My shoulder’s screaming like a bitch but I can’t stop fucking her. I can’t bring myself to break the connection, not when I can feel her clenching around my cock again. Is that her fourth orgasm, her fifth? After I branded her with my cum I thrust inside of her and we’ve been bound together like this every since.

My lust will never be satisfied with gentle lovemaking. We have to fuck hard and fast to quench that dark need in both of us. I have to feel those tight muscles helplessly gripping my dick, pulling me under. Drowning me in her essence. I can’t let her go, but I must. It’s too dangerous for her to be by my side.

“Dante!”

Her quiet sobs draw me back to her again. Her voice is weak with fatigue. I’ve been rough with my touch, taking her deep for at least an hour but she hasn’t resisted until now. It’s like she can’t bring herself to break our connection either. I contemplate pushing her legs back and taking her ass but my angel is faltering. The time has come.

I surge forward with one final thrust; my balls flush to my body. I can almost taste the oblivion and then I’m there, my stifled groan shattering the space between us as I fill her up with everything I have left.

“My angel…”

“My devil,” she whispers.

Her soft words rake like razor-sharp nails across my soul. She’ll never know how right she is. She thinks she knows the worst about me but here’s the deal…

She’s barely even scratched the surface.

Afterwards we shower together, frozen like statues beneath the falling water. Heads hanging, the water is streaming down our faces like a never-ending flow of tears. She’s standing facing me in the vast shadow of my body. My hands are resting lightly on my hips. She won’t speak to me. She won’t even look at me. I reach out to switch the water off and gently tilt her chin upwards.

“Talk to me, Eve. Tell me what’s troubling that beautiful mind most of all.”

She bites down gently on her lower lip. It’s a new trait of hers, like the nail-biting thing. It tells me she’s fretful and uneasy.

“Is this it?” I hear her say, her sweet, melodious voice hitting all the minor keys. “Will I ever see you again?”

Releasing her hips, I reach up to cup her jaw with both hands and gently run the pad of my thumb across her lip to stop her biting down again. “I need to end this… this war with my brother.”

She steps away, breaking my hold. She rests the side of her head against the frosted glass of my shower cubicle, her face turned away from me. “All that bloodshed and for what, a crooked empire to preside over?”

If only it was that straightforward.

Her innocence only serves to strengthen my obsession. I sometimes imagine I can taste it on her skin.

“This is your chance to leave it all behind, Dante. You have the money so buy yourself another fortress, go invest in stocks and shares, banks, nightclubs… anything but this!”

Her faith in my ability to transform into a law-abiding citizen is touching but I’m too entrenched in this world to ever let it go. This organization needs stability and it’s time for me to step up and take control.

“I need to finish him, my angel, before he finishes me.”

I watch those blue sapphires widen in dismay. “So you like pushing coke and wrecking lives, is that what you’re implying?” She brushes past me then steps out of the stall to grab a towel from the rail. I can almost taste the bitterness of her frustration.

“It’s never been about the drugs, Eve. You know that.”

“No, it’s about bloodlust. You left the army but you missed the kill so you seek your kicks elsewhere.”

I’m stunned by her perception. And here was I thinking I’d kept it all so well hidden.

She catches my eye in the mirror above the sink. She has no idea how fucking beautiful she looks, with her pale ethereal skin, and her long dark hair jet-black from the water and falling in damp tendrils around her face; my fragile angel with enough strength and goodness for the both of us.

She drops her eyes first, as if she can’t bear to look at me anymore. My lack of morality is a black hole that even she can’t fathom. She thinks she can fix me but it’s too late for that. I’m damaged far beyond anything that her sweet salvation can reach.

“What can I do?” I hear her mutter, her soft voice laced with despair. “How can I make you see that there’s another life for us?”

“I will find you again, Eve.”

She nods but I know she doesn’t believe me. I step out of the shower cubicle and slide my arms around her waist, pulling me back against my damp body and kissing the top of her head. She feels so slender, so breakable in my embrace.

