Savage Christmas (The Moretti Crime Family) Read online

  “Of course.” Julian nods and holds his arm out to me.

  I loop my slender forearm into his muscular one, and he leads me to the far right wall of the banquet hall. The wall is lined with large tables, and a colorful array of warm and cold foods are spread out like art. The food is so creatively presented, it’s almost too beautiful to eat.

  We grab some plates, and I load mine up until there is no space left.

  “Hungry?” Julian chuckles, looking at my plate.

  “I didn’t eat much today, I had to make sure I’d fit into this dress, after all,” I lie again.

  I normally tell Julian the truth, but I really want to keep this secret until tomorrow morning. There isn’t much I can give a man who has everything money can buy.

  This will be the greatest gift of all.

  We choose a table to eat at, and my mood slowly returns. Maybe I was just getting a bit hangry. When I’m finished eating, Julian goes to get me a piece of cake, and while I wait patiently for some sugary goodness, my eyes scan the room without any particular focus.

  I take in the sea of people, old and young and all dressed to impress. My eyes move over a hundred unknown faces until I catch a single known one. I freeze. Then I blink.

  People move in front of me, obstructing my view. When they move past, he is gone. Disappearing like he wasn’t there at all.

  Frantically, I look around, trying to find Lucca again, but he has simply vanished.

  “You okay?” Julian’s deep voice startles me.

  “Yes…yes. I’m fine.” My eyes must have played tricks on me. Why would Lucca be here? No, there is no way. Julian’s paranoia is rubbing off on me, that’s all.

  “Is this still about Chelsey?” Julian huffs, handing me a piece of chocolate cake.

  Without answering, I take a huge bite of the cake.

  “If you don’t stop your pouting, I’ll have to take you somewhere quiet and show you just how much I want you.”

  The chocolate turns even sweeter on my tongue at his threat, and my insides turn as mushy as the cake on my tongue. Swallowing, I sit the plate on the table.

  “Maybe that’s exactly what you should do,” I purr in the most seductive way I can manage. I’ve grown bolder when it comes to sex, but I am nowhere as bold as Julian.

  Julian’s gaze becomes heated, his pupils dilate, and his tongue darts out to moisten his bottom lip. I can tell he wants me, is thinking about all the ways he can take me.

  “Let’s go, then, my queen,” he growls, his voice wrapped up in desire. Shock courses through me but then fades away when his hand encases mine. “I hope you didn’t think I was joking,” he whispers into my ear, “because I’ve wanted to rip this dress off you and fuck you since the moment you appeared at the top of the stairs earlier.”

  “Julian.” I gasp as if his words aren’t already turning me into a pile of mush. He tugs me to my feet, and my body collides with his, sending a shiver of lustful need down my spine. Will I ever not be crazy for this man?

  3

  Julian

  That’s exactly what I need. Something dark and satisfying to prove to my wife that she is and always will be the only woman worthy of my attention. Tugging her behind me, I feel every ounce of blood rushing to my cock.

  I can’t think rationally right now. I need to have her skin against mine, hear her soft moans, and stare into her eyes as she crumbles into a million pieces in my arms.

  Taking a left, I head down a dark hallway. I’m crazed and hungry with need for this woman. If I don’t find a room soon, I might just fuck her against the wall where anyone could walk by and see us.

  “What about the fundraiser?” Elena questions in a hushed whisper.

  Spotting a door ahead, I trudge forward and grab the knob hard enough to break it off.

  “Fuck the fundraiser. All I want is to be inside you,” I hiss through my teeth, shoving the door open. I practically drag Elena across the threshold. As soon as we’re both inside, I slam the door shut.

  It’s dark, but my eyes start to adjust almost immediately.

  “Is it wrong that I’m turned on?” Elena says softly.

  “Fuck, no,” I growl and pounce like a mountain lion on her.

  My lips find hers in the darkness, and I kiss her ferociously, devouring her mouth like it’s the last taste of her I’ll ever get. Chocolate and sin, that’s what she tastes like.

