I woke up sore.
Sore. Fucking sore.
I’d never been so exhausted from sex before in my life.
Let along sore.
My cock was raw. My nerves were on fire.
And Cassie slept like a cat curled up in a nest. I kissed her forehead and she stirred, but didn’t wake.
I took a shower, made some calls, put on running clothes, and took the elevator down.
Sore. Fucking sore.
I couldn’t believe what the girl was capable of. When she got started, she lost herself in her flesh, in my hands on her skin, spanking her, fucking her, taking her to places she’d never been before. I bit her, slapped her, made her suck my cock until she gagged, and she still begged for more.
She pleaded for me to keep going.
I gave her everything I had and more last night, and she fell asleep, snoring softly.
Spent and happy.
If I had to do that for the rest of my life—
I could die a very lucky man.
How did I end up with Cassie? With this wife?
Even if this marriage was fake—last night made all the struggle worth it.
I hit the street and began jogging. I went slow until I reached Central Park then picked up my pace. There weren’t many people out at five-thirty in the morning, with the sun barely over the buildings, only the fitness freaks like myself, the drunks and the bums tucked away in the trees and the bushes, strung out junkies searching for a safe, dry place to spend the night, and I reveled in the life all around me even if I kept myself apart from it.
That was what I knew. Keeping myself separate.
Above, away. The world happened, and I steered its events—but it didn’t happen to me.
Until Cassie cracked in through my barrier and proved I could feel something again.
I ran harder than normal. I needed to sweat, to work myself into exhaustion.
Cassie would be waiting for me when I got back.
That girl. I loved the way her lips fell open as she came in violent waves, her skin flushed pink with pleasure, her moans echoing out across the room. I wanted her to swallow my cum in thick drops on that incredible tongue, wanted to watch her breasts bounce with every rough, violent thrust of my cock, and wanted her down on her knees begging, pleading with me to keep going, keep fucking that soaking wet cunt.
God, even exercise couldn’t clear my brain of her.
I was no better than any of the other heroin-sick, except my drug was still asleep in my bed.
I ran around a gurgling fountain and reached one of the bridges. I slowed as I approached the entrance and a figure stepped out of the shadows.
A man, about my size, wearing a very nice suit. Understated, quiet, but quality.
I stopped jogging and walked toward him. I wiped my brow with my shirt as Darren came into the light, a smile on his face.
Darren Servant. Another of the Oligarchs. I hadn’t seen him in some time, but I knew he was around, floating at the margins of things. He was in bed with the MacKenna, and eventually I’d have problems with him, but I was surprised it took so long to arrange a meeting.
I didn’t know a lot about him. Most of us kept our pasts to ourselves. The traumas, the heartaches. Any of it could be used as a weapon. Darren was more secretive even than me, though I did know that his family came from nothing and earned their wealth only three generations ago, making his family one of the youngest. He smiled and liked to laugh and had a wild streak, but he was dangerous, so very dangerous.
The others, they saw this as a game. But Darren treated it like life or death.
“Thanks for coming to meet with me.”
His eyebrows raised. “You could’ve gotten dressed up for me, you know.”
“I thought I’d take care of two things at once. I’m a busy man.”
He laughed, waved a hand. “No worries. I haven’t gone home from last night yet. Strange how this is the morning for you, and still the night for me.”
“We’re meeting right at the transition. I like that.”
He shoved his hands into his pockets. I didn’t worry about a gun—Erick would be nearby with a rifle trained on Darren’s chest. Most likely half the junkies I saw lying around in the bushes were his men, and the rest would be mine.
“You’ve been a busy boy, Roman. I’m surprised none of the others have bothered you yet.”
“You know how it can be. We’re all playing for specific reasons.”
“Unfortunately, you encroached on my turf. I have to say, I don’t love that.”
“I didn’t think you would.”
“Why bring the Russians and the Italians together? You realize it’ll never last.”
“To counter your moves with the Irish. Though I found a different way to do that.”
Darren ran a hand through his hair. “I guess you have. Think it’ll work? I’ve never heard of the girl before.”
“Her father’s important. That means she matters.”
“We’ll see about that. Honestly Roman, why can’t you just stick to one family? The Russians are obsessed with you. Always talking about how you’re some kid of long-lost prince or whatever, not that I understand half the shit they say.”
“I have my reasons.” I tilted my head. “Am I sensing some jealousy?”
His eyes hardened. Darren was kind and outgoing on the surface, but inside he was filled with steel.
I would’ve liked him if we weren’t enemies.
“You’re upsetting the balance of power. You know how this ends. We come together and knock you down a peg, then things go back to normal. Why not avoid all the drama?”
