17. Gareth

“It looks like youve got good news,” I said as I settled at the table across from my brother in one of the many restaurants he owned.

“That I do, little brother,” he said with a smug grin.

Hope bloomed in my chest. “Did you find him?” I asked

“Not yet,” he said. “But my sources suspect hes back in Boston.”

“Then whats the good news?”

“We found out that he didnt go into hiding just because you kicked him out of the game. Losing the Bangor Badgers to your friend Crossland McClaren didn’t help him either. He’s been stealing millions from the Irish for years. Losing the Badgers made them look at his books a little deeper. The entire Irish mafia is looking for him now.”

“Jesus fucking Christ,” I said, shaking my head. “I knew he was an idiot, but I didnt know he had a death wish.”

“The Irish will find him eventually. You know they always find what theyre looking for. And then itll be problem solved on your end.”

I nodded, but my brow was furrowed as I chewed over the thought.

Dante caught my gaze, tilting his head. “I thought youd be happier about this news,” he said.

“Its complicated,” I said. “I dont think Serenity has any love in her heart for her father, but hes still her father. This news will hit her hard.”

Dante nodded understandably. “Its out of your control,” he said. “And the minute they get ahold of their betrayer king, theyre going to crucify him. Even if we wanted to, you know we couldnt stop that from happening.”

“I know,” I said. “I wouldnt want to stop it. Not when it makes sure that Serenity is free of him. Especially since I know some of his predecessors are more progressive than he is and will be more open to official negotiations after the fact. Im just saying itll be hard.”

“Maybe hell be really good at hiding. Run away to some country where he cant be extradited.”

I gave him an incredulous look. “Youre telling me to feed Serenity a story of taking an old dog to the farm?”

Dante raised his hands innocently. “Tell her whatever you want, little brother. Or dont tell her. She seems happy with you and the life that you’re providing for her. Sometimes not telling someone something can be the biggest mercy you can give them.”

“I wont lie to my wife.”

“Lying and omitting are two very different things.” Dante glanced down at his watch, then slid out of the booth. “Back to business.”

I stood up and shook his hand, thanking him for the info.

“Ill call you if I hear anything else.”

I nodded and headed out of the restaurant, more than happy to climb into my car and head home. Serenity and I had only been back in Chicago a week, but wed easily fallen into the same routine wed adapted in Charleston. It seemed we could go anywhere, and nothing would disrupt what we worked hard to build these last months.

But I’d been in between meetings all day, and now this last final thing with Dante had kept me way past dinner. I was more than ready to see her, even if I didnt exactly know how to tell her about her father.

As I headed into the house, I convinced myself that I had time. That there was no reason to tell her tonight. Especially when I didnt have any solid leads on where he was. Dante might be right and Doyle could use his means to comfortably hide from his own people. If anyone could do it, it would be the Irish mafia head.

And maybe that made me a coward, but Serenity’s peace meant everything to me. She was already tormented enough by the memories of her past and the very real threats of her present. I didnt feel like adding to it. Not tonight.

I checked in with my guards, now doubled since we’d made our way back to Chicago, and then headed to the bedroom where I knew I’d find Serenity. It was already past seven, and I figured she’d be curled up in bed with one of Daisy’s books holding all her attention.

But when I opened the door, I stopped dead in my tracks.

“Welcome home,” she said from where she sat in the armless lounge chair I had in the corner of my room. She wore a white lacy number that consisted of barely-there fabric, covering only mere inches of her skin and leaving the rest on delicious display.

That instantly, I was hard and already unbuttoning my shirt, wholly distracted by the temptress in the chair.

She pulled something from behind her back, and my eyes went wide. “I found these in your closet,” she said, dangling a pair of handcuffs from a delicate finger. “Can we try them tonight?”

“Whatever you want,” I said, going for my zipper and losing the rest of my clothes as I headed toward her.

I reached for the cuffs, but she tugged them away, moving out of the chair and patting it for me to sit.

Fuck me.

I sat.

She moved around the chair, gently pulling my arms behind it and locking the cuffs in place. I growled as I tested the resistance, anticipation sliding into my blood at the move.

Serenity walked back around the chair, grinning down at me. “This is already fun.”

I smiled back up at her. “Do your worst,” I teased.

“I intend to,” she said, something flashing in her eyes I couldn’t quite read. She quickly dropped to her knees before me, making me lose all train of thought.

She gripped my hard cock, stroking it with a soft touch, teasing me until a drop of pre-come beaded on my tip. She dipped her head down, licking it off before sucking me into her mouth.

“Fuck,” I groaned, hips thrusting off the chair, but it wasn’t enough, not with my hands cuffed behind the back of the chair, making it hard to move. “Angel.”

