Chapter Twelve

Piston

Mama had no trouble removing the tracking chip. The only question was what to do with it. Which, I had a thought.

"I don't want Giovanni involved in this," Venus said, pacing back and forth while I sat sprawled on the couch watching her.

She was dressed in jeans that molded her hips and thighs lovingly. Not pink. Just a standard blue denim. The top she wore was a camisole tank in black that showed tantalizing glimpses of her toned abdomen when she moved her arms. Pale blonde locks down to her waist replaced the pink, and her eyes were now a clear, pale blue like a summer sky. Yeah. I was one lucky bastard to have this woman in my bed. Even luckier for her to be mine and no one else's.

"So? Don't involve him. He's been blowing up my phone wondering why we haven't left, by the way."

"What did you tell him?"

"That we needed to rest after that last hunt before we made a thirteen-hour ride."

"He buy it?"

I shrugged. "Hard to say, but if I were guessing, I'd say no." It was hard to keep the grin off my face. "I didn't really try too hard to convince him. Bastard thinks he rules the world but I think he's gettin' the idea I simply don't give a fuck."

She stopped then, giving me a brilliant smile. "Good. I like that."

"What do you want to do?"

She moved to me, stripping off her shirt and tossing it to the couch. "There's loaded question if I ever heard one." Her jeans and panties followed her shirt before she straddled me, her knees on either side of my hips, naked as the day she was born.

I grinned up at her as she reached for my shirt, tugging it off me and tossing it next to us with her own clothing. "I suppose it is." I rested my hands on her silky thighs. The muscles playing beneath her skin was sexy as shit. All of Venus was sexy. Battle scars marred the perfection of her skin, but instead of making me furious like I thought it should, the reminder of her prowess in battle only filled me with pride.

She reached between us to unfasten my pants, and I shifted to allow her easier access. When my cock sprang free, I couldn't help but groan. As much as I'd been in control the first time I fucked her, she'd made up for it since. I didn't think she minded that I didn't try to dominate her again, though. Unless I was greatly mistaken, my little shortcake was having fun. I knew from watching her all these years that she rarely had sex with a partner. Anything she needed to take care of, she did herself. I thought maybe she was enjoying just being with me. It was telling that she'd never liked making herself findable enough to fuck someone before, yet with me she didn't even try to stop herself. That told me she really did trust me.

Venus leaned in close, her breath hot against my ear. "We have work to do, but it can wait," she whispered seductively. "At least, for little while."

I chuckled. "Baby, ain't nothin' little about me. Least of all anything to do with what we're about to do here."

Her lips traced a path along my jawline as I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her closer. "Now, there's something I'll never dispute, Piston."

She kissed me then, brushing her lips lightly against mine in a tantalizing kiss that promised much more. The heat of her body pressed against mine sent shivers of anticipation racing through me. "I want you," she whispered against my lips. "Now that I've had you, I can't seem to get enough." She sounded almost helpless, like she might not be happy about admitting she what she wanted but was surrendering to it nonetheless.

Her hands roamed across my chest, fingers tracing the tattoos and muscles as if memorizing every detail. I nodded, lost for a moment in the depths of her eyes, so clear and intense. "Yeah," I managed to say. "I can't get enough of you either, and I'll be Goddamned if I'll apologize for it."

She grinned up at me. "At least I'm not only one."

"Oh no, baby. You definitely ain't the only one. I could spend every day for the rest of my life worshiping your beautiful body and it still wouldn't be enough."

Her expression softened, and she leaned forward to capture my lips, tangling her hands in my hair, pulling me closer. Venus deepened her kiss as our bare skin slid against each other, igniting a fire inside me I was sure could burn down worlds. Our breaths mingled, quick and ragged, as the room filled with the sounds of our urgent lust.

Breaking away from the kiss for a moment, Venus looked into my eyes with a fierce determination. "When we leave here, we're not coming home until Victor is dead," she said, her voice thick with emotion. "He absolutely will not touch my family." Her eyes glistened and I knew she was feeling the fear that Victor was ready to come after her family to retrieve his. He wanted Katya, and if he knew how deep Venus was in with all these clubs, he would be merciless in his attack.

I'd seen the warrior inside Venus on many occasions over the years. Sure, I had only recently been by her side, but this was Venus on a whole other level. Where before she'd killed because she thought it was the best or was the path of least resistance, now, it was personal. She wanted Victor to die by her hand. She would want to look into his eyes as he took his last breath and know with absolute certainty the son of a bitch was dead.

I should have made her take a step back. I should be trying to calm her down and make sure her head was in the right place before we went on this hunt, but I'd be Goddamned if this single-minded viciousness didn't turn me the fuck on.

"No. He won't. He's going to die like the fucking vermin he is."

Venus shifted her hips and the head of my cock kissed her entrance. I thrust up as she sat back, and I was inside her balls deep.

Our lovemaking was fierce. Venus rode me with wild abandon, throwing her head back and embracing the moment. Watching the ecstasy on her face was the most fascinating sight I'd ever enjoyed.

She moved up and down, bracing her hands on my shoulders as her hips snapped front to back in a splendid dance. I let myself be happily swept along.

With a cry, she arched her back, screaming as she orgasmed around my cock. I gasped, unable to hold back my own release. I gripped her hips and thrust upward, filling her with my cum until she collapsed over me, her body limp where she straddled me.

I wrapped my arms around her, holding her as tight as I could, needing the connection with her. I'd always need this. Even if I couldn't fuck her, I'd always want my bare body pressed against hers.

Neither of us moved other than to just fucking breathe. It was a short encounter, but all the sweeter because she'd started it and taken what she wanted. She'd given me so much these last few days. More than I'd ever thought she would. She'd given me… everything .

