Vicious Hearts

Vicious Hearts A Standalone Dark Romance Cara Bianchi Copyright © 2023 - Cara Bianchi Cover © 2023 - @covers_by_wonderland (Instagram) All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Trigger Warnings It’s my responsibility as an author to be clear about any possible triggers in this book. Your safety and mental health are very important, so please don’t read this story if you may be adversely affected by the following: - graphic and extensive descriptions of sexual acts, including the use of sex toys (consent is not discussed but stops short of being dub-con) - praise kink and sexually degrading language - sexually-charged physical violence, including slapping, spitting, pinching, spanking, biting, and the ‘hand necklace’ - genre-typical violence, specifically shooting and stabbing -Body mutilation. Brief and not graphic (aftermath rather than event) - child murder in the context of a serial killer. This is not graphically described but is a key plot element, so references are regular - peril involving a young child, both on the page and described. This does not include sexual or other abuse but may cause distress to some readers - abduction of an adult - suicide (aftermath depicted on the page) - mentions of pedophilia, child abuse, child murder, and human trafficking (not on the page or described in detail) - alcohol consumption depicted on the page - drug references (specifically heroin, amphetamines, LSD). Drug use is depicted on the page briefly in one instance - references to mental illness (specifically schizophrenia and bipolar) - discussion/depictions of narcissism, toxic empathy, gaslighting, emotional/psychological abuse A quick word on consent and safety in relationships: This book and the characters depicted herein are in no way intended to represent safe or healthy relationship dynamics, particularly how they handle their kinks. If you are interested in exploring any of the practices described in this story, please don’t use my book as a primer! I encourage you to do your own research and put your physical and psychological safety first. Thank you and be safe! This book is dedicated to all of you slutty good girls who want to be railed by a much older man. A man who praises and degrades you in equal measure and loves you like it’s his job. An honorable goes to Bosch, the company that brought us the Tassimo coffee maker. Without it, you would not be reading this. I would have died. Enjoy yourself, you horny creeps. I love you all. Cara xx Contents Prologue Chapter 1 Six months later… Roxy Chapter 2 The Dollmaker Chapter 3 Three days later… Ben Roxy Chapter 4 Twenty-four hours later… Roxy Ben Chapter 5 Roxy Ben Chapter 6 Roxy Ben Chapter 7 Roxy Ben Chapter 8 Roxy Chapter 9 Ben Roxy Chapter 10 Roxy Ben Chapter 11 The Dollmaker Chapter 12 Roxy Ben Chapter 13 Roxy Chapter 14 Ben Chapter 15 Roxy Chapter 16 Ben Roxy Chapter 17 Ben Roxy Chapter 18 The Dollmaker Chapter 19 Ben Chapter 20 Roxy Chapter 21 Roxy Ben Chapter 22 The Dollmaker Chapter 23 Roxy Ben Chapter 24 Ben Roxy Chapter 25 Ben Chapter 26 The Dollmaker Chapter 27 Roxy Ben Chapter 28 Roxy Ben Chapter 29 The Dollmaker Chapter 30 Roxy Ben Roxy Chapter 31 Twenty-four hours later… Ben Chapter 32 Six hours later… Roxy Chapter 33 One month later… Ben Roxy Epilogue Mailing List Also by Cara Bianchi Prologue Ben I'm losing my mind. The woman I’m obsessed with is inside the beach house next door. Alone. This week has been hell. I avoided Roxy whenever I could, but it’s fucking challenging to dodge someone at a wedding when there are only two guests—you and them. I thought this trip would be a pleasant change of scenery, but the tension was unbearable. Just being close to her does things to me. The newlyweds, Leo and Ali, flew home with their little daughter this afternoon. I booked an extra night at the resort, certain that Roxy would leave with them and I’d finally get some peace. But she stayed too, and I haven’t left my villa since I saw her walking past, toting a string bag of groceries. I stand at the open patio doors, watching as a flash of pink lightning splits the sky over the sea. Thunder rolls like a growl of judgment from above the clouds. Hawaii is paradise, then suddenly the heavens open, and you’re screwed. Although the torrent outside is deafening against the palm fronds, I’m comfortable here and dry as a bone. Vodka blurs the edges enough to keep me from losing my shit. The glass in my hand is ice cold, and I press it to my temple, trying to calm the throbbing there. I don’t hear the knock at first, but eventually, the insistent sound penetrates my thoughts. I go to the door and look through the spyhole. It’s Kai, the resort manager. When I open the door, I immediately realize something is amiss. “What’s up, buddy?” I ask. “I’m sorry, Mr. Benedikt.” Kai sighs and steps aside. Behind him stands Roxy, her suitcase in her hand. “Her roof has a bad leak. It’s flooding. We’re booked up, so I can’t offer this young lady another villa, but she tells me you are friends and are both leaving tomorrow. It doesn’t seem worth transferring her to another resort under the circumstances, and she assures me she will be okay with you?” I glance at Roxy. Her eyes are as wide and innocent as ever, the same pale blue, like a clear winter sky. Her blonde hair is fluffy and unkempt, flyaways framing her pretty face. My eyes slide back to Kai. “I told you I didn’t want to be disturbed, Kai. I distinctly remember telling you not to bother me with anything less than a world-ending