I wordlessly stared down at the thick rope tied around my wrists. I slowly lifted my head before glaring at the man behind the steering wheel.
Ronan King.
Earlier, he spoke as if he knew who my father was. Still, I was conflicted as to why I've never heard about him.
Not a single gun was pulled out. I mean, he basically abducted me right in front of them. "Where are you taking me?" I finally broke the silence.
He didn't respond. He just kept his gaze locked on the road.
"At least tell me how long this training will take." I tried again.
"Thirty days." He blankly responded.
I scoffed in disbelief. "Do you have any idea what I could have accomplished within thirty days?"
"Please, enlighten me," he said, sarcasm dripping from his words.
"Never mind. I seem to be the only person looking for my dad's killer," I mumbled under my breath before sinking into the expensive leather seat.
"What do you plan on doing when you find him?" He curiously questioned.
"I'll make him my bitch before I kill him." I shot at him in a cold tone.
"You're weak."
"I don't have to be strong to put a bullet through somebody's skull. All I need is to pull the trigger." I snapped back at him, anger rising in my voice.
"You're gonna get yourself killed with that bullshit logic."
"What do you want from me?"
"I want your submission and obedience," he uttered, his voice was a low growl that vibrated through my chest.
The tone of his voice awakened something inside me, sent a throbbing sensation straight through my core. I snapped my legs shut and wondered what the hell was wrong with me.
"No. I refuse to submit to or obey you," I pointedly stated before running a hand through my hair.
The car came to an abrupt stop, and only then did I realize we were parked in front of a mansion.
In an instant, my car door was swung open. Ronan roughly grabbed my wrist before pulling me out of the car.
"Say that again," he dared me as his face was only inches away from mine.
I couldn't bring myself to say anything else. He was too distracting. He was so close I could see the dark circles around his irises and the light stubble on his jaw.
I shook my head in defiance, but the action suddenly felt so innocent in his presence.
"I figured you'd be a good girl," he whispered, his minty breath fanning my cheeks.
Before I could register what was happening, he roughly spun me around. His chest pressed against my back.
I shuddered as the peaks of my breasts pressed into the cold metal of his car, hardening at the sensation.
"You aren't here to be a princess. You're here to learn how to be a killer." His teeth grazed the sensitive skin on my neck, and a needy throb assaulted my core.
"Ronan..." I tried to argue, but my body betrayed me. My back arched as his knuckles roughly brushed over the pebbled peaks of my breasts.
"Stay still and let me play," he demanded before kicking my legs apart with his foot. Excitement built inside of me, I was soaking my panties, and he hadn't even touched me yet.
He pressed a brutal kiss to my neck, nipping at the skin with his teeth. I let out a soft whimper. He swallowed the sound as his rough tongue latched onto the sting he created. "I will be rough with you in so many ways, Princess."
"Please," I begged him.
"Please, what?"
"Please teach me how to become a killer," I whispered as our breaths mingled together.
He finally let me go, and I shuddered. My cheeks were burning. I was completely soaked for a man I didn't know.
"Good girl." He muttered before loosening the rope around my wrists.
He left my side without another word. I watched as he walked up to the front door of the house. I followed him with shaking legs.
This was wrong. I mean, I'm 21 years old. And well, he seems like he's the same age as my dad. An eighteen-year age gap is too much.
My body shouldn't be reacting to him like this.
His scent filled the air inside the house. Sandalwood and pine. He led me into a dimly lit office. He took a seat on a couch before gesturing for me to take the seat across from him.
I sat down before brushing a strand of hair behind my ear. "So. How is this going to work?" I asked, my voice strained from our previous encounter.
Ronan watched me for a beat too long, his thumb tracing his lower lip. "For the next thirty days, your life belongs to me. You eat when I tell you. You sleep when I tell you. And every time you fail a lesson..."
He paused before running his eyes over the mark he left on my neck.
"I take something away from you. Starting with your clothes."
His threat hung heavy in the air.
I carefully adjusted myself in my chair. "What happens if I refuse?"
He slid a manila folder across the coffee table.
My heart skipped a beat. I frowned at him before hesitantly reaching out to grab the folder. "What is this?" I carefully questioned.
"Read it," he advised coldly.
I opened it. My eyes blurred as I read my father's familiar handwriting at the bottom of a legal contract. But this wasn't just any contract. This was my father's will.
"This will has a contingency, Princess," Ronan uttered in a gravelly voice. "If you aren't ready to lead the Caruso family in thirty days, the assets don't go to you. They go to me."
My heart stopped. "And how do you get them?"
"By making our 'Training' arrangement permanent." He leaned forward, his gaze turning predatory as it remained locked on mine. "The contract says if you fail, you don't become a Boss. You become my wife."