“What. The. Fuck. Is. This?!” The words rumbled from deep in Victor’s throat as he stared down at the 8x10 photos on his father’s desk. Where were her fucking clothes, why the fuck was she in bed with that asshole Briggs, and who the absolute fuck else had seen these photos?!

The top of Tony’s head tingled and he felt like he was about to come out of his skin. He bared his teeth, his chest heaving as his father’s stern voice drifted over to him from what seemed like a great distance, telling him to calm the fuck down.

It had only been a week since Valentina had made her declaration about proving herself to the cartel, only a week since she’d been attacked. Victor thought she had wanted some space, so he’d tried not to hover – even though it damn near killed him to do it -- and relaxed his grip on her enough to let her have some time to recover from the traumatic experience. Looked like he’d been a fucking fool. What the hell had she been up to?

“Again, I will ask. What. The. Fuck. Is. This?!” he thundered, not bothering to lower his voice now.

“Loyalty. That’s what this is,” Ricardo answered serenely. “Valentina became aware of our difficulties with William Briggs and how his stubbornness was delaying our media expansion. She offered to help. It was a smart move that will serve everyone’s purposes.”

“Yeah, a regular win-win.” Victor grabbed the stack of photos off the desk with shaking hands and went through them, one by one. Valentina, damn near naked, on a bed, straddling some paunchy, middle-aged fucker. Valentina, her back arched with those perfect tits pointing to the sky as she reached back to unfasten her damned bra. In one particularly damning photo, Valentina leaned forward with her tits practically pouring out of the bra cups, her softness only inches from the asshole’s open mouth.

He dropped the photos on the floor, his face contorting with rage as he clenched handfuls of his hair and just tried to fucking breathe. He paced the floor, then braced his hands on the edge of the desk. His vision went blurry and red around the edges as he imagined that fucker close enough to touch his woman. “What the fuck kind of help are you talking about? You already had the pictures of Briggs’ family. Wouldn’t that be enough to intimidate him and bring him around to our way of thinking? What else could you possibly need?”

“We need something more. And Valentina has given us…more.” Ricardo’s voice was steady and even, but his eyes narrowed speculatively as he watched his son come to grips with Valentina’s extraordinary gesture of loyalty. Of course, Ricardo already knew the details: the man had been drugged and, therefore, incapable of participating in any illicit activity. The incriminating nature of the photos was the result of a series of methodical, carefully choreographed poses that Valentina and Roxanne had come up with. Those two were proving to be diabolical when they put their heads together.

Roxanne never refused an opportunity to indulge her love of photography. She had photographed the proceedings from across the street using a powerful zoom lens. What Victor didn’t know was that the ruse had actually been Valentina’s idea. Ricardo did not look forward to divulging that particular bit of information, but he wasn’t a man to hide behind a lie.

Victor’s neck was flushed and his jaw was clenched as he cast a baleful look his father’s way. “How could you possibly ask that of my woman?” he asked disbelievingly.

“I didn’t have to ask. It was her idea.” At his son’s ragged intake of air, he added, “She has proven herself to the cartel. And she remained faithful to you the whole time. Briggs was drugged anyway, she made sure of that; he couldn’t open his eyes, much less get a hard-on. At no time was she out of sight or in danger.

“Now, son, a little advice,” Ricardo said briskly as he gestured for Victor to pick the photos up off the floor. He was quickly growing impatient with his son’s histrionics. “You have found a rare woman, Victor. A woman of great tenacity. A woman of worth. She has all the makings of a strong cartel wife. I suspected as much years ago, which is why I picked her for you in the first place. If this goes well, I will declare her as yours and under the protection of the cartel.” A rare, indulgent smile tilted Ricardo’s lips. “And then your mother and your aunt can ‘wedding plan’ to their hearts’ content. Now, go. Oh, and Victor…”

Victor paused on his way out the door with the photos clenched in his hand, tucking his chin and turning his head to the side slightly as he listened.

“She loves you, son. The life you’ve always wanted is within your grasp. Don’t fuck it up.”

“Did you fuck him?” Victor bellowed as he advanced on Valentina, backing her into a corner as he jabbed an accusing finger in her face.

“No, I did not fuck him.”

“You sure about that? Because those pictures sure as hell look like it.” He pointed to the 8x10 glossies he had strewn across the bed as proof of her betrayal.

“They’re pictures of me in lingerie--” she said tentatively, stumbling over her words when his nostrils flared and his neck reddened. “Um, lingerie, yeah…I was just straddling him, Victor.” Victor’s eyebrows rose nearly to his hairline as he cocked his head to the side, clearly exasperated at the image that was quickly becoming burned onto his brain. “And he was drugged,” she continued desperately, “so he probably didn’t even know I was there. Trust me, he wasn’t going to get hard after all the drugs I fed him.” At the word ‘hard’, Victor’s eyes shut and he bared his teeth.

