Shattered Crown: A Dark Mafia Age Gap Romance (Kozlov Empire Book 4)

I’m so close, so very close. I’m not sure what kind of punishment this is—death by a thousand near-orgasms—but I’m not against it. Not when Maxim can make me feel so good. His tongue, his fingers, even watching him bob up and down between my legs, his mouth slick with my wetness… It’s perfect. It’s perfect, and I’m so close, and… Oh, shit, I’m going to⁠—

Nothing. Because Maxim pulled away from me.

“No.” I thrash about. “No, no, no! Maxim…” My hoarse voice betrays how desperate I am. “I need to come.” I’m sure my eyes are blazing with fire as I look down at Maxim, still between my legs, his mouth glazed.

He’s panting hard, and he looks as pained as I feel. “This is your punishment. Do you know what edging is?”

My lust-addled brain takes a moment to process his words. “Like … orgasm denial?”

“Something like that.” He blows on my overly sensitive clit, and I release a little whimper.

“That’s cruel!” I argue.

He chuckles at that. “Consider it a lesson. I warned you, Kira. But you didn’t listen. Next time, you will.”

I stare down at him in horror.

With that, he goes back to laving me softly. A slow build-up. He doesn’t use his fingers this time—he drags his hot tongue from my clit to my opening and back again. Usually, it wouldn’t be enough to take me over the edge, but I’m so damn sensitive right now. It’s like anything can set me off. But as soon as I come close to the edge, he pulls away and starts the process all over again.

My God, this man is going to be the death of me.

He does it again and again until I am a shaking, sobbing mess. Even when he’s just fucking me with his tongue, no clit stimulation, I’m still seconds from coming. And it’s so damn much. Too much. I can’t hear, I can’t think, can’t feel anything beyond the blinding haze of lust.

As if Maxim knows exactly what he’s done to me, he crawls over my body and kisses away the tears that pepper my face. “Shhh, my lastochka. You did so well. I’m going to reward you now.”

His tongue finds its way into my mouth as he kisses away all my hurts. His mouth is covered in my juice, and I find the taste of us together intoxicating. The flavor of Maxim is deep, rich, and smoky with my own sweetness layered in.

I’m not even fully aware of what’s happening when he undoes the belt that binds my wrist and then moves on to untie each of my legs. I’m still in a daze as he stands beside the bed and strips off his pants, followed by his boxer briefs.

My breath catches in my throat as I drink him in. Because damn, the view of Maxim naked is edging in its own right. His body is cut and powerful, like a work of art, honed in the boxing ring. My gaze travels down his form, from the solid muscles of his biceps, over the defined ridges of his abs, and finally rests on his impressive cock hanging heavily between his legs.

My mouth goes dry. His cock is glorious. Big and perfectly angled with an upward curve. And it’s all for me.

Aware of my burning stare, he gives me a sly grin and lowers his hand to his cock, giving it a few lazy pumps, precum glistening on the head. It’s so damn sexy I release a whimper.

“Is this what you need, wife?”

I nod furiously, fearful he’s going to edge me some more. I couldn’t take it if he did. I’d self-destruct.

Sensing my desperation, he joins me on the bed. He plants a single kiss on my lips, then positions himself sitting up against the headboard, lacing his fingers together, his head resting back in his hands.

“Use my cock, baby. It’s yours. You’ve earned full control for being such a good girl.”

I straddle his thighs, our mouths coming together. My nerve endings come alive as his hands drift over my skin, which seems to be everywhere all at once.

“No touching,” I whisper. “I’m in control now.”

The ghost of his earlier touch still pulses between my legs. I lift hips so my pussy rubs against his length, from the base to the tip. He lets out a strangled groan.

I grin. “You’re not the only one who knows how to tease, husband.”

He wears a smug expression, his hands tucked behind his head. “Is that so?”

I circle my hips, suspended over him for a few interminable seconds. Even though I’m dying to lower myself onto his thick length, I want to torture him like he tortured me.

“Taste me,” I breathe, presenting my breasts to his mouth.

His eyes flash with heat before he leans in and takes a nipple into his mouth, tugging on the tip and sucking it deeper. I whimper, unable to keep my eyes open as the sensation of his lips sends a fiery pulse low in my belly. Blood rushes to my head. I feel delirious with want. No, need.

I can feel how soaked I am as I continue to grind on him, rolling my ass over the ridge of his hard-as-steel cock, covering him in my juices. I’m panting, but I refuse to take him inside of me before giving him a taste of his own medicine.

“Kira,” Maxim growls in warning. He’s holding his jaw tight like it’s costing him everything to hold back.

“It’s only fair,” I rasp.

I circle my hips once more and then freeze, realizing my pussy is hovering over his tip.

Our eyes lock, tension thick, as I lower an inch, his head pressing at my entrance. He snarls, his breathing ragged and deep, each inhale and exhale pronounced as he looks up at me with a fierce glare.

I can’t take it anymore. I need Maxim inside of me like I need my next breath.

Lowering myself, the crown of his dick breaches my entrance. As I sink down further, I’m deliciously stretched, the feeling so intense that my nails dig into his shoulders once I’m fully seated. He brushes the hair out of my face as I slowly lift and descend on his shaft, getting used to the stretch. My mouth opens in a silent cry, and he uses the opportunity to slide his tongue between my lips.