  Not so gently, I shove her back against the wall, sending something clattering to the floor. Neither of us seems to care what we’ve knocked over in our haste to get our bodies closer. Elena tugs at my shirt while I tangle one hand in her hair and slide the other beneath her dress.

  “Fuck me, Julian,” Elena pants, her nails digging into my skin.

  The small pinpricks of pain zing straight to my cock, and I tighten my hold on her hair. A throaty moan escapes her lips, and I can’t help but smile. Tilting her head to the side, I ravage her throat, collarbone, and chest, wanting, needing to mark her.

  My other hand continues to move slowly beneath her dress, and over her thigh. She spreads her legs ever so slightly to accommodate my hand.

  “You want me, baby?” I purr against her earlobe.

  “Yes, yes, I want you,” she moans and spreads her legs a little wider.

  As badly as I want to draw this out, I know I’m only making us both ache by waiting. Moving closer to her center, I find nothing more than a thin strip of fabric protecting her shaved pussy from my hand.

  Fuck! A jolt of possessiveness rips through me, and I can’t stop myself from reacting. Mine. Elena is mine, and I’m going to prove it to her, prove it to everyone. She won’t ever second-guess my love for her. Not after tonight.

  I release her hair and pull my hand back from beneath her dress. Before she can even whimper, I twist her around, press her against the wall, and grab her by the nape of the neck, tilting her head backward as I grind my hardened cock against her ass. I need her to know how badly I want her. How badly I need her.

  “I’m going to fuck you now. Hard and fast,” I growl into her shoulder. “I need to be inside you right now, or I might fucking die.”

  “Mmm, yes…give me your worst, Mr. Moretti.”

  Her low, seductive voice rips away the last strands of my restraint, and I unbuckle my belt and shove my pants down in one single motion. For one brief second, everything that terrifies me fades to black. There is nothing more than Elena and me in this moment.

  Grabbing the slit of her dress, I damn near rip the fabric in my haste to get it out of the way. My fingers dive between her legs, and I tug at the single strip of fabric, snapping it like a rubber band.

  “Hey!” Elena squeals, but that sound dissipates in an instant as I bring my fingers to her cunt and sink two digits inside her warm channel. I smile like the Cheshire cat from Alice in Wonderland. Elena’s not only wet for me, but she’s dripping like a leaky fucking faucet.

  Pumping my fingers inside of her a few times, I continue to hold her by the nape of her neck, maintaining control in every aspect of the situation.

  “Oh God…” Her supple thighs start to tremble, and her arousal drips down my hand. She’s close, so fucking close, but when she goes off, it’ll be with my cock inside of her so I can feel each clench of her tight womb.

  “Close, but no…” I chuckle into her ear.

  Her insides start to tighten, and I pull my fingers out, grabbing her by the hip to maneuver her to the perfect angle to take my cock.

  Staring down at the space between our bodies, I guide the tip of my cock to her warm, wet entrance and slowly sink inside her, dragging out every second, soaking it in, relishing in it. As soon as my pelvis presses against her ass, I lose it.

  It’s like something has broken inside me.

  Holding her in place, I use her body like only I can. Exactly how I know she likes it. Branding her with my touch, I fuck her against the wall, her pants and moans are pure music to my ears, and a shiver zings down my spine at the sounds
she expels.

  Slaps and heavy breathing fill the air, along with the smell of sex.

  Elena surrounds me, her sweet scent embedded in my nostrils, her taste on my tongue.

  “I’m close…” she croaks. “So close…”

  “Come for me, baby, soak my cock with your release. Fall apart. I want to feel your tight cunt refusing to let me go.” I nip at her earlobe, knowing the smallest bit of pain will send my minx right over the edge.

  She likes her pleasure dipped into a little pain.

  Like a star transforming right before my eyes, her muscles start to spasm, and she lets out the sexiest sound I’ve ever heard. It’s a cross between a moan and a grunt, and it makes me fuck her faster and harder, my body pushing through hers, owning her release, forcing her to feel me through every ripple of pleasure.

