24. Victoria

Three pigheaded,mafia-asshole men are moving in with me. This is going to be a nightmare. I need my own space, especially when things get bad. I don’t want to have to explain myself when the darkness descends, and it sends me straight to the bathroom to purge myself of the shame and memories.

Fuck.

I’m not sure what’s worse, the thought of Cian, Luke, and Gianluca being under my roof, the fact that I’m secretly kind of turned on by the idea or that I’d rather take my chances with the stalker. Is it the man who abused me? I doubt it. As soon as I grew tits and started my period, he lost interest in me. I know that’s what Cian is thinking, but this is a new player. Or at least someone I wouldn’t see coming.

But who?

Christ knows I’ve crossed enough lines, fucked up enough people to make that Santa list a loooooong-assed list.

“Victoria,” Luke says, snapping his fingers in front of my face. “Where’d you go?”

I flush, looking away from him. “I was just thinking.”

“About what?” Gianluca asks, his eyes narrowed.

“About how much trouble you’re all going to be,” I lie.

“We’re not here to cause trouble, Victoria,” he says, his voice husky. “We’re here to protect you.”

“Funny thing about that?—”

“You don’t need it, blah blah, blah,” he cuts me off, mimicking chatting with his hand. “We know. But that’s not the point now, is it?” His stare is hot, liquid fire in those black eyes that undoes every tight-knit thread that my black, battered soul is woven from.

“Then what is?”

“Lighting the fuse,” he murmurs before he turns and walks away.

“Bastard,” I mutter and turn back to Luke. “We need to talk.”

“No shit. You and Cian discussed this?”

“You could say that. He left me to go think about if he still wants to be with me.”

“You’re joking, right? That man can’t breathe without you.”

“Yeah, well, tell that to him.”

“Don’t be worried,” he says with a frown, standing up and coming to me.

“I’m not.”

“You’re a good liar, rosebud, but not good enough for the man who has studied your features for so long.”

“Fuck off,” I growl, turning from him. “I’ve got enough assholes trying to see into my soul.”

“Don’t push me away, Victoria,” Luke says, his voice low and dangerous. “I’m not the enemy here.”

“You’re not?” I scoff. “Then who the fuck are you?”

“I’m the man who wants to protect you with my last breath,” he says, his hand reaching out to touch my arm.

I look up at him, allowing his touch because who the fuck am I kidding. These three men have carte blanche over my body, and I’m not going to stop any of them from taking exactly what they want despite the consequences. My gaze searches his face. He’s looking at me with an intensity that makes my heart race. I can feel the heat of his gaze on my skin, and it’s exhilarating and terrifying.

“What do you want, Luke?” I ask, my voice a whisper.

“I want you,” he says, his voice husky. “I want you safe. I want you happy.”

“Even if that’s with two other men?” I murmur.

“Two…” He narrows his eyes. “You and G?”

“Maybe,” I say with a shrug. “Who knows what that man wants.”

“Someone he can trust above all others. I think that’s you.”

I gulp at the intensity of those words. “You really don’t care if you share me with them?”

“As long as I have you, I would share you with everyone at BlackBriar.”

“Eww. Even Kellerman,” I say with a snort.

He chuckles. “Maybe not him. But this isn’t about sharing, is it?” Luke’s voice drops an octave, and there’s a dangerous glint in his cold green eyes. “This is about you wanting to push us all away because you can’t handle the thought that maybe you’re not as broken as you think.”

I stare at him, my chest tight, refusing to let those words slice through the fortress I’ve built around myself. “You don’t know shit about what I can handle.”

He steps closer until we’re mere inches apart. “I know more than you think.” His hand slides up my arm, leaving trails of fire in its wake. “I know that when you look at me, there’s a war going on inside you—a war between what your body wants and the fucked-up idea that you don’t deserve it.”

His other hand cups my face, forcing me to meet his gaze. “But here’s the deal, Victoria. I’m not just some prick you can brush off. I’m the man who will fucking tear down those walls and make you see yourself through my eyes.”

His thumb brushes over my lips, and instinctively, I part them slightly. “And what do I look like through your eyes?”

Luke’s expression softens for a fraction of a second before it hardens again. “You look like everything I’ve ever wanted and everything I’ll fight to keep.” With that declaration hanging between us like a goddamn guillotine about to drop, his lips crash down on mine. It’s not a gentle kiss—it’s full of pent-up frustration, longing, and something darker that I can’t name. It’s the kind of kiss that spells trouble, the kind that blurs lines and shatters barriers.

I moan into his mouth, my hands gripping his shirt as if it’s the only thing keeping me grounded. My mind screams at me to push him away, to maintain some semblance of control in this chaos. But fuck it, I’m tired of fighting what I want.

His tongue sweeps against mine with an urgency that leaves me breathless and wanting more.

He pulls back just enough to whisper against my lips, “Tell me to stop, and I will.”

But I don’t. Instead, I pull him back for another searing kiss.

We break apart, gasping for air, our foreheads pressed together. “This goes no further. Not yet. Not until I know Cian is really okay with it.”

He smiles sadly and kisses the tip of my nose. “And that’s just one of a million reasons why I love you.”

I baulk at the last three words but don’t say anything. Instead, I pull away and mutter, “You’d better pack up these fancy machines. I’ll see you later.”

He nods and lets me go. I need to find Cian, and I need him to tell me what the fuck is going on in that head of his because one thing is for sure: with Luke living under the same roof as me, the next time he kisses me, I won’t be able to say no.