I snagged a blanket from the back of the couch and draped it around Venus. It was a long time before either of us moved after that. When she finally raised her head, she smiled down into my rapt gaze. This was Ulyana the woman. Not Venus the warrior. And I was completely and utterly in love with both.

"Much as I'd prefer to stay here with you the rest of the week, we need to finish this. What's our next move?"

The second the words were out of my mouth, my phone buzzed. I reached for it where it lay on the couch beside me and glanced at the screen. I turned it around so Venus could see the name.

"Giovanni." She chuckled. "Wonder what he wants?"

"Probably wondering if we've left yet."

"Well, I can answer that question for him." She took the phone from me and answered it. " What ?"

* * *

Venus

There was a short pause. "Venus? Why haven't you guys left yet? Did Piston not explain what you needed to do?"

"He did. I chose to ignore you."

"Venus, now's not the time. Victor wants Katya back. He's coming for you."

"I'm aware. I also have plan and it does not involve going back to Palm Beach."

"You can't take him on yourself. He will kill you." Giovanni sounded sure of himself, and I knew he wasn't wrong. Victor was very dangerous man. What both men failed to understand was I was even more dangerous.

"I have no intention of taking him on alone."

"Tell me what you're going to do."

"I'm going to invite Victor to dinner."

As I knew it would, that got Giovanni to shut up. For a brief moment at least. "I… don't understand." He spoke slowly. I could practically the look of utter confusion on his face.

"Dinner? Evening meal? Ring a bell?"

"I know what dinner is," he snapped.

"Good. Should alleviate confusion. I'm assuming you're in Palm Beach now?"

"I am. At the Bane compound. You know. Where you're supposed to be headed."

"If you'd wanted me there so fast, perhaps you should have picked me up in chopper you flew down on?"

"I was in Miami, Venus. Christ!"

"Good. Stay put. Will call you with instructions." Before he could respond with what I'm sure would be scathing commentary, I ended the call. "This should be fun."

"Sounds like you have a plan." Piston grinned up at me. He was still inside me and his cock was getting hard again. I had to smile. I never thought I'd enjoy sex with another person as much as I did with Piston. It all had to do with trust, too. I'd never trusted anyone enough to let my guard down and enjoy the moment. It wasn't that way with Piston.

"Before we do anything else, I want to know something."

"Anything, Shortcake. Name it."

"What's your real name?"

He barked out a laugh. "Yeah, I can see how that would be something you'd want to know. But honestly, Piston is my name. Only one I've ever had."

I jerked back a little. "What?"

"Yeah. I was an orphan. Don't remember my parents. Lived in a group home my whole life. Everyone there called me Piston. No idea why, and I really don't care. It's who I am. They gave me the last name Brown but I have no idea if that's what it always was or not. I'm guessing not."

I gave him a solemn look. "Piston it is, then."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"How'd you get the name Venus?"

"Was given to me by FSB handler. My code name. They stripped away our identities when we first entered academy. They trained us in combat and all other kinds of battle and spy skills, but academy was more about brainwashing than anything else. When I made it to US, I decided to keep name. Silly risk, I guess, but after Millie took off, it was all I had familiar to me." It was hard to admit how weak I sounded, but I didn't seem to have a filter where Piston was concerned.

I thought about what to tell him next but knew there was no way I could keep it from him. "There's something else."

"What is it, baby?" He leaned in to kiss my lips softly, lingering precious moments before pulling back and stroking my cheek with his thumb. "Whatever it is, I promise it's not gonna be as bad as the look on your face thinks it will be."

I had to give him a weak chuckle at that. Because, it was big deal to me. Had always been big deal. I took a breath. "I can't have children." He stared at me, still stroking my cheek but said nothing, like he was waiting for something. So I added, "Ever. At all."

He frowned, a confused look on his face. "OK. Is that it?" He wasn't making light of situation; instead, he looked confused.

"Isn't that enough?" I snapped, my reply sharper than I intended. Closing my eyes I took a deep breath. "Was one of first things they did to me when I went to academy."

"I see. Makes sense even if it is barbaric." He leaned in again to kiss me, but I moved back.

"Why would you say it makes sense?"

"They had no intention of you leaving their service, did they?"

"Not in program I was in," I muttered.

"No kids, no distractions. Nothing would be more important to you than the task at hand."

"Oh." I slumped, allowing him to pull me close once more. This time, I let him kiss me. Mainly because I needed intimate contact with him. "Sorry. Thinking about that time in my life makes me feel weak and defenseless. No matter how many ways I was taught to kill and torture, I always felt powerless. FSB had complete control."

Piston cupped my face in both of his hands. "Until you took back control. You left them."

"And I've been in hiding ever since."

"Hiding in plain sight isn't an easy task. Considering how long you've lived in the States and not had someone from that agency kill you is a testament to how good you are at what you do."

I had to smile. This man…

"I hadn't thought about it that way."

"Because you're out of sorts. I threw you a curve ball and you're adapting."

"You?" That wasn't what I was expecting him to say. "Why would you say that?"

He grinned softly at me. "You love me."

"So?"

"Other than your sisters, how many people in this world will you admit to loving?"

I started to respond with how much I cared about people in my club, but I realized he was right. "It's not that I don't love anyone," I muttered.

"Not at all. But I forced you to admit to yourself you didn't just care about me, but you love me."

"Arrogant man." But I felt smile tugging at my lips.

"You love my arrogance." He wasn't wrong. "So, what's your plan? How do you want to work this?"

I stared at him several seconds, my mind working through a few possible solutions. "I'm going to call him. If everything goes well, Victor will come to me. Then I'm going to kill him."