Page 107 of Savage Ambition

My silence had stretched too long. I lowered my head. “As you say, Father.”

“You would do well to remember what happens when you displease me, boy. I have ways of hurting you that you can’t fathom. And speaking of hurting you.” Salvatore’s gaze traveled down my naked body, stopping at the crescent of teeth marks on my inner thigh. His touch was light at first, almost curious, before his nail dug into the tender flesh. “Your Italian seems to think he has special privileges.”

I locked my knees to keep from flinching as he picked at one of the small scabs, fresh pain blooming. “The client requested it to sell the possessive encounter.” It was foolish of me to assume Salvatore hadn’t noticed the bite mark on my skin after days without him bringing it up. He always waited until the right moment.

“Bullshit.” He pressed harder, breaking open another scab to draw blood. “Lorenzo knows better. Tell me why I shouldn’t pull every one of his teeth from his pretty mouth in retribution.”

Terror hollowed out my chest, but I stayed steady. I appealed to Salvatore’s inner businessman. “He brings in substantial revenue. The client satisfaction surveys rate him second only to me. When he’s hired for his good looks, damaging him would hurt the quarterly profits.”

“Always thinking of the business. But what about the principle?” His fingers moved higher, trailing up my thigh with invasive familiarity. “He took a bite of what belongs to me.”

He shifted his weight, forcing my legs wider as he pressed harder into the mark. The pain blurred with my body’s trained physical reaction to touch, regardless of consent. Shame burned through me as Salvatore noticed my involuntary hardening.

“At least your flesh remembers its true owner,” he murmured, his hand continuing its violation. “Despite Lorenzo’s attempts to stake his claim.”

It was clear he was setting a trap. Any defense of Renato would reveal too much, so I opted for what he wanted to hear. “He was careless. It holds no significance beyond that.”

“I should punish him for his transgression.” His fingers returned to the bruised skin, pressing until I couldn’t hide my wince. “Maybe I’ll take you in front of him, so he understands who owns you. Would you enjoy that? Having your Italian watch while I fuck the loyalty back into you?”

Bile rose in my throat. The word “no” wasn’t allowed to be part of my vocabulary when speaking to him, so I had to open myself up to the revolting possibility of enduring another “training” session with him. “Whatever you think is best, Father. My loyalty is to you alone. He means nothing.”

“If I ever suspect he means anything to you beyond a business asset, I’ll make you watch while I flay the skin from his body. One inch at a time. I’ll wreck that beautiful face of his, regardless of how it affects our revenue.”

When I said nothing, Salvatore brought his bloodied fingers to his mouth from where he had picked my scabs. He maintained eye contact as he sucked them clean, one by one. “You taste like fear,” he murmured in a tone that made my skin crawl. “It’s intoxicating. Almost as enjoyable as watching you pretend not to care.”

His hand cupped my face in a grotesque parody of parental affection. “Clean yourself up. Your next client arrives soon, and I want you pristine.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Afterward, warn Lorenzo about how I’ll break him if he disobeys again and marks what’s mine. Make him understand the consequences.”

“I will ensure he understands, Father. It won’t happen again.”

“That’s my boy.” With a condescending pat on the cheek, he left me alone with blood on my thigh and the ghost of his touch on my skin.

I exhaled slowly, my face a mask that betrayed no relief at his departure. The security cameras captured everything, and he’d undoubtedly reviewed the footage with predatory attention. Despite his parting shot, the lack of severe punishment troubled me. I had disobeyed his direct orders, assaulted a paying customer, risked him discovering I broke the rules by fucking outside of the brothel, and allowed Renato to mark what was Salvatore’s exclusive property. But there was no physical or psychological torture, not to mention his standard threats to revoke my visits with my younger brother.

In my private bathroom, I removed the remaining accessories of my drag persona. Under the scalding spray of the shower, I scrubbed my skin, trying to erase Jace’s touch and Salvatore’s lingering possessiveness.

The water hit the bite mark on my inner thigh, stinging where Salvatore had picked away the scabs. The pain sent an unexpected pulse of pleasure through me at the reminder of Renato. I pressed against the spot under the guise of cleaning it, savoring the sensation despite the fear and revulsion that still clung to me from Salvatore’s warning and touch.

I knew I should stop whatever was happening with Renato. Cut him off completely. Keep him at the same professional distance I maintained with everyone else. It was the only way to protect him.

But I refused to surrender him to Salvatore’s wrath. My determination to protect him matched my resolve to shield Shaw from harm.

The realization was terrifying. I owned nothing, not even my own body. Everything I had belonged to Salvatore, to be used or destroyed at his whim. My greed for the two men, my desperate need to claim something as mine, was more dangerous than anything I’d done before.

I hoped my next client was in the mood for a rough fuck. The rage, humiliation, and fear building inside me demanded release. An outlet awaited through hurting someone who paid for the privilege, allowing me to feel in control when Salvatore had reminded me how powerless I was.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

SHAW

Leaving Gennaro Corporation without confronting Jace was my only option. We had caused too many problems for one night and I wanted to get as far away from Salvatore as possible. The older man’s presence lingered like a bruise, but Jace remained the sharpest blade in my side.

I wandered the streets before returning to the apartment I shared with my uncle and cousin. Taking off my shoes in the entry alcove, I listened for my relatives. Silence answered. I slammed the door hard enough to rattle the hinges, following it with a string of curses that did nothing to calm the violence brewing inside me.

Hurried footsteps approached. I swore when Trent appeared.