  We are pleasure and pain. Giving and taking from each other. Beads of sweat form against my brow as I plow into her repeatedly. I never want this moment to end, but when my entire body starts to tighten like a bow strung too tight, I know the end is inevitable.

  Holding her with bruising force, I push into her one last time, sinking myself as deep as I can go. I press a soft kiss to the back of her neck as I release my load inside her, filling her with my seed, making the warmth in my chest expand outward.

  Mine.

  We remain like this until my cock starts to soften, and then I ease out of her, but I don’t move away. I drop her dress back down into place and turn her around so I can see her face. Tugging my pants up, I put everything back into place.

  Our gazes clash like waves against sharp, jagged peaks. Green orbs that see the world with such innocence and beauty. I can’t help myself. I dip in for another kiss, taking her mouth with a possessive need even though I just claimed her with my seed.

  I cannot get enough of her. The lengths I would go to protect her. To ensure she is always safe and happy, they make my head spin. I’d kill, destroy, and murder anyone I had to. I’d burn every bridge, break every rule.

  She breaks the kiss a short while later, and the window above our heads lets in a sliver of moonlight, making it possible for me to see that she is a little shy over what we’ve just done.

  “That was…”

  “Unexpected,” Elena whispers, a small smile tugging on her lips.

  “Very much so. I didn’t think you would actually go through with it. It seems I’ve turned my wife into a dirty girl.”

  “You didn’t turn me into anything. You just helped show me the way.” She giggles softly, and I smile.

  “As badly as I want to stay in here with you all night, showing you just how much you, and you alone, matter to me, I think we should get back to the fundraiser.”

  “I need to use the restroom first and freshen up a bit. I’m a little sweaty, and in case you forgot, you ripped my thong.” Her button nose wrinkles in distaste.

  “You liked it.” I grab her hand in mine and turn and open the door with a smile. “We’ll stop at the restroom on the way back to the table though. However, you better keep that sticky release inside you. I’ve marked you, and you’re mine.” I can’t help that the words come out as a growl. Popping my head out into the hallway, I find it empty.

  I don’t care what anyone thinks of me, but I don’t want anyone looking at Elena like she is less than perfect. I’d have to murder them.

  “I would never do such a thing,” Elena whispers behind me as we walk down the dark hallway before turning down another.

  “Of course not. I know you like my scent on your skin and my seed in your womb.”

  We reach the restrooms, and I release her hand to let her go inside and clean up. She walks in with a sedated look in her eyes while I lean against the exterior wall, waiting like a gentleman beside the door.

  My mind drifts as I wait… Like always, she gets me, she knows what I need. She feeds the monster inside me, giving me just enough darkness to feed the beast. Best of all, she still loves me even after seeing all those ugly pieces, and that makes her one of a kind to me.

  4

  Elena

  Relieved that no one is in the bathroom when I enter, I clean up quickly and attempt to pin my hair back in place. I giggle into the silent space. Not even on our one night out at a fundraiser can we manage to keep our hands off each other.

  Using a paper towel, I wipe my smeared lipstick off before washing my hands. I can’t believe we actually did that. Being married to Julian usually means always watching your back and never taking your eyes off the ball. It was nice to be able to act like a normal couple for once. Peering down into the sink for a few seconds, I feel something move behind me.

  I don’t hear anything. It’s a simple shift in the air, letting me know someone is entering the room. I didn’t even hear the door.

  I look up, half expecting Julian to waltz in and take me yet again. I wouldn’t be at all surprised, but what I see instead has the blood freezing in my veins and my heart constricting in my chest.

  A huge man is standing behind me. He’s dressed in black from head to toe, a ski mask pulled over his face, only leaving his eyes visible.

  Which are dark and piercing, like the night.

  My lips part and a scream threatens to escape, but he moves at a lightning-fast pace, wrapping his tree trunk arms around me while slapping his meaty hand over my mouth to silence me.