“Distract yourself with words when I’m gone, my angel,” I murmur, kissing her again. “Find a part of me in every flawed hero you come across in your books. Use fiction to erase every wrong I’ve ever done you with the deeds befitting of a good man, a better man.”

“I don’t want to replace you, Dante,” she gasps, staring up at me as if I’ve just struck her across the face. “You’ve broken my heart more times than I can count since you held a gun to my head but I can’t simply erase my feelings…” She trails off as her eyes widen in comprehension. “Is that another reason why you gave me your gun tonight? Was this your messed-up Santiago way of trying to redress the balance of our first encounter?”

“No, my angel,” I say grimly. “That was me giving you the chance to reap vengeance for my part in your brother’s death.”

I curse myself a thousand times over as I watch her beautiful eyes refill with tears. I’ve just reminded her of what a monster I am, of what terrible things I’ve done.

We’re going round in circles.

Dropping my arms, I head for the closet to select a fresh pair of jeans and a clean shirt. She follows me out of the bathroom and stands behind me. I can feel her gaze flickering over my wounds as I attempt to shrug into my jeans one handed, grimacing as the action jolts my bad shoulder.

“Jesus fucking Christ.”

“Here, let me help you.” She bends down to guide my feet into the material as I lean against the nearest wall, feeling dizzy suddenly. Damn, this pain is intense… Joseph’s already sent for our medical team.

“What happened to you in Colombia?” she asks quietly.

“We were ambushed.”

“Did you lose many men?”

I pause. “Some.”

I’m playing fast and loose with the truth again. In reality 99% of my army has been obliterated. Every single man that I sent to New York and Florida was rounded up and pumped full of bullets, and Sanders is still off the grid. Fuck knows what Emilio’s done with him. If I wasn’t so damn tired my rage would be irrepressible but with my shoulder banged up like this my revenge is on a temporary hiatus.

“How bad is the damage to your compound?”

“Outhouses are still burning. Sector six is destroyed.”

Millions of dollars of firepower stolen.

“Are those the barracks? Is that where you made the co–?”

“There’s no production here, our processing plants are elsewhere” I snap, irritated by the note of hope in her voice. This is one discussion I’m not prepared to have. I trust her not to reveal my identity but beyond that is a grey area. She detests my business and I feel the battle in her constantly. Her feelings for me have caused a ripple affect with everything she holds dear – her family, her job, her future…

“I’m going to resign from the paper.” She sounds reluctant but accepting. “We’re quite the conflict of interest, aren’t we? The cartel boss and the investigative reporter… I can’t give up writing, though. I’d miss it too much.”

“I wouldn’t want you to.” I lean over and briefly catch her lips with my own. Writing is part of her identity, her strength. “Just focus on another criminal for a change. I hear Wall Street’s full of them.”

She doesn’t smile. It’s like she hasn’t even heard me.

“I need justice for my brother, Dante.”

Those words. They’re wounding me in ways I never thought possible. Once again my past has chucked a bucket of water over whatever fragile portrait of a future we might have shared.

“Shall I turn myself into the DEA, FBI or CIA, or is this a citizen’s arrest?” I drawl, shrugging into my shirtsleeves with difficulty. She reaches out to help tug the hemline across my abs. At the same time I catch her staring. “It’s quite a dilemma isn’t it, my angel?” I add, my voice softening. “We’re all about the lust and the hate and that fine line you dance in-between.

“There’s a huge part of me that will never forgive you for what you did, Dante. I miss him everyday.”

I don’t answer. I can’t. I hate seeing the hurt reflected in her eyes, and the knowledge that I caused it grazes deeper than any bullet.

I reach out and punch a number into the safe in the wall with far more force than necessary. Picking up the gun there I slide it into the waistband of my jeans. “If we get through this, my angel, I promise to spend the rest of our lives making it up to you.”

“There’s only one thing that will make this better, Dante.”

She doesn’t need to elaborate. I know what she’s implying. What did she label my affliction again, an unquenchable bloodlust? Sounds about right. Whatever the fuck it is, it isn’t going away anytime soon.