She murmured something around my cock, the vibrations traveling all the way down and making me groan again. Goddamn, her mouth. I arched my head back, pleasure building and twisting in my muscles as she sucked me with a relentless sort of attitude that had my head spinning.

“Angel,” I warned. “I’m?—”

She quickly pulled back, my cock sliding from her mouth with a little popping sound. The loss of her mouth paused my release, and heat curled along my spine at the shift. The little temptress was paying me back for the other night.

Serenity stood up, looking too fucking sexy in the lingerie she wore. My fingers itched to rip the flimsy material from her body.

“You’re so fucking gorgeous,” she said, and I arched a brow at the harshness in her voice.

Was my angel role-playing again? I could get behind that.

She reached out, gripping my chin with enough force to bite. It made my cock twitch.

“All ink and muscles and terror,” she said before slamming her mouth down on mine. She kissed me like she needed my mouth to breathe, kissed me with an edge of desperation that had me aching to fuck the need right out of her.

She drew back, shaking her head.

“I’m not as strong as you,” she said, moving to position one leg on either side of my hips.

I groaned when her wet pussy grazed the tip of my cock. She rocked against it, playfully exploring that sensation while she wrapped her arms around my neck to bring us flush.

I pulled at my restraints, wanting to embrace her, wanting to tug down on her hips until she fully sank over me.

“I’m not as strong,” she said again, something churning in her blue eyes.

“You are—” My words turned to a hiss as she lowered herself, fast and hard, my cock spearing into her from the move. “Fuck.”

She was fire and silk around me, wet and throbbing around my cock as she held us there, unmoving.

Slowly, she kissed me again, softer this time. I met her kiss for kiss, my cock aching as she kept still around me.

“You’re amazing,” she said, and rolled her hips. “So damn amazing.”

“Fuck, angel, you are,” I growled, my entire body shuddering at how good she felt riding my cock. Each roll of her hips made her slicker, made her glide up and down so damn easy.

Her nails dug into my shoulders as she upped her pace, throwing her head back as she gasped, her pleasure already building as she chased her release. It was beautiful to watch, and totally unraveled me.

Then she stopped.

Her ragged breaths the only movement she allowed as she held perfectly still.

I cocked a brow at her, my own breaths coming out rough. “This is a hard game to play, isn’t it, angel?”

She nodded, shivering, and her pussy pulsed around my cock, making me groan.

“I wanted to try,” she whispered. “The cuffs. I wanted to…be able to be that for you.”

I captured her lips in mine, kissing her quickly. “You’re everything to me,” I said. “I’ve never needed this from you.” I studied her, wondering if that was the struggle in her eyes. “I love playing any game with you,” I said. “But I don’t need it. I just need you. Only you.”

She trembled above me, closing her eyes at my words.

Then she rocked against me, hard and demanding.

“Fuck,” I groaned when she did it again. “I love you,” I said, confessing the words I’d held on to for far too long.

Serenity whimpered, her grip on me intensifying as she rode me harder, faster. She lifted up on my cock, drawing me almost all the way out before slamming down on it again, every time more intense than the next.

“I love you,” I said again because I just couldn’t fucking hold it in. “Fuck, angel, you’re so damn perfect for me.” I looked at her, looked between us where we connected, my muscles clenching at the sight of her riding me.

“Gareth,” she whimpered, all the slicker as she rocked against me, using every inch of my body to make herself feel good.

“I want my hands,” I growled, needing desperately to touch her.

“Kiss me and I’ll set you free,” she said, breathless.

I kissed her like my life depended on it.

And I damn near hissed when she pulled herself off of me, my cock aching for her to come back. She hurried to get the key to the cuffs, and I only waited for one to be fully released before I grabbed her, settling her right back where she’d been. Only this time, I had my hands on her hips, and I used the leverage to position her at a deeper angle, supporting her back with one hand so she could lean as I pulled her into me, the position ensuring her clit was hit with every move.

“Yes, God, that feels so good, Gareth,” she said, clinging to me as she took over control, repeating the move I’d showed her over and over again until she was shaking above me.

“Serenity,” I moaned her name, and her mouth covered mine as she came undone above me, her orgasm drawing out my own at the same time.

She kept kissing me through our shuddering aftershocks, even though we were breathless.

“I love coming home to you,” I said once she’d pulled back to lean her head against my shoulder, her body spent and limp around mine.

She was quiet, almost unnervingly so, but I knew she was tired, knew how much her attempt at edging me had to take out of her. So I got up, gently laying her on the bed and tucking her back against my chest, content to hold her as she fell asleep. My own body was heading toward exhaustion after the way she’d played me.

I’d told her the truth about how I felt, whether she acknowledged it or not. She may be upset that I said it during sex, but I’d tell her in the morning too.

I’d tell her every day for the rest of forever.

Because there was for sure no going back now.