After we get our credit cards from the bartender and he pays for everything, ignoring my offer to help, we step outside into the warm night air. It's July and the Midwest air has a humidness to it that matches the wetness currently happening between my thighs.
"My apartment is on the next block," he says and when I nod, he reaches for my hand. Our fingers lace together and it feels so damn right. Even though this man is still such a mystery to me, I'm so grateful he stepped in earlier and we met. He's kind, a gentleman and I'm dying to get to know him better. More intimately. When we arrive at his place, I'm not sure what to expect, but it's nice. Small, but upscale and, for whatever reason, it doesn't feel very lived in. As if he reads my thoughts, he says, "I've been staying with my family just outside the city, so I haven't been here in a month or so. Sorry about the dust." "It's fine." The place looks immaculate to me. Before I can ask about his family, he flips a lamp on and the look in his cobalt eyes reminds me of the bluest part of a flame. Hot and so very intense. Here we go. One night stand time. Gideon walks over and slides a hand through my hair. With a soft moan, I let my head fall back and he cradles my neck. He captures my mouth in a hot kiss that's demanding and full of passion. I do my best to keep but he's consuming me, and it's so delicious. The moment he pulls me against the hard length of his body and his hands slide over my ass, I let out a soft gasp. His mouth dips and he flicks his tongue along the shell of my ear. "Do you have any idea how glad I am that I went out tonight and met you?" I can't get the words out to tell him I feel the exact same way, so it comes out as a soft, needy moan instead. "I want to lose myself in you, Tee." I have no idea what that word means and right now, I don't care. Tightening my arms around his neck, pressing into his body, my core overheats. A desperate, unfamiliar feeling flows over me and I slide my fingers through his thick, dark hair, lightly scratching. "Do you want that?" he rasps, nipping and licking at my throat. I drop my head back, giving him better access, and moan softly. "Yes...please..." Then he's sweeping me up into his arms and carrying me down the hallway, presumably to his bedroom. A moment later, he sets me on the edge of his bed, and I watch, a little dazed, as he reaches back and pulls his shirt over his head in one smooth move. My gaze drops to check out his firm, muscled chest and rippling biceps that make my mouth instantly water. Oh, Holy Mary Mother of God. I release a shaky sigh, not sure what to do. Should I take off my shirt, too? Only thing is, I'm wearing a dress and once it's off, I'll only be left in a lace bra and matching thong. Pulling my lower lip into my mouth, I start to second-guess myself. What am I doing? Can I actually go through with this? My heart is pounding so hard. "I don't know what to do," I blurt out. Shit. Now I feel like a complete fool. Artless and naive. "What do you mean?" he asks, tilting his head, eyeing me closely. "I-I wasn't going to say anything, but...I don't want you to think..." My voice trails off and I squeeze my hands into fists. He steps closer, lifts my chin and forces me to look into his blazing blue eyes. "Don't want me to think what, Tee?" I swallow hard, gaze locked with his, and say, "You're going to be...my first, ah, lover." He seems to freeze and he's searching my eyes, as though looking for the truth. Then he begins breathing again and the corner of his mouth tilts up. "If you've chosen me for that honor, Tee, I'll make sure you aren't disappointed." Then he's pulling me up off the bed, drawing me against his body, and kissing me again. This time it feels tender and careful. Like he's easing me into what's to come. But I want the passion and flames again, so I run my tongue along his and bite his lip. "Don't hold back with me," I tell him. him. Trying not to be self-conscious, I stand up straighter and look right into his eyes, saying, "I want you to fuck me." One of his eyebrows shoot up, but he doesn't comment. Just begins unbuttoning his pants and then lowers the zipper. His jeans drop and he kicks them away. My mouth instantly goes dry when I take in his huge arousal straining behind a pair of black boxer briefs. He pushes me back on the bed and climbing over me. "I'm going to fuck you, Tee, but we're going to take our time. Make sure it's as good for you as it is for me, okay?" "Okay" I whisper. No point in arguing with that. "I'm going to make sure you're good and ready," he promises and starts kissing me again. I melt beneath him, sinking into the mattress, and savoring the feel of his lips moving against mine. His large hand curves over my breast and I arch up, filling his palm. He reaches inside the lace cup, freeing my flesh, and my nipple pebbles as his fingers circle and lightly pinch. Then his mouth closes over the taut nipple and I smother a cry. "You don't hold back either," he says, licking and sucking, carefully removing my bra. "If you want to scream then fucking scream. I want to know you like what I'm doing to you. That you're enjoying every touch, every kiss. Tell me, Tee." "Yes," I hiss, writhing beneath him. "Good girl," he murmurs, slowly kissing his way down my body. The moment he presses his warm lips over the top of my thong, I freeze. I look down and he hooks his fingers into the elastic and slowly tugs them down. Lying there beneath him, completely naked, my pulse thunders. He lowers his face and lightly blows on my core which I know is embarrassingly wet. I squeeze my eyes shut and when his tongue laps up my slit, my entire body trembles. Pushing my legs further apart, his mouth latches onto my pussy and I cry out, fingers digging into the bedspread. "Oh, God..." Then that wicked tongue of his begins swirling around my clit, slowly sucking it until my hips buck up off the mattress. His long finger slides inside me and I shamelessly push against his face as he continues sucking my throbbing clit. The pressure building has me gasping, trying to twist away, but he holds me firmly with his left hand, pinning my hips to the bed, working me until I'm shaking hard and crying out. "Almost there," he rasps between licks, finger thrusting in and out of my wet core. "C'mon, Tee, Come for me." Suddenly, I shatter, a scream tearing from my throat as the orgasm rips through me, leaving me breathless and floating in a sea of bliss. Choosing this man to be my first is officially the best decision I ever made in my life."Welcome to the family, Luca. Officially," Connor adds, his champagne flute extended, and we all chuckle. The toast makes my heart happy because for the first time, what's happening between our families is genuine.Looking down the table, I take a moment to soak in what I see—endless smiling faces and a fierce love that brings tears to my eyes. Except for Matthias, Anna and Giovanni, everyone is here and it's amazing.We're at the hotel, celebrating in the attached restaurant. My brothers sit with their wives and my two nephews are being held by their glowing mothers. Trish and Connor are incredible parents and I hope to follow in their footsteps one day. Same with Solana and Rylan who is healing up quite nicely and being fussed over constantly by his adoring wife. Roberto and Adeline will be having their own little one soon enough and the way he looks at her makes my heart tumble.My mother sits beside Harrison Shepherd who's been welcomed into our dysfunctional chaos with open arms.
