On Your Knees

“I can make you scream,” he whispered, “without fucking you, Val.” Then his tongue flicked against her ear before he sucked it into his mouth, wet and hot, his hips pressing harder into her, making her legs tighten instinctively around his waist. ******* "In his world, you kneel for one of two things—to beg for mercy… or to beg for more.” Five years ago, Valerie Ledford let a stranger kiss her like no man ever had. It was supposed to be one reckless night, a dare to savor before marrying into one of the most powerful crime families in New York. And she thought she’d left it behind her. Until now. On the eve of taking over her fiancé’s billion-dollar real estate empire, Valerie meets the company’s newest hire: Maximilian Cardini. The same man who once pinned her to a wall and made her question everything. He is as dangerous to her composure as he was that night. But Max isn’t just an irresistible employee. He has secrets—dark ones, rooted deep in the underground world Valerie is about to marry into. And while she doesn’t know it yet, Max has no intention of playing nice.