Page 10

Behind us, a car door slams.

“Reznov!” Damiano shouts.

“Starne fuori,” I reply, letting him know this is not his business.

“Don’t push it,” Damiano warns, but he doesn’t follow as I drag a struggling Olivia around to the side of the building and slam her back against the rough stone wall.

“What’s the matter with you?” I demand. “You know this is happening. Your brother supports me in this.”

She doesn’t deny it. I know Antonio has made his feelings on the subject clear to her. When I first told him I wanted his sister, he insisted he wouldn’t force her into anything, but latelyhe’s grown impatient. He wants our alliance to be as strong as possible and his mother’s impending marriage to my uncle won’t be enough, not when I assume the mantle of Pakhan.

Olivia draws in a shuddering breath. “I can’t do this. I need more time.”

“Time?” I scoff at the pathetic excuse. It’s what people always want, as if it will miraculously solve all their problems. More time to think. More time to pay. More time to live. It’s the one thing I’ve never been prepared to give. “I’ve wasted enough time on this charade already.”

“Charade?”

“Being nice. I came and told you my intentions. I allowed you to stamp your feet and throw me out of your cousin’s house.” She’d been magnificent that day as she yelled at me to leave Damiano’s home. “I sent flowers, cards. When you needed a favor, I granted it. I’ve taken you to dinner, showed an interest in more than your pretty face and your tight little cunt. But still you resist.”

“You bastard.” Olivia’s eyes glisten with tears. Did she really think I would continue to court her with sweet gestures, to wear her down until she accepted me?

“My patience is at an end, Olivia. You will marry me in New York, one week from today.”

Several emotions play out across her face. There’s shock, fear, anger. She closes her eyes and breathes in deeply, drawing on her inner strength. Her eyes pop open and she tosses back her silky mane of chestnut hair. I can’t wait to wrap it around my fist as I fuck her from behind.

“Or what?” she demands.

There’s defiance in her gaze and something infinitely more intriguing. Desire. I see it now. She wants me, but can’t admit it to me or herself. She needs me to force the issue. I guess she’s standing on her pride.

Spinning her around, I push her face toward the wall. She instinctively throws her hands out to brace herself. I hold her in place with a firm hand between her shoulders and yank her dress up to reveal her bare ass.

“No panties?” If I’d known she was walking about like this, I’d have pulled her out of the restaurant and thrashed her ass earlier.

“It’s a tight dress.” If she thinks that’s an adequate response, she’s mistaken. She glances over her shoulder at me. “What the fuck are you doing?”

I don’t answer. Well, not with words. Drawing my arm back, I smack her ass hard. She squeals and tries to break free from my grasp.

“Keep still,” I warn her, “or I’ll take my belt off.”

The threat is enough to make her stop struggling. She’s lucky I’m in a generous mood tonight, because the thought of lashing that peachy skin until it’s red raw is getting me hard.

Olivia stands there, taking it like a good girl as I spank her ass five more times. She gasps and hisses, dancing up onto her toes, but she doesn’t try to get away. Her flesh heats beneath my palm and the blood courses faster through my veins. I don’t know when I last felt such a rush. My erection throbs and I wonder who’s suffering more—Olivia or me?

I deliver another blow to her toned buttocks and Olivia moans. It’s not the sound of a woman in pain.

“Piotr.” My name is a desperate plea on her lips.

I doubt she even knows what she wants, but as she pushes her hips back toward me, I slip my hand between her legs.

“You’re drenched.” I withdraw my fingers and hold them up for her to see. “Does being spanked turn you on,malyskha?”

“You turn me on.” Her eyes widen. She didn’t mean to admit it.

Triumph surges through me. Even if she spoke accidentally, she deserves a reward for her honesty. Wrapping my arm around her waist, I pull her back against me. I slide my right hand down to the apex of her thighs and tease her clit with my middle finger.

Olivia is beautifully responsive. Her head drops to my shoulder and her lips part as she moans ecstatically. Sliding two fingers into her tight channel, I continue to stroke her clit with my thumb. Her pussy clenches and her hips buck as I fuck her with my fingers. She cries out as she comes. The sound is music to my ears.

Her body goes limp and I hold her for a moment, feeling the rapid beat of her heart as she steadies herself. She stands up straight, pulling away from me, and I feel the loss of her warm body against mine. Drawing her skirt back down over her thighs, she whirls around and slaps my face, hard enough to sting.