The intensity of her sucking increases and even though I'm trying to be good and not blow, it's getting damn hard. "Fuck, Finley," I swear. It's all too much and the moment she hums and those little vibrations skate up my aching length, I grab her shoulders and pull her up."I wasn't done," she says with a frown.Fighting for control, a muscle flexes in my jaw as I turn her toward the tub and help her step inside. "I want to come inside that sweet pussy, baby girl. And you're going to take my cock deep inside you and ride it hard. Can you do that for me?"She licks her lips in answer and I nearly blow my wad.Lowering myself into the tub, I guide Finley down to straddle me, and rest my arms along the porcelain edges. She takes a moment to get situated then shifts forward, spreading her legs wider. I drop a hand into the warm water, grasp my throbbing cock and push at her entrance. "Take it all," I encourage her. "Every last inch."With a soft moan, Finley starts to sink down, her body
After losing the assholes enforcers, the drive back to the city is uneventful. And that's fine by me. I've had enough adventure to last a lifetime. From this point forward, all I want is to focus all of my attention on Finley and make her the happiest woman in the world. I know I have some more apologizing to do, but right now, I just want to make it up to her.And my plan is to start with multiple orgasms. Butter her up a little first then pour my heart out and beg for her forgiveness. Hopefully, it's a good plan.I've lost what little faith and trust I had in Matthias, so I tell Roberto to drop us off at the hotel where their mother is staying."But I want to stay with you," Finley murmurs softly. She's curled up on my lap and my mouth edges up."You will. Don't worry, I'm not letting you out of my sight. I just don't want to go back to the apartment my father gave us. I'll never trust him again and we'll get our own place soon, tesoro."When Roberto finally pulls the Jeep up to the
My knees give out and I drop down to the rooftop patio, shaking so hard. The sound of pounding boots fills the air and I immediately tense—until I see Luca. He sweeps out onto the terrace, pulls me up and I sag against him."Thank Christ," he murmurs, pressing a string of kisses against my temple. "C'mon, we need to go."We lace fingers and jog back through the storage room then down the three flights of steps."How did you get away? Where are my brothers? Rylan? Is he okay?" I manage to ask."We overpowered some enforcer scum," he tells me. "Rylan was grazed by a bullet, but he's okay, and your brothers are loading him up into the Jeep right now.""I-I killed him," I murmur, still feeling a little shell-shocked."Don't think about it," he says, sliding an arm around my shoulders and holding me close. "You did what you had to do."I send up a little prayer that Desmond's twisted body is lying on the side driveway and not here in the front because I don't ever want to see it again. Luc
Luca seems to be on the same page. "Do you really think you can get away with this?" he asks. "Matthias is coming for you and there isn't a soul more ruthless than him. He won't rest until you're no longer a threat.""He's right," I add. "Matthias will fight you until his last breath.""You think I'm scared of Matthias?" Desmond scoffs. "After I take care of you, he's next. I've already hired the hitman to take him out."Luca and I exchange a quick look. Is he telling the truth? I have no idea, but it's definitely possible. We need to get away from Desmond, but how? Suddenly, two huge enforcers appear and Desmond motions to us."Grab them," he orders.My heart sinks as I'm yanked away from Luca and the enforcer forces me to walk toward the house. I have no idea what Desmond is planning, but I'm really starting to worry about my brothers. Where are they?I find out the answer as soon as we enter the house. Connor and Roberto are each sitting in a chair, tied up, and it looks like they
My eyes snap open and I carefully move my arms and legs. All good, no breaks. I have no idea how I'm still in one piece and all I can do is thank my lucky stars. Then I call out for Luca."Luca..." Turning onto my side, I look for him, but my eyes are still trying to focus after being knocked silly. Coughing from the smoke, I struggle to pull myself up into a sitting position, squinting through the thick billows of ash and black clouds. Finally, I spot Luca a hundred or so feet away from me.He's lying on the grass and not moving."Oh, God, no." Is he hurt? Or worse? Heart in my throat, stomach dropping in dread, I pull myself to my feet and stumble over to him. Falling down beside him, I lay my hands on his chest and lean down. "Luca?"When he doesn't respond, everything in me sinks hard and fast. Panic sets in and my fingers curl, grabbing hold of his shirt and shaking. "Luca!" I hiss.This can't be happening. He came to rescue me, told me he loved me and would never leave me...and