Page 3 of Hostile Cravings
I grabbed a suitcase, my closet light illuminating the large diamond ring that sat above the wedding band he’d shoved on my finger. Dropping the suitcase on my bed, I studied the two rings. They were stunning, exactly what I would have picked out, and I could only assume Casey had helped him choose them. Shaking my head, I wiped my hands over my shorts, trying not to think about them, but the unfamiliar weight on my finger was too hard to ignore.
With a huff, I sat on my bed, staring across the room into my walk-in closet and having no idea what to pack. I didn’t know how long this was going to last. I had never been out of our province with its constant warmth, sunny days, the beaches and my pool occupying the time I didn’t spend at my father’s nightclubs.
This was a disaster, and I didn’t want to go. I didn’t want to be the pretend wife of Tyson Raines. The brute was an asshole. He was rough with his hard eyes, his towering stance, the tattoos that lined his arms, and those muscles that bulged under his shirts. Not that I minded tattoos and muscles, but not his. He hated me and with his hate, my own had festered until neither of us could stand being in the same room with each other.
Now we were stuck together until this thing with the Tirenti’s died down. Joey had a lot of nerve touching me. Tony had warned him, but Joey sensed my father’s weakness and Tony had yet to assume the authority my father once held. I may not have cared to get involved in the family business, but I knew enough to know if Mason and Tyson weren’t offering protection, my father would have fallen long before the Bad Omen incident. With Tony stepping in and having his rebirth, as he called it, there was a chance we could return to the standing we’d once had among the families.
That was about all I knew of the business, and I didn’t care to know any more. As long as we had money and I could go through life carefree and having fun, the rest could fall to my brother. It didn’t bother me that they all thought I was dumb and naïve. I preferred it that way, to be seen like Tyson saw me—spoiled and bratty.
I looked back down at the ring, wondering why that kiss had burned its way through me once I’d relaxed. Or why the grip around my neck when he’d told me how hard he liked it had soaked me. He was a player, like I was, so I knew he had to be good in bed, but I had no desire to test that theory. Standing, I rubbed my neck, rubbing away his touch and grimacing at the thought of it. I rummaged through my closet, throwing my favorite outfits into the suitcase and filling two more before I was through. I didn’t care what Tyson thought of the clothes I brought. He had said I couldn’t play, but I doubted he could stop me. There was no way I was going without sex while I was there,and I was damned sure he wouldn’t be faithful to this sham marriage.
Tossing a few stilettos and sandals into a bag, I considered the weather in their province might not be as pleasant as ours, but these were the clothes I had. They were all I knew, just like this life. Closing the suitcases, I glanced around my room one last time. Tyson’s home was bound to be dull and dreary. Unlike mine where the sun shined constantly and slipped through the sheer pink curtains of my room so that it left stripes over my fuzzy pink comforter. I vaguely wondered if Tyson had anything but depressing colors. Not likely. There was nothing remotely light and carefree about that man.
Leaving my bags in my room, I made my way down the hall, holding my head high and praying I could deal with Tyson Raines without losing my sanity or my life.
Raisedvoices drifted through the door of my father’s office. He had a rule that I wasn’t to interrupt his meetings, but since this one had to do with me, I walked right in. The voices stopped, all eyes turning to me. All but Tyson, whose already clenched fists bunched even tighter, his head sweeping slowly toward me. The hatred in those hazel eyes burned straight through me, but he kept his head tilted away so the others couldn’t see.
I lifted my head taller and swished my hips, making my way into the room as if I hadn’t a care in the world.
“Pumpkin, what have I told you about interrupting my meetings?”
“But daddy, I know this one’s about me,” I purred, walking past Tyson and over to my father.
Giving him a kiss on the head, I flipped my hair and turned back to the room. My brother rolled his eyes. Joey looked at me asif I were prey, and his father’s lips thinned, but I could see the desire behind them. It made me wonder if Joey had gotten his way, if his father would have taken a piece of me as well. He wasn’t as old as my father, but it was still gross. I liked older men, but he fell beyond my taste.
“I think her timing is perfect,” he said, his eyes narrowing. “Why don’t you tell us how you’re suddenly married to Raines when none of us knew anything of the sort?”
