chapter 3

DANTE

rapping one thick arm around her waist, I pull her from her father’s office, ignoring her tears and small whimpers. There will be many more in the following days.

“ You don’t want me... ”

Her words ring in my ear. Oh, how wrong she is. I more than want her … in fact, I’ve wanted her for a very long time. Years. And now, I finally have her and her father exactly where I want them. I’ve been watching, waiting, planning to take Vance down for the last five years. The moment he killed my mother, taking from me the one and only person who ever mattered, I’ve been plotting his downfall.

It wasn’t until Lilian Vance’s funeral that I knew exactly how I was going to get my revenge. Vance fell off the wagon after his wife’s death, his gambling problem multiplying into the millions. He thought he had time to pay his debts, he was comfortable and being comfortable left you vulnerable.

He didn’t have shit now—nothing but her.

Now, I finally have her, my prize. My Serena. A dark raven-haired beauty that would soon become my wife. As if she can hear me thinking her name, she shoves at my arm, her nails sinking into the flesh as she struggles to get away from me.

Oh, Serena, there is no getting away now.

Releasing her for a fraction of a second, I grab her by the waist and lift her up, tossing her over my shoulder with ease. The nightgown she’s wearing rides up with the movement, giving me a side view of her perfectly shaped ass and a glimpse of her satin panties that hide her virgin pussy. That too will soon be mine.

Aleksei, my second in command and the closest thing I have to a friend, walks ahead of me while Enzo, one of my best and most brutal enforcers, covers my back. We can’t be too careful in this place. I did just steal Vance’s daughter, after all. And a contract won’t matter if I’m dead.

I carry her all the way out to the car while she spends the entire time pounding her little fists against my back. She doesn’t actually think she has a chance of escaping me, does she?

When we reach the sleek black SUV, Aleksei opens the door. Turning around, his eyes fall on Serena, who is still struggling like a cat on my shoulder, her ass cheeks jiggling beside my face. Rage fills my veins, and I forget for a moment that Aleksei is my ally.

“Look at her again, and I’ll gouge your fucking eyes out.”

Most men cower in fear when I make a threat like that because everyone knows that when I make a threat, it’s not just a threat, it’s a promise. Aleksei is not most men, though, he takes in my words and

gives me a respectful nod. If I didn’t know him better, I could have sworn his lips twitched up into a smile.

Fucker.

I put her down on her feet but grab her arm before she can make a run for it. Her feistiness only makes me want her more. She covers her chest with her free arm, trying to hide her tits covered only by the thin material. She’s beautifully naive, and the fact that she’s even trying to maintain an ounce of modesty in this situation proves that.

I give her a quick once over. Her soft shapely legs that I picture wrapped around my waist are on full display, her small body shaking like a leaf either from cold or fear … maybe both. She’s short, shorter than I remember her being, and fragile, so very breakable. My gaze moves over her delicate throat, which bobs as she swallows.

Her heart-shaped face is red, and her green eyes are puffy from crying. That raven hair of hers is a tangled damp mess. Still, she is the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. Beautiful and all-fucking- mine.

“Get in,” I order.

She merely shakes her head. I stare down at her, knowing full well I’ll never be able to hurt her like I’ve hurt others who disobey me, she is the only person who will ever have my mercy. Though there are other ways of disciplining her.

Pinching her chin gently between two fingers, I force her not only to hear the words I’m saying but also for her to see me speak them.

“Do it, or I do it for you, and believe me, you don’t want me to do it.”

Her emerald eyes widen with fear, and she must be able to hear the threat in my voice because her body starts shaking furiously. Pulling away, she reluctantly climbs into the car, sliding across the backseat, going to the spot furthest away. There is ample room between us, and I decide to let her have this small space, giving her a sense of control since I just took most of that away from her. I should probably feel bad about how I ripped her from her father’s hands, uprooted her without warning from the only home she’s ever known.

A good man would feel terrible, but the truth is I’m too selfish to feel any remorse. All I feel is a sense of accomplishment. I’ve waited for a long time, watching as the Vance family struggled to stay afloat.

“Where are we going?” Serena surprises me with her meek voice, and I look over at her. She’s all doe eyes and innocence. Breaking her will be a crushing blow to her father.