CHAPTER XVIII

“Y ou did what ?” I asked Mya while I held the staff list for tonight’s event in my hands.

I was going to kill her.

“Oh, shit.” Matteo chuckled, shaking his head. “Mya, Mya. When are you going to learn?” he asked.

“What the hell is the big deal?” Mya asked, clueless to how Winter’s name, let alone her beautiful angelic face, taunted me every fucking night. She was like a rare million-dollar jewel being left out in the open without protection, ready to be stolen—by me .

Mya planted her hands on her hips. “She works for you—I might add, hired because you forced her to leave her other job,” Mya retorted, giving me a pointed look.

“I didn’t say he was smart,” Matteo grunted.

“Shut the fuck up,” I snapped at him, then addressed Mya calmly. “Mya, I don’t want her working tonight.” The last thing I needed was for other clients to see her and then want to bargain with the devil to buy her.

Fuck that.

If anyone was going to own every single part of her body and soul, it was going to be me.

“What do you want me to do then, Nico!” Mya threw her hands in the air. “I couldn’t find anyone else at the last minute. Had you said something a few days ago, it wouldn’t have been an issue.”

“Had you given me this list a week ago like I asked you to—” I tossed the list on my desk in front of me and leaned back in my chair without finishing.

Mya crossed her arms tightly over her chest, jutting a hip out defiantly as she tilted her head to the side. Her gaze bore into me with a fierce intensity, radiating with a heat that made it feel like she could set me on fire.

“What?” I snapped.

“Leave her alone, Nico. She’s not like us,” Mya shot back in a warning tone.

“What the hell are you talking about?” I retorted.

“Winter doesn’t fit in our world.”

“Mya, stop talking,” Matteo said in a threatening tone.

She whipped her head around to look at her brother. “No, I won’t,” she said. She uncrossed her arms and pointed a manicured nail at me, her bracelets jingling with the movement. “It’s bad enough he’s got her working at the club.” Then she turned to face me. “She can’t handle you, Nico. She barely held it together when you chased her out of the goddamn room.”

“I love you like a sister, Mya, but what I do with Winter is my business.”

A knock interrupted us, and the door opened. Luca and Lo strolled in, casually shutting the door behind them.

Mya and I were locked in a staring standoff.

Mya was stubborn as fuck and wouldn’t hesitate to lay it out all for me, especially when it came to people she cared for. But Mya knew if she crossed that line with my feelings toward Winter, it would end badly. But deep down, I knew she also didn’t give a fuck. What I felt for Winter was an emotion I had never felt for anyone else. There was one girl once upon a time, but she didn’t affect me as strongly as Winter did. Winter’s defiant look could turn me into a pillar of salt if I let it. But damn it, her voice—it was like a salve that tried to soothe the darkness inside me, even when I was ready to explode.

And when her skin brushed against mine? The world blurred, and I forgot who I was. Her kisses brought my heart back to life like a cruel joke, reminding me of what I couldn’t have. She held this power over me, and gave me the overwhelming urge to kneel and plead for her to be my queen.

“Nico, she’s too innocent.” Mya speaking again snapped me back to the present.

I know.

“Mya, leave it alone,” Matteo demanded.

“You’re not good for her, Nico. And you know it.”

“Mya! Fuck, woman!” Matteo barked at her. “You couldn’t leave well enough alone, could you?”

“Mya, I suggest you take your judgmental ass out of my fucking office. Better yet, my house, and don’t come back until you remember your damn place.”

“My place ?” Mya repeated but remained calm.

“Fuck, Mya, let’s go,” Luca said. When he grabbed her elbow, she swatted him away.

“I know my place in this world, Nico. You don’t need to remind me, but don’t think for one second that I’m going to take your shit and not throw it back. You fuck me up, I’ll fuck you up ten times more.”

She took a deep breath and paused.

“My warnings about leaving Winter alone were never to insult you or put you down, but I care about her, and I don’t want her to get hurt.”

“What makes you think I’m going to hurt her?” I asked, but I already knew that I was going to hurt Winter. But not in the way Mya thought.

“Selena.”

And just like that, the door of the cage burst open, and the beast lunged forward. I slammed my fists on the desk, making the items bounce, while the guys surrounded Mya; they all knew she crossed the fucking line. “Don’t ever fucking say her name!” I roared, and she flinched.

Hearing that name was like swallowing razor blades and cutting away my insides. The betrayal. The deceit.

My chest heaved as I tried to slow down my heartbeat. I rose to my feet, straightened my suit jacket, and turned to face the window. The sun hid behind the clouds, giving it a gray look, and the trees swayed as the wind danced through their branches. I shoved my hands in my pockets and cracked my neck from side to side. “Leave,” I commanded her.

The only sound I heard was the shuffling of feet and the gentle click of the door as it closed. I knew Mya had left but that my men stayed behind.

“Lo, ask Miguel to come in,” I ordered him.

A few seconds later, Miguel stepped in. “Yes, boss?” he asked.

I tilted my head up to the sky. “Call Lana and bring her into my office.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Bro, you sure you want to do that?” Luca asked after Miguel left.

No, I wasn’t, but I needed something to take the edge off, and I couldn’t call Winter, now could I? I gritted my teeth, hating the thought of using Lana and taking my anger out on her. Not that she would mind.

I glanced over my shoulder and turned my eyes to Matteo, who happened to be the closest. “You can guys can leave. I’ll see you tonight.” Without saying a word, they were gone.

Minutes later, there was a knock at the door.

“Boss, Lana is here as you requested,” Miguel announced.

“Thank you, Miguel.”

Once we were alone, I told Lana to lock the door.

Without having to be asked, Lana took tentative steps until she stood behind me. I felt the warmth of her body against my back. Her arms wrapped around my waist, and I closed my eyes, trying to get lost in the sensation. When her hands drifted to my bulging dick in my pants, I spun around so fast Lana gasped. I grabbed her by the throat and stared into a set of eyes that were green, not gold. My eyes dropped to her chest and admired the top of her breasts, making my dick harder. Frustrated, I devoured Lana’s lips with mine, but she didn’t taste sweet like candy. Her lips weren’t as soft as pillows. I ran my hands through Lana’s blonde hair, but it was not the deep, thick auburn waves I longed for.

I groaned, keeping my lips on Lana, lifting her by her hips and setting her on the edge of my desk. With both hands still in her hair, I continued to aggressively kiss her lips, and she kissed just as hard back.

I pulled back and unbuckled my pants, and she licked her lips.

“Down,” I ordered her in a raspy voice and watched until her face was in front of my dick.

“Suck,” I demanded.

Like a good little whore, she took my cock into her mouth. I moaned and threw my head back. I fucked her face, but when I looked down and didn’t see gold eyes staring back at me with want, my dick went limp.

“Fuck!” I pulled out of her mouth and tucked my useless dick back into my pants.

“Get out, Lana.” I walked over to the bar and poured myself a drink. After taking a gulp, I noticed Lana hadn’t moved. Why the hell was she still here?

“I told you to go,” I muttered, lifting the glass to my lips.

She didn’t say anything but walked out without saying another word.