“Like I said, I have my reasons.”
“If this is revenge for your father, I’ve told you before, we can arrange something.”
“Will you give me Oisin?”
“No. That isn’t an option.”
“Then we have nothing to discuss.”
Darren sighed, spread his hands out. “I’m trying to be peaceful about this, Roman. You always default to killing, but there are other ways to solve a problem.”
“Maybe for you.”
“God, so dramatic.” He rolled his eyes. “Come on. Seriously?”
I didn’t move. Sweat dripped down my body. I could taste the tension in the air. Darren wanted me out of the way so he could continue to bankroll the MacKenna family and allow them to spread out across the United States. He’d always had the weakest link with the crime families, though he was embedded with the banks—which could be more dangerous.
I still couldn’t bend for him, not yet. I might make peace with him once Oison was dead, but I couldn’t let him know that. I wanted my revenge and wanted it on my terms. I knew he’d never agree to give me Oisin straight out, and asking provided me with cover. I could pretend like I’d tried to keep things civil from the start.
“I’m not going to stop my plans and you’re not going to give me what I want. Maybe this meeting is a waste of time.”
“The others will get annoyed sooner or later. Do you want it to come to that?”
“You can go whining to them.”
“You’re playing a dangerous game.” He stepped forward, but I noted he held his hands in sight, clearly visible.
Smart. He made sure nobody took him as a threat.
“I’m aware of that.”
“The country’s been in flux for years, but we’ve kept things stable. Now you’re involved with three families instead of one, and that puts everything at risk. Have some sense, Roman. Stop this before it goes too far.”
“I won’t.”
Darren nodded and let out a sigh like that was what he expected. “All right then. I came here in good faith. I do want things to remain calm, but you seem hell bent on war.”
“I’m hell bent on revenge.” I tightened my fists and looked away from him, up toward the bridge. “You can’t understand what it’s been like for me, knowing that Oisin’s still out there, the man that ordered the death of my father. And I never even loved that old bastard.”
“We’ve all got daddy issues. At least mine won’t spark a coast-wide mafia war.” He shoved his hands into his pockets again. “Just think about what I said. We all want business to continue as usual. If you keep going down this path, I’m afraid everything’s about to change.”
“Is change such a bad thing? Are you so afraid of it?”
Darren only shook his head as if disappointed and walked off. He stepped into the trees and disappeared into the gloom of the underbrush. I waited until I couldn’t see him anymore, then waited a few more minutes before I ran again.
Through the tunnel, out the other side.
He wasn’t wrong. That was the thing—I agreed with him. Everything I’d done so far was a threat to the order of things. The others would step in eventually, when the violence got too bad, or I took too much power. That was how we functioned, how it always worked.
If one of us got too strong, the others came together to knock them back down into place.
The cycle went like that for generations.
Only this time, I didn’t give a damn what the others wanted. I didn’t care if Darren was angry.
I wanted my revenge and I was going to have it.
Afterwards, when Oisin was dead and the world understood that they couldn’t fuck with the Lenkov family ever again, only then would I sit down at the table and negotiate.
But not before.
Erick whistled nearby. I ran down a side path and found him sitting on a bench, dismantling a sniper rifle.
“How’d that go?” he asked. “Darren looked twitchy. Nervous.”
“He’s not happy with the way things are.”
“Can’t blame him.” Erick placed the rifle pieces into a hard case. “Think the others are going to roll down on you?”
“They might. I can’t be sure. I assume you have your ear to the ground.”
“I’ve got men in every one of their organizations, and so far, it’s quiet. Nobody’s talking about you.”
“They might not care if I control a couple more mafia families, or maybe they think I won’t be able to keep power over all of them.”
“Not like you care, right?”
“That’s right.”
He stood up and shouldered the case. “Something feels off about all this.”
“What’s that?”
“Darren came alone.”
My eyebrows went up. “Really?”
“Really. This place is crawling with our guys, but Darren didn’t bring anyone. Why the hell would he do that?”
“I don’t know.” I gazed back out into the woods, trying to make sense of it. Darren knew I’d have my own little army occupying the park—why wouldn’t he bring his own? “Have him followed if you can.”
“Already on it.”
“Good. He’ll be a problem. We only have to hope he doesn’t try anything until after Oisin is dead.”
“We’ll see. He seems to give a shit about the old man.”
“Loyalty, I expect.” I nodded to Erick. “I’m going to finish my run and head back to the apartment.”
“Enjoy.” Erick saluted and walked off.
I watched him leave then fell into a slow jog, my mind whirling through the possibilities.