“Get dressed. We need to go.”

She drops her towel and bends down to pick up her bra and top from the floor. I can feel myself growing hard again.

“What happens after I’m gone?”

I drink myself into a stupor before I commence my bloody retaliation.

I force a grim smile. “The less you know about that the better.”

She pauses. “Because you don’t trust me?”

“No, mi alma, quite the opposite.” My expression relaxes as I tug her back into my arms and nuzzle the top of her sweet-smelling hair. “It’s because I don’t trust myself.”

Exiting the bunker through the main house is too risky. The fires are out now but the joists have warped and the roof has partially collapsed in on itself. It’s going to take months to rebuild. Until then I’ve instructed Joseph to quietly source and purchase another fortress – a private island in the Pacific – to serve as a base whilst we set about planning our counter-attack.

There’s another reason too. All the men that I left here to protect Eve have been mutilated and dumped in a bloody pile on my driveway, all except Manuel. Every single one of these men have earned my thanks and abiding respect. Their families will be exceptionally well compensated for. No one talked. Not one of them let slip the location of my secret bunker despite hours of torture. My men fought and died like fucking soldiers.

“This way.” My hand tightens around Eve’s as I drag her along the tunnel towards a second concealed entrance near the beach. I can feel her wincing at my grip but I daren’t loosen it, not for a second. Her touch is the only thing that’s stopping my darkness from overwhelming me. I can’t reflect on what my brother did to my men, not here in the presence of my angel. I punch another code into the wall. The door slides back and we’re both blinded by the sun’s harsh glare. The sound of waves crashing against the rocks is acting as some sort of conduit for us as we stand there waiting for our eyes to adjust.

“I know this place,” she says in surprise, blinking and looking around. “We’re next to the beach by the house. You had men stationed her.”

Not anymore.

Joseph steps into view. He’s been waiting for us. He nods briefly at Eve and I watch her eyeing up his nasty head wound.

“Medics are here. Everything else is arranged.”

I nod at him. “Good. Let’s get to the aircraft. We’ll discuss more then.”

With our hands still locked together, Eve and I move in single-file along the narrow path that cuts straight through the vegetation towards the landing strip. Joseph is bringing up the rear. I’m careful to keep the house and Emilio’s parting gift out of view at all times. The stench of death and smoke is still ripe in the air and the palm trees either side of us are charred and smoldering. My brother meant to destroy everything of mine before he panicked and ran.

Somehow he received word that we’d escaped Colombia, though I’m fucked if I know how. We killed all of his men and left his mansion burning. We’ve effectively razed each other to ground. Now we’re locked in a deadly race to see who can rise from the ashes first. Did he align himself with our enemies to pull this off? How long has he been plotting my downfall? This isn’t just about business. I can see that now. He meant to hit me harder, and that’s why he came for Eve.

“Oh my god, the horses!” I can feel Eve tugging on my hand as she yanks me to a reluctant stop. “Are they ok? Did you manage to save them?”

I catch Joseph’s eye over her shoulder. If what my brother did to my men was bad then what he did to my horses was unimaginable. I shake my head.

She looks stunned. “Can we just double-check? They might have escaped to another…”

“They’re dead, my angel.” I keep my tone as neutral as possible, though I’m raging on the inside. I watch her beautiful face skip through a whole range of human emotions, from shock and disbelief until finally settling on anger.

“I see,” she says tightly. “More innocents caught up in the crossfire. When the hell will you people ever learn?” She goes to push past me but I grab her by the arm and spin her back around.

“Calm yourself, Eve. There’s nothing we could have done for them.”

“You should have left them alone. You never should have bought them here!”

She goes to push past me again and this time I let her, even though it sends red-hot pokers through my shoulder blade. I deserve the pain. I know she’s not referring to the horses anymore, and the worst thing is she’s right. If I’d carried on walking past that liquor store I never would have given Emilio the ammunition he was seeking. None of this would be happening.