Just like that, I’m lost in the fullness and intensity, the feverish sensation dancing and flaring within my veins. This feels like nothing in my past, nothing I could have ever imagined. I don’t know if it’s because of the weeks of simmering sexual tension or if his dick is really that good, but I’m lost to the feeling of him inside of me. Filling me to the brim while he kneads my tits and sucks at my neck.

I had no idea sex could feel like this. All-consuming, a combustive mix of explosives.

His mouth is my weakness. Warm and inviting, his tongue dances with mine, flicking and teasing in ways that leave me breathless. Rising onto my knees, I press my body tightly to his. I pant, winding my arms around his neck to pull him as close as possible. I like this position for that very reason. He groans and grabs a handful of my ass, squeezing my cheeks and forcing me down harder and faster on his cock.

So much for me being in control. He’s possessive, using me like a fuck toy, and it’s everything I never knew I wanted. But holy moly, it is what I want.

“God, Kira. Your pussy is as hot and perfect as I knew it would be. It was made for me.” He slaps my ass with no mercy and pulls my hair.

The delicious bite of pain liquefies every nerve inside of me. I’m already teetering on the edge, my orgasm building so hot and fast after Maxim edged me to my breaking point. And now, as I writhe on his hard length, my control is a hairpin away from snapping.

“I am so close,” I pant into his mouth.

His voice is a rough tumble as it vibrates against my skin. “Yes, lastochka, that’s it. This cock is all yours.”

His lips travel down to the base of my throat, and he nips the skin before sliding a rough hand between us, his fingers circling my clit with expert precision. Pleasure rushes to my core like a tidal wave, and I scream—yes, scream—against his neck as I let go entirely. It’s the hardest orgasm of my life.

“Good girl. You gripped me so tight, and now I’m going to spray your pussy’s walls with my cum.”

His body tenses as he roars into my neck, and liquid heat fills my insides.

My eyes close as I will this moment to stretch. Both of us are still. Maxim’s face is pressed into the crook of my neck, and my fingers rake through his thick hair. It feels right. Us together, how he’s holding me so tight against his chest as we float down from the clouds.

When I finally lift myself off his lap, his seed spills down my legs. I shuffle over, needing to clean myself up in the bathroom, but Maxim stops me with a hand on my hip.

“Maxim,” I plead. I gesture down to my body. Naked and dripping with his cum.

“Wait.” He reaches out and swipes a finger along the inner seam of my thighs, coated with his release. “Open,” he commands.

I do as he asks, our combined tastes mingling on my tongue. There’s no denying we taste good together.

“I didn’t have the pleasure yet of watching you choke on my cock and lap up my cum, but trust me, that will happen soon.”

A frisson of excitement works through me. The idea of being on my knees for him makes the thought of giving a blow-job more erotic than I imagined. “I’ll hold you to that,” I promise.

Making my way to the bathroom, the pressing realization that I’m not on birth control hits me. He released a flood of cum inside of me. It’s not like I was in my right mind. When he brought me to the edge continuously like that, all rational thought was swept away.

Wiping the dampness between my legs, I do the rough math in my head. I’m on day seventeen of my cycle. Not totally in the clear, but my periods are super regular, and it’s far enough from ovulation that I think I’m alright. Since I won’t be fertile for another month, maybe I can keep on enjoying Maxim bare, for as long as we’re together.

Except … Maxim doesn’t want me to get on the pill. He wants me to bear his heirs. Or at least, that’s what he wanted not too long ago. I have no idea where we stand now.

Maxim is sprawled on his back, head under his hands, as I come back to the bedroom. His eyes track me as I approach the edge of the bed, not sure what we’re supposed to do now. Beyond the sex, I don’t know what we are. The past few days have been chaotic. I haven’t had a chance to overthink, but now… I bite my bottom lip.

Maxim grins at me. “What’s on your mind? I can practically see the gears turning.”

His large hand encircles my wrist, drawing me towards him until I collapse against his chest. His powerful arms wrap around me, holding me close. I tilt my head up to look at him, drinking in his distinct profile in the dim light. He might not have aristocratic blood, but his features are regal. Sharp nose, chiseled cheekbones, lips that curl just right.

“What am I to you?” I ask.

He shakes his head, locking eyes with me. ‘You’re my wife.’

“Yes, but we both know it’s not real. Or forever.”

His expression hardens. “While you wear my ring, we are as real as it gets.”

“While I wear your ring?” I tuck a stand of hair behind my ears, not understanding why this conversation feels so fraught. “What exactly is the time frame we’re looking at?”

The soft sound of Maxim’s sigh travels through his chest. “You married me to avenge your aunt’s death, and I married you to distract the press and keep Alyona in my world, however misguided that seems to me now. But after that…” He drifts off.

“But after that, we go our separate ways?”

He pauses, blows out a heavy breath. “I tried marriage once. It’s not an experience I’d like to repeat.” He shifts to get a better look at me. “We still need to find your aunt’s killer, and I’m at war with the Black Company—you’re still needed by my side.”

“Good. Great,” I say with forced enthusiasm. I smile and soften against him, allowing my head to fall into the crook of his neck so I don’t have to look him in the eyes as a weight settles over my heart.

I should be thrilled that he’s helping me find Masha’s killers and then allowing me to get on with my life, but for some reason, it feels like a lead ball in the pit of my stomach.