  I struggle in his hold, bucking like a wild bronco and screaming into his hand until my lungs hurt. My voice is nothing more than a whisper as he shoves me out of the bathroom through a narrow side door I hadn’t even noticed was there. So that’s how he got it undetected.

  Oh God.

  Things get worse when we step into the adjoining room, and two more masked men are waiting there for us. They take me down an empty hallway, ignoring my struggles to get away. To them, I am nothing but an annoying fly that can easily be swatted. I’ll never win in a fight against them, but I can’t not fight either.

  Frantically, I look around, hoping someone might see us, but it seems we are alone.

  They continue dragging me farther and farther away from the bathroom, and soon we’re heading down a staircase. Darkness blankets me, and the temperature of the air drops. I know instantly we’re somewhere beneath the building.

  No one speaks to me until we enter a large room that doesn’t seem to be used for anything besides storing some larger items. Tables and chairs are stacked up on one side with a wedding arch and a minibar on the other.

  Scanning the space, I take note of two doors. One we just came through and another to the far right. I don’t know where it leads, so I can only count on the way we came in as an exit. There are no windows or other avenues of escape.

  Only bare concrete walls everywhere I look.

  It’s a prison.

  The man who’s been shoving me around releases me like I’m on fire. I immediately spin around, running for the door on unsteady legs and screaming as loud as I can. My throat throbs and my ears ring at the noise.

  One of the other guys cuts me off before I can get far. Swinging out his arm, he backhands me so hard, I stumble and lose my footing.

  I land on my ass—hard. Pain radiates up my back, knocking the air from my lungs. My head spins, and specks of light appear in my vision. My cheek throbs and blood fills my mouth. Rage burns through my veins, and I want so badly to fight him.

  “That was stupid,” the third guy mocks. “Here’s how this is going to work. Behave, and you live. After all, it’s not you we’re after. Misbehave, and things are going to be really hard for you.”

  Cradling the side of my burning cheek with my hand, I digest his warning. It’s not me they are after, which means they are here for Julian. Of course, that doesn’t make it better. The fear of losing my husband is a close second to the fear for my own life.

  “Do we really have to let her go?” one of the other men questions, his voice slimy. “I could use another pet. We could even share her. Let’s just keep her for a while afte
r we kill Julian. Get our fill of her, and then if she’s still alive, we can let her go.”

  My mind is already hazy with fear, and the thought of them taking me and using my body as if I’m a whore is more than I can handle. Bile rises in my throat as my stomach churns. Taking a few deep breaths through my nose, I manage to calm down enough so that I don’t throw up. It’s the last thing I need right now.

  “We’ll think about it. Let’s see how well she behaves from now on. In the meantime, tie her up while I’m out there making sure he gets the message,” the biggest one of the three orders before slipping out of the room. I want to tell him not to leave me here, but that’s just stupid. He’s not going to help me. None of them are. They want my husband dead, and they want me to suffer. They want to hurt me.

  The other two don’t waste any time. One grabs me by the arm, his fingers sinking into my skin with bruising force as he pulls me off the floor like a rag doll and places me on a chair while the other pulls out rope from a backpack he was carrying.

  They make quick work tying my arms behind my back roughly. The rope is pulled so tight it digs into the skin around my wrists, cutting off the blood supply to my hands.

  “I can’t feel my hands,” I complain after a minute.

  “Shut up,” the man in front of me growls.

  “I’m sorry. Please, don’t do this…” I start to cry, my emotions consuming me. They’re going to kill Julian, and then me…and the baby.

  “I said to shut the fuck up. You hard of hearing or just stupid?” The man grabs me by the chin, his grip so tight I wince.

  The man pulls out an old dirty rag from his pocket, and before I can put together what he is going to do, he shoves it in my mouth. I instantly start gagging. The taste on my tongue, the smell of his sweat, it’s all too much.

  My head spins and my stomach twists with knots. This can’t be happening. Maybe this is a bad dream and I’m about to wake up.