“Don’t say a fucking word,” I snarl at Joseph.

“I wouldn’t dare,” he says mildly but he’s giving me the benefit of his coldest, most unflinching of gazes. “How’s the shoulder?”

Nothing escapes his attention. I know he saw me flinching just now.

“Hurts like a bitch.”

“You want morphine?”

I shake my head as I watch Eve draw further and further away. Her head is down, her slim shoulders hunched over. She’s fucking furious with me. He follows my gaze and his lips start to curve.

“If I didn’t think you’d kick my ass I’d say she was growing on me.”

“I will, so keep your damn mouth shut!”

“Fair enough,” he sighs, and true to his word he doesn’t speak again until we reach the landing strip.

Eve heads straight for the aircraft steps without so much as a backward glance at me. Tomas is hovering nearby and his eyes flicker to mine for instruction. I shake my head. Let her go. If she liked the damn horses so much I’ll buy her a dozen new ones. Everything is expendable and replaceable in this game.

Everything except Eve.

“We have a location on Sanders,” he announces coming over to join us.

I go very still. “Since when?”

“A couple of hours ago.”

Anger rises up from the pit of my stomach. I hate being kept in the dark, even for a minute. “Why the hell are you only telling me this now?”

“You were ‘otherwise engaged’,” Joseph murmurs tactfully and I turn to glare at him. That deadeye shit of his is getting on my nerves today. He’s dangerously close to a smirk as well. He better wind that in before my fist connects with his face.

“So, Sanders isn’t decomposing in a body bag,” I say coldly.

“On the contrary, he’s in Thailand. He was spooked after Colombia, sensed something was about to go down. He’s been laying low. We intercepted a coded message from him this morning. I’ve arranged transfer to a safe house of ours in Singapore. As soon as Tomas delivers Miss Miller back to Miami he’ll fly straight there and pick him up.”

I glance over at the aircraft where Eve’s pale face is glaring down at me from one of the cabin windows. I remember Rick’s warning in Colombia. Something about beautiful women and starting wars…

“Is he on our side?”

“I believe so.”

I savor a quick moment of satisfaction. I knew Sanders would never betray me. He’s got the connections to help us rebuild our army and firepower too.

“Get me an ETA on the other aircraft,” I say to Tomas as I turn towards the steps. “I want it landing here within the hour. Anything salvageable goes onboard with us.”

Tomas nods at me. “Sure thing jefe.”

I find Eve at the back of the plane chatting to Manuel. Jesus, if I was mad before then I just hit a new detonation button. She keeps her face turned away from me on purpose, barely flickering as I prowl up the aisle towards them. Manuel’s not so restrained. He glances up and his handsome face pales beneath his bruises.

“Leave us.”

“Yes señor.” He scrabbles to his feet immediately.

“Hang on a second, Manuel.” Eve places her hand on his arm and I nearly explode. “You don’t have to go because of him.”

“No señorita, I really do.” He backs away from her like she’s covered in anthrax.

“He saved my life, Dante,” she says angrily once he disappears outside. “Can’t you tone down the irrational jealousy act for a minute and be a little appreciative?”

“I’m appreciative of no man who gets to spend time with you, mi alma,” I growl. “No one except me.”

“Stop. Just stop.”

Her head flops back against the leather seat as if she doesn’t have the strength to deal with my unreasonable behaviour anymore. A knot of disquiet settles in my stomach. Is my angel tiring of me already?

“How long until we’re airborne?”

There’s a pause. “I’m not coming with you, Eve.”

“What do you mean?” Her blue sapphires turn to fix on me as I swing my body into the spare seat next to her, taking care not to jar my shoulder.

“My path lies to the east. Away from you.”

“But I thought we’d travel this part of the journey together?”

My fears evaporate when I see the devastation on her face. She’s trying hard to conceal it but the color spreading across her high, slanting cheekbones tells me otherwise. My angel always blushes when she’s struggling to get a hold on her emotions.

