Page 97 of Brutal Vows

“Quinn—”

When I kiss her again, she moans into my mouth. The sound sends such a hot jolt of lust through my veins, I can’t help but kiss her harder as I hold her against my body.

She pounds a fist weakly against my chest.

“Quinn, God, please, I need a minute to—”

“The last thing you need right now is time to think,” I interrupt. “You’ve got the next fifty years of your life to do that.”

The elevator dings. The doors slide open to reveal the enormous suite. I swing her up into my arms, ignoring her little yelp of surprise, and growl, “If you don’t want me to fuck you, just say no.”

Bypassing the foyer, living room, and dining room, I head straight to the master bedroom. It’s as opulent as the rest of the suite, decorated in subtle shades of cream and blue. One entire wall of the room is floor-to-ceiling windows, showcasing a magnificent view of Boston Commons and downtown. The city lights twinkle against the gathering twilight. The sky is a magnificent shade of violet blue above a golden horizon, but I don’t see any of it.

All I see is the woman in my arms, clinging to me in fear and desire.

She’s scared, but she wants me.

She hates herself for it, but she wants me.

She’s disoriented from the abrupt change in her life from this morning, she’s worried about her niece and furious with her brother, she’s horrified to find herself married again when she was so against the idea that she had it tattooed right onto her skin, but still…

She wants me.

And that’s exactly what I’m going to make her focus on for the rest of the night.

I stride up to the king-size bed, drop her onto it, and start tearing off my bow tie.

“Say no if you want me to stop.” I toss the tie to the floor and rip open my shirt.

Buttons pop. So do her eyes.

I throw the shirt aside, kick off my shoes, and climb onto the bed, kneeling over her with my hands planted on either side of her head.

Breathing shallowly, she lies beneath me with her hands pressed flat against my chest. She’s still wearing the veil. It’s spread out all around her head like a lacy halo.

She says faintly, “I don’t want you to stop. But you should know that—”

I kiss her before she can finish the sentence.

She fights it for a moment, then melts into it, sliding her hands up my chest and over my shoulders. She pulls me down against her body with a sigh.

And I’m all in. One thousand percent. My body has been aching for this, begging for this, and I won’t waste a single second. There’s more than a good chance she’ll tell me to fuck off in the morning, but tonight, she’s all mine.

I kiss her until she’s making little mewling noises in the back of her throat and grinding her pelvis against me, then I kiss my way down her neck to her chest. As I nuzzle her breasts, she digs her fingers into my hair and exhales a breath so deep, it sounds as if she’s been holding it her entire life.

She whispers haltingly, “I’ve… I’ve only ever been with one man. And he wasn’t exactly interested in getting me ready to… what I’m saying is… I don’t want you to think… I mean, I’m probably not very good at this.”

I pause to lift my head and look at her. “You think you could disappoint me?”

When she nods, looking ashamed, I almost groan. I rise to my elbows, take her face in my hands, and gaze into her eyes.

My voice husky, I say, “Viper. My lovely, lethal wife. You’refucking perfect, inside and out. Don’t ever worry about disappointing me. You couldn’t. Even when you’re homicidal or hurling insults, you take my breath away.”

She swallows hard. Her voice comes out small. “Yes, but you’re strange.”

I drop my forehead to her neck and start softly laughing.

She smacks me lightly on the back. “Shut up.”