I noticed Tyson cross his arms, his muscles bulging below his jacket. The room held so much tension it was almost hard to breathe. Tyson had three men with him who looked ready to pounce on Tirenti’s four men, and my father’s men had their hands close to their weapons. Tirenti wasn’t buying the story, and it was no wonder. It was ridiculous to think I would change my ways in a matter of weeks and marry a man I hated. Just as ridiculous that Tyson would do the same.
It was time to show my new husband why I commanded such a presence everywhere I went and why I had no trouble wrapping men around my fingers. Every man but him. He turned his eyes back to me, the color in them a mix of dark sage and amber.
“Yeah, little viper. Why don’t you tell them why you can’t keep your hands off me now.”
The way he’d suddenly turned his nasty nickname for me into something sexy bothered me, as did the way it burrowed its way into my body like a claim of ownership. He’d been calling me a viper for years. Usually it hissed through his teeth in a sneer, an insult laced with the deepest hatred. It had never bothered me, and I threw my own insults right back at him. But he’d never added ‘little’ to it, giving it a completely different meaning when it left his lips.
Ignoring the unsettling effect it had on me, I sashayed my way over to him, draping my fingers over his back as I walked around him. His back was taut with tension, his muscles growing tighter at my touch. Taking his hand, I leaned against him, noting thering that now sat on his finger and ignoring how he seemed to tower over me. I was tall, but standing next to Tyson made me seem petite.
“I admit, I’ve always hated Ty,” I started, using the nickname his sister used. He squeezed my hand, my knuckles aching from the pressure. “He was like a layer of scum I couldn’t remove from the bottom of my shoes. Not like the men in our province who have class and manners. They know how to treat a woman right.”
I could sense his eyes on me, but I continued talking. “But then he saved me.” I snuggled further against his arm, noticing him tense more. “And I saw him for who he really was.”
Every word that fell from my mouth was like coughing up lava, burning me with the acidic lies, and I hoped no one noticed. He hadn’t saved me. His sister had, as much as I hated to admit it. I despised violence, which was ironic given the world I lived in. I distanced myself from the violence that kept my family in power, turning a blind eye to it. So when Casey had shot that first man, sending his blood splattering me, I’d wanted to run. But she’d dragged me with her, and I’d watched her shoot every one of those men, their lifeless eyes staring back at me. Seeing death so close had changed something in me I still wrestled with and when I’d killed the two shitheads who’d been ready to kill Casey, I’d struggled with the adrenaline high it had given me. The way I’d enjoyed stealing the life from them had been almost as thrilling as sex.
“And who is that?” Joey asked, sitting forward in his seat. “Because I still don’t believe it.” He was holding a bag of ice to his nose, bruising forming under his eyes.
He gave me the chills. There was something perverse about Joey Tirenti that made me weary of him. The way his eyes were staring right through me sent a shiver down my spine, and I inadvertently leaned closer to Tyson. I sensed Tyson look down at me before he let go of my hand and pulled me into his side in an unexpected move.
“Stop staring at my girl, Joey, or I’ll mess the rest of your face up.”
Joey went to rise, but his father stopped him with an abrupt hand before rising from his seat. “Touch my son again, Raines, and I walk out of this room. Now answer the damn question, Angie.”
Tyson’s body was so rigid, his hold on me so suffocating that I could barely talk. I pushed against him, and he loosened his hold. My next move needed to be perfect, or this sham would fall apart, a war would break out, and I could end up with Joey’s hands on me. The thought made me sicker than being this close to Tyson. Because as much as I despised Tyson, I feared Joey Tirenti.
Looking up at Tyson, I turned his face to mine, letting my fingers brush along his firm jaw. The amber in his eyes highlighted the green flecks, and I realized I’d never noticed how beautiful his eyes were. My heart pounded in fear at both that thought and the magnitude of what rested on my next words.
“He’s my everything now.” My stomach rebelled, and I tried not to get sick. “As I sat in that car when he took me home, I realized my hatred for him had only been a cover for my true emotions. That I loved him, and I never wanted to be away from the safety of his arms again. I confessed my love for him right then.”
There was a twinkle of humor behind his eyes before he pulled me closer and said, “She straddled me, and I fucked her so hard she knew no other man would satisfy her again.”