“I guess this is goodbye then,” she mutters.

I force a grim smile to my lips. “It will never be goodbye between us, Eve. You know that.” I lean over and press my lips against hers, closing my eyes as I do, breathing in her sweet, unique scent. That knot of disquiet from earlier is now moving up to my throat. Her fingers are on the back of my neck, her lightest touch enticing me even closer until I’m pivoting the whole of my upper body. I press my chest tightly against hers, pinioning her to her seat.

“Thank you,” she whispers pulling away, the breath of her words lacing my upper jaw.

“For what exactly?” I frown. “Holding a gun to your head, causing you and your family untold pain or kidnapping you twice?”

There’s a pause. “For bringing me back to life.”

And fuck if those aren’t the sweetest words I’ve ever heard.

“I gave up everything when Ryan died. I cocooned myself away from love, from danger, from anything that might cause me pain. I barely existed. I know I can’t live like that anymore. You’ve opened my eyes to that, Dante. You’ve taken so much from me but you’ve given me so much in return.”

My hand drops to the armrest of my seat, my fingers convulsing around the soft leather. “Hold fast to that thought in the upcoming weeks and months,” I say roughly. “I’m the only one who can open them wider.”

“Is that so?” She rolls her eyes at my possessiveness and I surge forward again, catching her chin between my thumb and forefinger and wrenching upwards.

“Careful, my angel. Your acts of defiance will only lead me to bending you over this seat and taking you again. I don’t care how sore you are.”

“And yet here I am still fully clothed?” she taunts softly. “I better brush up on my disobedience skills before we meet again.”

I lick my lips and gaze down at the only woman I see; the only woman who holds all the cards with me and the only one who ever will. “Really, Eve? Is that how you want to play it?”

God, I love corrupting my angel.

I love feeling her body ripple with desire beneath my touch.

“I’ll play any game you want me to, Dante,” she breathes, her pupils dilating with lust. “And I’ll love every dirty, filthy minute of it.”

Both my lips and my cock start to twitch simultaneously.

“Then I look forward to doling out your punishment.”

She grins at me and I feel myself sliding like an avalanche, all the way down to an unknown destination. My cock is straining against the inside of my pants now. I want nothing more than to climb inside her and fuck her raw for the second time today. Instead, I’m left tussling between my hunger and my conscience again. If I truly cared for her I’d let her return to America and never resume contact, but I’m too selfish a man to make that sacrifice.

I let go of her chin and run a finger down the smooth plane of her cheek. So soft and innocent… Mine, I think savagely.

“As much as I applaud this newly reacquired lust for life, Eve, I need you to stay out of trouble. Keep my knife close to your heart. You’ll be under surveillance all hours of the day and night. If Emilio so much as breathes your way–”

“I guess that means no dates then.” Her grin widens and I resolve to make it my life’s mission to screw more sparkle into her eyes like that.

“Not unless you want their deaths on your conscience.”

We stare at each other, a single moment frozen in time. Our faces are barely inches apart as I soak up every dimple and curve. I’m fighting all my instincts to let her go. It might be months, years, before we see each other again but there won’t be a second when I won’t be thinking about her; silently worshipping her from afar; fucking her over and over in my dreams.

I need to leave her now. I need to do what I have to, for however long it takes. I need to make her safe again, I owe her family that much.

Exhaling loudly, I lean over and trail a final line of kisses from one corner of her mouth to the other and then I force myself to pull away. I’m hollow with grief when I do, though. I’ll be a husk of a man without her. Eve Miller, with all her angelic light and strength, has gone and staked a claim over whatever blackened ashes were left of my heart.

I rise to my feet and walk swiftly towards the exit, my emotions in a state of riotous flux. Before I disembark I can’t help looking back at her one last time. My resolve nearly crumbles when I see my own anguish mirrored back to me on her perfect face. It’s a sight that both kills and cures me a thousand times over. I did this. I took her, I made her desire me and now I’m cutting her free.

It’s this decision that will torment me during the long, lonely months ahead.