She straightened her back and forced her voice to remain steady as she met his stormy gaze unflinchingly. “I did this for the cartel, Victor. Cartel comes first, always. I did this so your father could buy that television station. This is my job too and there was no way I was going to let the likes of William Briggs ruin my career. I don’t know what this connection is between you and me but we’ve got to face facts here…You. Are. Not. My. Man. You don’t own me. This obsession you have with me has to end.”

“It will never fucking end. Never. One way or another, I’ll have you. You seem to think you have a fucking choice, but you don’t.”

She was right; Victor was hopelessly enthralled with the woman. From the moment he’d seen her, he’d known he had to have her. His family still maintained business ties within the country, so it wasn’t a complete surprise when his father had declared that Valentina would be the right woman for him. Ricardo’s approach to matchmaking was more than a little old-fashioned, some might even consider it brutal, but Victor didn’t care. He had made it his mission to make good on his father’s promise. And he had been making progress, but she was still resisting his efforts. Come hell or high water, he was going to get her down the aisle and his father would be the one to give her away. He was his father’s son—brutal, methodical, and an over-the-top Alpha male. He saw his union with Valentina as inevitable. Her resistance was simply a waste of time.

“You. Belong. To. Me.” He wrapped a hand around her neck, forcing her head back. “The quicker you understand that, the better off you’ll be. You wanted to be a star in America? Well, I’m part of the package. You’ve known that from the start. You are going to be my wife and the mother of my children. If I have to drag your ass down the aisle, I will.”

“I don’t doubt it, you fucking Neanderthal!”

He slid his hand around to grip her hair at the nape of her neck. He grazed his teeth up and down the length of her neck, biting down when he landed on the sweet spot where her neck met her shoulder. She shuddered and leaned into him, and hated herself for it.

“Fight the attraction all you want, but by the time I’m done with you, you’ll be begging me to give you this cock,” he purred as he pressed his erection against her. “I don’t care what your head is telling you, your body is what I hear talking to me. It always betrays you at my touch. It must be maddening to be the slave of a man you hate. But there’s nothing like a good, angry hate fuck to take the edge off, you’ll see. Oh, and one more thing,” he said with a smug smile. “You little thief. We caught you on camera stealing Brigg’s money from his wallet before you left the hotel room.”

“Victor, don’t be so sanctimonious, we both know you’ve done far worse than that. And I had to let that asshole think he actually had a shot at fucking me. I had to get something out of it for myself. It’s not like he’s going to miss that money anyway.”

“You won’t do a job like that on your own again. I will know about it and I will be there.”

“Victor, please,” she said. “Like I’ve been telling you, this is my career. I wasn’t going to let that bastard take it from me. I mean, moral, my ass -- that guy followed me up to that room like a horny puppy.”

“Shut up, Valentina, you devil-woman!” he fumed as he seized her arm and half-dragged her across the room to the bed. He sat on the edge of the bed and put her over his knee so hard that it stole the breath from her lungs.

She was so stunned that she didn’t catch on to what he was going to do until the first stinging smack landed on her ass. Kicking and screaming did no good with his powerful leg over her thighs, holding her firmly in place. Five rapid strikes later and she was sobbing in pain.

Victor rubbed his hand over her heated skin and slipped his fingers along the crack of her ass until he slid two of them into her soaked pussy. “Such a lady, but so filthy dirty when it comes to your man.” Her hips lifted, meeting his fingers and confirming what he already knew: no matter how much she hated him, her body craved him.

“That’s it, baby, fuck my fingers. You belong to me. That tight pussy of yours is mine to use however I want. Don’t you ever go anywhere alone with any man but me again! I ought to kill that son of a bitch.” He pinched at her clit, squeezing enough to give her painful pleasure.

Her hips began bucking wildly as his fingers worked their magic, triggering an orgasm that started in her lower belly and electrified her all the way down to her toes.

Despite her protests, he knew perfectly well that she had deliberately gone to meet Briggs. Even if it wasn’t something she had wanted to do, she had pursued the idea and, at the very least, she had most certainly enjoyed rebelling against the man who ruled her life.

He yanked her head up by a handful of hair and hissed, “You ever do something like that again, I’ll use a horsewhip on your ass while you’re swinging from the chain in my dungeon.” He tossed her over onto the side of the bed and stood up to leave.

He needed to find Tony. It would probably be impossible to pry his brother off the new woman in his life. That situation had come as a complete shock at first, until he remembered that the Ramirez men never pursued love in a conventional way.

