Page 18 of Hostile Cravings (Wicked Cravings #3)

Chapter Nine

TYSON

A ngie Donelli. The woman I’d despised for years was now a woman I’d kill for.

As hard as I’d fought my need for her, she’d broken me.

I’d taken her repeatedly, unable to stop touching her as if I was making up for all the years that I hadn’t.

Even now I wanted to pick her back up and slam her against the side of the resort and hear her cries. To have her body crumble with mine.

I squeezed the glass, trying to calm my thoughts as I waited for the bartender to fix Angie’s drink. A damned girly drink and, of course, it was a pink. Just like her damned bikini, the one that showed almost all of that sexy body to anyone who was looking. And they were looking.

“Boss,” Finch said, moving next to me. “We’ve got a problem.”

I picked my eyes up from the bar, my brow cinching. “What kind of problem?”

“The male kind. Your wife seems to have attracted some attention.”

I’d left her for ten minutes and she couldn’t keep herself contained.

The thought of her flirting with another man sent a venomous sting of jealousy into my system.

She was likely doing it to get back at me for not answering her question.

What were we now? It was a question I couldn’t answer because I wasn’t ever a ‘we’.

There was never a time when a woman was more than satisfaction, a means for release, for escape.

But Angie was different, and she knew it, just like I did.

I just wasn’t certain if I was ready for that difference, and I suspected from her reaction that it was the same for her.

Both of us had kept sex separated from anything that could hurt us.

And now we’d crossed that divide. I know I had.

I glanced back at the beach. She was still under the umbrella where I’d placed her, her luscious body spread out on the blanket, her blonde hair dark in the umbrella's shade. She had her knee at an angle, and I remembered how soft the skin had been as I’d touched and licked it. Even the thought of it made me hard.

“Shit,” I muttered, adjusting myself and throwing some cash to the bartender, who had finished her drink.

I motioned for Finch to take hers and I grabbed my scotch, casually walking back to where two college age boys were standing over her.

Their eyes were all over her and I gritted my teeth, wishing I could pull my gun out and shoot them both.

That move would land me in prison with this many witnesses, and I preferred to keep my illegal acts under the radar of the cops.

“I don’t remember giving you permission to talk to strangers, baby,” I said, staking my claim as I came up to them. “Is there a reason you boys are ogling my wife’s body? Because I can assure you it’s taken and anyone who tries to touch it will lose a few fingers…if I’m in a good mood.”

I stared them down, seeing how they swallowed uncomfortably. The one backed up, but the other didn’t move.

“Do you know who I am?” he asked.

I looked him up and down. “I don’t think you know who I am.”

“Do I give a fuck?” he asked, causing me to chuckle .

I sat my drink down, rolling my sleeves higher and seeing him eye my tattoos.

I may have dressed the part of a classy man, but take off the expensive button-downs and dress slacks and I was a lethal machine who would butcher anyone who messed with me.

I spent my days pounding my fists into punching bags and my nights pounding them into dirtbags.

And my body reaped the benefit. I was built, and the way his eyes shifted from side to side as he tried to come up with more bravado was entertaining.

“I think you do, Charlie. Charles Von Kenting the third, son of the governor of my province.” I emphasized the word my so he understood who really ruled our province.

“Second son, I might add. Your older brother is in line to take your father’s position and you…

you spend your time squandering his money in establishments like mine, on women and gambling, thinking you’re some big player. ”

He took another step forward, and I saw Finch reach for his gun. Giving him a hand signal, I told him to stand down. This kid didn’t worry me. Neither did his father, who remained in power only because Mason and I had taken down a threat to it. We owned the province, not the governor.

“Why don’t you go ask your daddy who I am?

” I glanced behind him, seeing that his father had caught sight of the interaction, a worried look on his face.

I gave him a nod, which he returned with a relieved wave back at me.

“And keep your eyes off my wife or I’ll ensure you never look at another woman again. ”

I turned my back on him and his buddy, not caring that his eyes were burning holes into my back.

He would run off and tell his father, who would educate him not to mess with me.

Drink in hand, I took a gulp and eyed Angie, who was looking up at me.

Her brown eyes were ripe with excitement, and I gave her a naughty smile.

