Taken by a Sinner (Sinners 1)

I crawl over the mattress until I reach her, take hold of her jaw again, and turn her face to me. I press a kiss to her mouth, my teeth tugging at her bottom lip before I let go. “Good night, wife.”

She lets out a disgruntled sound and tugs the covers up past her shoulder. “Sweet dreams,” she taunts me, earning a slap to her ass from me.

Climbing off the bed, I leave the room to turn off all the lights. I stop in the living room and turn on the TV, selecting the security footage screen. Making sure all the guards are at their stations, I switch off everything before heading back upstairs.

When I walk into the bedroom and see Tess safely in my bed, the corner of my mouth lifts. Tomorrow she’ll fight me again when she learns her group of guards just tripled.

Slipping my arms beneath Tess, I lift her up.

“What the hell, Nikolas!”

“Shhh.” I set her down on the right side so I’ll be between her and the door, should something happen.

Tess seems to realize this as I lie down on the spot her body warmed.

“You could’ve just told me to move,” she mumbles, but I don’t miss how her eyes soften, the anger no longer as potent.

I lift my arm, giving her a pointed look. Even though she narrows her eyes, she still scoots closer to snuggle against my side. When her cheek rests on my chest, I press my mouth to her hair and close my eyes.

God, don’t let my actions of today place her life in danger. I hope I did the right thing and that the safest place for Tess is by my side.

Chapter 26

Tess

“You’ll be escorted by eleven guards. Three in the same SUV as you, four stationed in front of you, and four at your back.” Nikolas lifts his eyes to me, pausing where he’s securing a cufflink. “Do you understand, Theresa?”

“Why so many?” I ask before biting into a slice of toast.

“Because you’ve just become target number one to my enemies,” he mutters, fixing his jacket.

Slipping off the stool, I walk to him and straighten his tie. “Do you ever not wear a suit?”

“Yes, when I’m fucking you or sleeping.”

Letting out a huff, I shake my head. “How many enemies do you have?”

Nikolas lifts his hand to my chin, and instead of his touch being forceful as he nudges my face up, it’s tender. “Right now, I’m at war with the Sicilians.”

Crap, right. He mentioned that the other day.

His features tighten with concern. “Only leave the penthouse when you really have to.”

This is a side of Nikolas I haven’t seen before. Him concerned about me.

His eyes dart over my face. “Don’t defy me on this. The Sicilians have already killed thirteen of my men. They will try to get to you.”

Holy shit. Fear slithers into my chest because if it’s one thing I know, the mafia doesn’t screw around when they’re at war.

My tongue darts out, nervously wetting my lips. “Then why did you marry me? Why not let me go with Christos like you wanted at first?”

“Because I’m selfish,” he admits, much to my surprise. When he lowers his head and his mouth takes mine, I don’t hold back. I might not get along with the man, but I sure as hell desire him.

Lifting my hands to his jaw, pleasure fills me when he deepens the kiss. Nikolas wraps an arm around me, then I’m tugged hard against his body, my toes barely touching the floor.

My fingers slip into his hair, the passion between us igniting a fire that never seems to quite die out. There are always embers, ready to be stoked by the slightest provocation.

Nikolas breaks the kiss, and I moan, not wanting him to go to work but stay in bed with me. Not that I’ll ever admit that out loud to him.

“Order the clothes online,” he instructs, handing me a black credit card. Giving me a no-nonsense look, he adds, “And stay home.”

Home.

It’s going to take a while before I can think of the penthouse as home.

When I don’t reply, Nikolas’ features tighten with warning. “Tell me you understand, Theresa.”

“Yeah, okay. I hear you.”

He shakes his head at me before walking to the counter. I watch as he drinks half my coffee and steals the rest of my toast, then he heads to the elevator. “I’ll be back for lunch.” Before the doors shut behind him, Nikolas winks at me as he bites into my breakfast.

As soon as I’m alone, I allow myself to smile because as much as I want to hate Nikolas, the past twenty-four hours haven’t been absolute hell.

On the contrary, it’s been the opposite.

Staring at my laptop’s screen where clothes are on display, I don’t take in any of the items. My thoughts revolve around Nikolas and everything that happened in the past twenty-four hours.