Typically, when a Ramirez man set his sights on The One, he didn’t bother with the whole ‘dinner and movie’ thing. He knew that shit belonged to him and he claimed it using whatever means necessary. But Tony was his own man and he had started out slow with Caden until circumstances called for him to be more direct. It certainly explained why Tony had been spending so much time at The Club after he got home from the military, and all that fucking texting he had been doing. Always on his fucking phone. It had all been about a girl, of course. Caden was a good girl, though, and she and Tony seemed solid. Victor was happy for him.

But he didn’t care if his brother was dick-deep in his new woman. He needed Tony’s help, now. They had cartel business to attend to with one William Briggs. His father wanted that TV station, and Victor wanted revenge. With Tony’s help, he’d secure both. And he’d make Valentina watch. She needed to understand the power she wielded as a cartel woman, and the impact her impetuous decisions had on others.

“I hate you. You bastard!” Valentina screamed at his departing back.

“I hate you, too, beautiful vixen. I’ll be back for you later, be ready.”

His cruel laughter echoed off the walls as he ambled down the hall to find his brother. Valentina was as defiant as she was beautiful, so it came as no surprise to Victor that she wasn’t about to turn her life over to him without a fight. But he was a Ramirez, after all; there was nothing she could do to stop the inevitable.

Valentina scowled at the door long after Victor’s footsteps had faded away. She curled up against the pillows, lost in thought. She’d never been with another man, Victor was all she knew…and, if she was honest with herself, he was all she wanted. And how fucked up was that?! She also knew that defiance was what made the chase so gratifying. The truth was, Victor Ramirez had women fawning all over him but he only had eyes for her. She didn’t know why he was so taken with her, but it was profoundly satisfying to keep him off balance and put him through hell. As far as she was concerned, that was exactly what Victor Ramirez needed—a challenge.

 

Valentina awoke slowly, savoring the warmth of Victor’s chest pressed snug against her back. She arched her back, smiling to herself as she pressed her ass against his rather impressive morning wood. She longed to stretch her aching muscles even as she practically purred at the memory of all she and Victor had done to each other only hours earlier.

He did come back for her, as he’d promised. They had met briefly with his father before heading out, and Ricardo had given her his blessing – and declared that a wedding would be planned -- before sending them on their way. She had agreed rather demurely. No one was more shocked than she was at her compliance, except maybe Victor. She hadn’t told him how she felt about his father’s declaration, but knew she would need to tell him soon.

When she and Victor had returned home several hours later, Victor had fucked her with a fierce, primal intensity that went deeper than she’d ever experienced with him before. What a difference a night made.

Following the discussion with Ricardo, they had spent the remainder of the evening securing the sale of the TV station that the Ramirez brothers had coveted for so long. One more step in their long-term strategy to establish a portfolio of legitimate business interests within the media industry. Lucky for her, their ambitions dovetailed beautifully with her own.

Victor and Tony had ‘persuaded’ Briggs to sign over the station, and Victor had gotten his pound of flesh, too. Or gallon of piss, maybe. Victor hadn’t seemed all that surprised when Briggs soiled himself. Maybe it was typical for men to piss or shit themselves when facing the wrath of a Ramirez. William Briggs wouldn’t be straying from his wife again any time soon, that was for sure.

So many things had become clear to Valentina during the tumultuous night. Everything Victor had done had been for her. All the ugly rage and humiliation he had unleashed upon Briggs had been for her. Because he loved her, was consumed by her.

She swallowed hard and felt Victor’s arm tighten around her. With her eyes closed, she breathed the words that had been weighing on her heart. “I love you, Victor, with all my heart. You were right; you’ve given me no choice but to fall in love with you.”

His body tensed behind her for a long moment, then he was turning her around and pulling her tight against his chest. “God…I fucking love you too.” He could barely breathe to get the words out.

He had expected to feel light and happy when she finally came around and acknowledged her feelings for him. Instead, his chest was heavy with an unfamiliar feeling…the threat of unimaginable loss. In an instant, he was overwhelmed by a flood of protective instincts. He had spent a lifetime watching others endure the risks that came with great love. But she was worth the risk, he knew that for a fact, deep in the darkest corner of his soul. He wanted it all. He wanted everything life had to offer with this woman.

She pressed his hand to her abdomen, her eyes soft. “I love you so much, Victor, and the son I carry in my womb does too.”

He stopped breathing, staggered by the enormity of the truth she had just shared. “Are you sure?” His gut clenched with the instinctive drive to protect his growing family. In that moment, he knew he would walk through fire for them without a second thought.

She nodded, looking up at him with misty eyes as she bit her bottom lip. The move was so fucking sexy, he couldn’t help how his hips leaned in toward hers as he blanketed her body with his, rubbing his cock against her heat, seeking her acceptance…needing her surrender.