Finch handed her drink to her and moved to the side so he could keep watch .

“I turn my back for five minutes and you’re already making trouble?” I asked, sitting next to her.

“I wasn’t causing trouble,” she said, not looking at me. “And do you have to be so mean?”

“Mean?” I asked. “I thought I went gentle on the kid. He still has his body parts intact.”

She turned to me. “Gentle? You humiliated him in front of his friend and me.”

I gritted my teeth. “You? Why do you care if he’s humiliated? Did I interrupt something?”

The roll of her eyes was her attempt to annoy me, but it was too cute. “I’m not yours, remember? We’re going back to what we were before this morning, which means I can flirt all I want.”

She was being a brat and, as fired up as I already was, the move was a dangerous one.

“Isn’t that what we agreed?” she continued.

“Don’t be a stupid bitch, Angie.”

“I’m not stupid,” she grumbled.

Laughing, I said, “But you are a bitch.”

She smacked me and I yanked her over so that her body was on mine. The move excited my dick, which caused my pants to tent in anticipation. “Don’t tempt me to smack that ass again.”

“You wouldn’t dare. Not here,” she said, her eyes going wide.

“No? I don’t give a shit what any of these people think. I’ll pull your bottoms down and spank you while they all watch. Then I’ll keep them off and fuck you right in front of them.”

She tried to pull from me, but I overpowered her, flipping her onto her stomach. “Damn it, Tyson,” she complained as I yanked the edge of her bottoms up and laid a loud smack on that beautiful ass.

She yelped until I smoothed my hand over the sting, her yelp changing to a moan that had me yearning for more.

“Do I need to show those boys how a real man makes a woman come?” I asked, leaning close to her ear and sliding my hand between her legs.

“No,” she said, a distinct rasp in her voice.

I was tempted to. To have her come undone while my fingers were deep inside of her, but I didn’t want anyone else seeing how sexy she was when she did.

I wanted that for myself, and I wasn’t about to share it.

I lifted from her body, cursing myself for becoming so lost in her that I had become possessive, thinking of her as mine. When had that need taken hold of me?

“You’re a bastard,” she said, sitting up and rubbing her ass.

Her cheeks were flush, the freckles highlighted within the rosy color.

Unable to resist, I reached over and ran my finger over them.

She was too beautiful, and I’d always known it.

That’s why I’d always hated that she covered her beauty up with makeup as if she didn’t see it.

I’d known from the first time I saw her, there was natural beauty underneath.

I just never realized how right I was or what the sight of it would do to me.

Her eyes were light chestnut as they studied me, trying to determine why I’d turned gentle.

I didn’t want to hurt her. I’d never do anything to her that caused her genuine pain, but I was aggressive and I enjoyed taking women that way.

And something about her heightened that aggression.

I supposed it was the unfriendly banter we’d had for years that would always be an undercurrent to whatever this was.

But I’d never hurt her in any way that didn’t cause her pleasure.

“Tyson,” she said, bringing me from my thoughts. “Aren’t you going to say something nasty to me?”

Giving her a smile, I said, “I’m trying to think of something that won’t make me want to rip that bikini off and devour you.”

“Spanking me gets you that hot? I thought you didn’t have that daddy dom kink.” She was being playful, and it only encouraged me to want her more.

“Nope, not me, baby. I’m an aggressive alpha. I’m not into that spanking thing, but spanking your ass gets me so hard I can’t help it. Maybe it’s something about that bratty attitude of yours that I need to spank out of you.”

“I’m not calling you daddy,” she said, laying back on the blanket. “And can you take this damn umbrella off me? How am I supposed to enjoy the sun with this thing blocking me?”

“I’m not sitting in the sun. Sitting here is irritating enough.”

“Then go back to the room and do whatever it is you do. I want to stay out here.”

“You’re annoying, Anj.” I didn’t want to leave her out here alone, but I hated sitting around. I needed to move and with as much confusion as the last few hours and even the last day was giving me, a few hours in the gym would do me good.

“Well, go be annoyed someplace else.”

I moved over her again, grabbing her face and turning it to me.

“Are you going to pout?” she asked with a nasty sting to her voice. That familiar tone always sent my blood boiling.