Dark Castle by Shanna Handel

8

Santo

Tano was here,wanting to sell off another daughter to a husband, to do the job he isn’t willing to do himself—protect her. It makes my blood boil.

But what’s worse?

Tano’s chosen the wrong brother to do the job. Leo’s a great guy. Nice enough, easy on the eyes, loyal as hell. But nice isn’t what Willow needs. She needs an edge in her life. Rough hands. A little danger. Someone to make her blood run hot, to make her feel alive.

Did Briar have a hand in this? Earlier in the hall as she passed me, her face was a mask of smugness. Her shoulder brushed mine. “Great match for Willow, isn’t it?”

I didn’t answer.

Leo’s keen on the idea. He’s walking around like a rooster, his chest puffed out, and who can blame him. Every single man in this castle seems to have had their eye on Willow since the day she arrived. Only I never noticed it till now when she’s even further from my grasp than before.

Not only does Briar not want me with her sister, she wants her with someone else. And even though Aldo is in charge of our world, he looks to Briar at times, and this is one of those times. Willow has yet to make a decision. I get the feeling she’s waiting on me to make a declaration. The energy between us is almost visible. I know she feels it as I do.

It’s enough to tear a family apart. If I let it. Which I won’t.

Aldo may have taught me to take what I want, but he taught me a sacred rule that goes before everything, always.

Family first.

You never turn on your family.

So, if this is what they want, I’ll accept it. For now, at least.

It’s hard to watch. Leo sits beside her at every meal, his arm around the back of her chair in a way that seems to make her sit further on the edge of her seat. After dinner they take walks in the garden. I’ve caught her looking over her shoulder more than once.

Is she looking for me?

I watch from afar. I stop dining with the family, opting for my meals at a restaurant in town, one where a pretty redhead is more than eager to wait on me. I keep busy, signing up for double the number of patrols on the road. Driving my cars soothes me.

I avoid Willow, but I keep a close watch. I know where she is every moment of the day and if I’m not close by, one of my men is. Like I said, Leo is nice enough, but he’s not possessive, not in the way I am. A naughty girl who sneaks around needs eyes on her at all times.

A girl that precious should be protected.

If she were mine…

She’s not and I’m still taking better care of her than he is.

I know where she is every minute of the day from the moment she rises and rushes to the kitchen to bake the bread for the day, to when her head hits the pillow at night. I don’t know if she’s thinking of me when she’s alone in that bed, but I know she’s in it, safe and sound.

I’ve taken to sleeping in the room across from hers. One of the dozens of guest rooms in this castle, it’s been empty for years. No one other than Sophia, the eyes and ears of our castle, is any the wiser. If Willow tries sneaking out again, I’ll be the first to know.

Weeks go by.

Every day from a distance, I get closer to Willow. I know her schedule, her habits. The way she performs random acts of kindness throughout her day, a piece of her tuna sandwich for a stray cat, an afternoon of tutoring for a child struggling with their reading, covering Sophia with a soft quilt as she sleeps in her chair in the kitchen.

Everything Willow Rosa does seems to be for someone else, never for herself.

Including her time with Leo. At least, that’s the impression I get. Her cheeks still turn pink when I walk in a room, her eyes locked on my face, my brother’s arm tightening around her shoulders. She hasn’t said yes to the engagement yet.

But I can tell she’s getting closer. I can feel it. She won’t be doing it for herself. She’ll be doing it for the family.

She’s not been back to the woods.

I sit alone, eating a lunch of a tumbler of whiskey. Family first. Family first.Family first. It’s getting harder to see the two of them together.

My right-hand man interrupts my meal. He leans down, his mouth to my ear. “Sorry to disturb you, sir, but yellow duckling number two”—Aldo’s code name for Willow; Briar is one, Posie, three— “is headed toward the rear wall of the castle.”

I stand from my seat, folding my napkin on the table. “Thank you.”

I cross the bailey in time to see a bit of pink slip through a hole in the wall. It’s a tight squeeze for my broad shoulders, but I get through. She spots me, her full lips forming an ‘o’ of surprise. “It’s you!”

“It’s me.” I’ve got her pinned to the wall in the matter of a moment. My hand finds her throat, cupping it gently as my other hand traps her hip against the wall. “Where are you headed, little girl?”