“Have you taken a test?”

She nodded again. “Mm-hmm.”

“Without me?” He pulled away with a frown. “Why didn’t you let me share that moment with you, baby?”

Her heart clenched at the pain she saw in his eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to get your hopes up. I wasn’t sure at first and I just wanted a little time to come to terms with the idea. This changes everything, Victor.”

“This changes nothing. It’s always been you for me, Valentina. Always.”

Fear wrapped its ugly tentacles tighter around his heart as he recalled the pain his aunt and uncle had gone through when they tried to conceive. Roxanne had lost several pregnancies in a short amount of time, and when she finally gave birth, the baby was stillborn. That bitch fate hadn’t been satisfied with their hearts being broken by all the miscarriages, no, she had to brutalize their hearts a final time when the umbilical cord had wrapped around the baby’s neck during labor. Victor knew that was why his aunt and uncle had always treated him and his brother as their sons too. Their love for him and his brother was as close as they would ever get to having children of their own.

Someday Valentina would hear that nightmare of a story, but not today. He didn’t want Valentina to think of anything negative right now. If anyone thought he’d been possessive before, Valentina’s news had roused his alpha nature anew.

“Oh, and one more thing. Don’t even think about clowns when it comes to the nursery; not toys, not even pictures, Victor. Clowns are fucked up. I won’t have them around my baby.”

“Wow, I don’t think Tony picked up on that at all. You know how he loves to analyze people and learn their fears. You may be the first time he’s missed something. If he ever shows up at a birthday party dressed like a fucking clown, though, I swear I’ll kick his ass!”

She laughed but Victor didn’t. His tone was solemn and apologetic as he said, “I never would have let you watch what happened to Briggs if I’d known you were pregnant. Forgive me.”

“Honestly, Victor. Shut up and fuck me.”

“Oh? Well, I aim to please.” He pulled her beneath him and drove his cock into her luscious heat, making all the right moves to pull a toe-curling orgasm from her body. Watching her come apart brought him more satisfaction than any orgasm he’d ever had. The reason was simple: his life was all about Valentina and the child she carried…their child.
 

A few days later, Victor summoned three cartel bodyguards to his office. Resting a hip along the corner of his desk with his arms crossed over his chest, he considered which one would be the most vigilant keeping his prized possessions safe—his wife and unborn child.

There was Arturo, the guard who still bore the scars of Antonio Wayne’s whip because he’d fallen asleep on duty. Tony was embroiled in drama of his own these days, some ugly business involving the Sinaloans. Arturo had failed in his duties to watch over someone of great importance to Tony, and he had paid the price. Victor shook his head, returning his focus to the matter at hand, confident that his brother would take care of his own personal business in due time.

Stiven and Edwin stood alongside Arturo. They were large men, both more than capable of guarding Valentina but Arturo had something the other two didn’t: the fear of God.

Victor stood in front of Arturo and smacked his cheek. When that didn’t elicit a response, he did it again. The man stood with his gaze fixed straight ahead.

“I think you have what I’m looking for. You’re focused and you have no ego – and you understand that failure will mean death. Will you do anything, and I mean anything, to protect my woman and the child she carries?”

“I would give my life, Señor.”

“You don’t bear a grudge against my uncle, are you? You know, maybe feeling bitter about being on the business end of his whip?”

“No, sir. I got what I deserved. I deserved worse. I should never have fallen asleep on duty, sir.”

A severe beating will do one of two things to a man: make him a traitor or loyal to the death. The look of allegiance was in Arturo’s eyes—a look that couldn’t be faked or drummed up. He was the right man for the job.

“Fair enough,” Victor said. Then he smacked him again—this time far harder than before. Still nothing. Good. His gaze was brutal and unforgiving. “Your life, eh? That works for me.”

It was settled. Valentina would have a personal bodyguard at all times from now on. Many people didn’t know how brutal Arturo could be. Once he had surprised them all by giving a disrespectful guard a Colombian necktie by cutting the man’s throat and pulling his tongue out through the gaping wound. The dearly departed guard had been talking smack about Antonio Wayne behind his back, and had been rumored to be planning to betray the cartel. Arturo had dealt with it swiftly. It was one of the reasons Antonio Wayne hadn’t killed him when he beat him with the whip. Loyalty was something that couldn’t be fabricated and it had saved Arturo’s life.

He was the perfect guard to entrust with the safety of Victor’s family. Fear would keep Arturo vigilant and also keep him from getting any ideas about developing feelings for the exotic beauty. Doing something stupid like that would get the man killed and this time it wouldn’t be Antonio Wayne doing it. Everyone in the cartel knew how volatile Victor could be when it came to Valentina, and none of them had the balls to stand up against that kind of obsession.