snarled, drilling into her. “I can feel how fucking wet you are. You want this, Leda. I know you fucking want this.”
Her nails raked down my back, drawing painful scratches through the shirt, but I didn’t care. Nothing short of a bullet to my head was going to stop me from fucking her until my point was made
Leda screamed as her pussy contracted around my cock, an orgasm ripping through her. Tears ran down the edges of her eyes, smearing her mascara. I covered her mouth with my hand so that the neighbors wouldn’t think I was killing her. My heart pounded at my throat while my hips continued to thrust with reckless abandon.
I would break her down, inch by inch, one orgasm after the next until there was nothing left.
That was what I did. I was taking back my control.
Except, I wasn’t.
The sense of control was slipping with every scrape of her fingernails against my shirt, the way that she writhed under my thrusts, screaming against my hand on her mouth.
But I saw in her teary eyes what she wanted, and I was giving it to her.
Fuck, I was in love with this woman.
My own orgasm hit me hard and fast as I poured myself into her tight warmth, shouting her name repeatedly until there was nothing left. My knees weakened, and I collapsed with Leda in my arms onto the floor. Leda struggled against my embrace, but I refused to let go as my cock continued to twitch inside of her. I didn’t give a shit what she was going to do next. She could kill me now for all I cared.
But she didn’t.
No, the minx’s hand went for my softening cock. The fury in her eyes was unmistakable.
“Is this what you fucking wanted?” She hissed, her fingers gliding over the wet skin until I was hard again. She jerked my cock with a cold fury, drawing equal shares pain and pleasure as tears continued to run down her eyes.
“You’re not fucking done, Lucas Valentino. Not by a long shot. You want to fuck? Fine, let’s fuck.”