Her fingers clutch at my hand that circles her throat. Her eyes are scared but her voice is brave. “You know where I’m going.”

She holds my gaze.

I release her. “You know what I told you I’d do if I caught you sneaking out again. Don’t you?”

She adjusts her dress, peeling her back from the wall. “You said you’d use your belt on me. So use it so I can be on my way.” She juts her chin up at me in defiance.

I don’t know what comes over me—jealousy, rage—but I want to be the one who touches her. I want to make her forget all other men, even if it’s only for a moment.

She’s expecting me to grab her, turn her over my thigh.

Instead, I reach for the hem of her dress. I close the space between us. She leans away, her back once again against the wall. I slip my hand beneath her skirt.

Her eyes widen in surprise, her breath catching in her throat. “What are you doing?”

I run a fingertip up the soft skin of her inner thigh. “Do you want me to touch you?”

One stroke from my finger and she’s forgotten her mission. Her answer comes with no hesitation. “Oh my God, yes.”

Her eagerness almost makes me laugh; it definitely clouds my judgment. Is she so eager because she’s been touched before?

Jealousy fills my mind, forcing my hand higher. “Do you want me to touch you…” I trail the tip of my finger over her panties, the gusset growing damp from her arousal, over the seam of her sex, pausing over that magical spot that makes women beg,“here?”

Her fingers go to my shoulders, her nails digging into me as her back arches. “Oh God. Yes, please.”

My mind burns with nagging jealousy. The slightest bit of pressure over her clit makes her gasp. I ask her the question I need to know the answer to. “Has anyone ever touched you here before?”

Her teeth sink into her bottom lip and she shakes her head as she gives her shame-filled reply. “No.”

I’m surprised by her answer. I’d have thought a man’s touch was what kept bringing her back to these woods. I can’t stop the relief that floods my chest. She’s all mine…

“And if I keep touching you,” I hate to make a liar out of her, but I ask all the same, “I won’t catch you out here again, will I?” I know she’ll be back in these woods, but I don’t know why.

“No. Never.” Her eyes flash with desperation, her fingers digging deeper into my shoulders.

“Keep your eyes on mine. I want to watch you when I make you come.”

Her breath catches, her cheeks flushing with shame. It makes my cock hard, my trousers suddenly impossibly tight. I slip my finger past the elastic leg of her panties. She spreads her legs for me, giving me easier access to her sex.

She’s so wet. I’m the first man she’s ever spread her legs for. The thought makes me harder.

Her folds are slick and hot, wanting more, wanting me. I tease the entrance of her sex, wishing it was the head of my cock doing the exploring. Her eyelids flutter.

“Naughty girl.” I thrust my finger inside of her. “Eyes open.”

She gasps as I enter her tightness, her eyes flying open. She pushes her shoulders back against the wall, rising up on the tips of her toes.

I find her lips, kissing her. She kisses me back with abandon, clutching my shoulders as I add a second finger to the first. She’s so tight, her never-been-touched sex stretches to let me in, her muscles clamping down on me. I swipe my tongue against hers as I thrust.

She moans into my mouth. I slip my slick fingers from her, finding that pulsing, sensitive bud. I circle it, pressing, pushing my tongue deeper into her mouth. She whines and moans, her mouth freezing against mine as her entire body tenses.

I pull away, grabbing her gaze and holding it as I circle and finger, alternating between being inside her and rubbing her clit, moving my fingers faster.

She holds my gaze. Her breaths come faster, her face flushed, her eyes glassy. “Santo…oh my God…Santo.” Her back arches and she bucks against the wall with a cry.

The orgasm tears through her, making her body shudder. Her nails claw at my flesh through my shirt. Her mouth gapes as she does her best to hold my gaze. “Oh. My. God.” I move my fingers with the cadence of her climax. I don’t stop until the full force of it has racked through her body. She clings to me, shaking, her eyes wide, shining with wonder.

I brush my lips against hers.

I slip my hand from beneath her dress. I take her hand in mine. I lead her back to the castle.

I leave her with a chaste kiss.

I don’t order the wall to be sealed.

Whoever it is she meets in those woods, they have a hold on her. I want to meet the man she’s so willing to take risks for. My gut tells me she’s going to attempt to sneak out again as soon as she thinks I’m back to work.

This time, I’ll let her.

And if he’s a danger to her?

I’ll take him out.