I arch my back. “Stefan…”
He grabs both breasts in his greedy hands and uses them to pull me harder onto his cock. A slapping noise is heard as our bodies jar together. He’s right. I am soaking. I don’t think I’ve ever been this turned on, this wet. His thighs are slick with my wetness, coating the backs of my own thighs in my mess.
Releasing me, Stefan grips the headboard in one hand and I hear it creak under the force of his grip. He slides his other hand where our bodies meet and touches the base of his cock as he slides it in out and of me.
“Fuck. That’s a tight fit,” he rasps, changing his strokes from quick and fast to slow and torturous.
He touches me. He touches himself, exploring the way we fit together. He flicks the pad of his thumb over my clit, applying the perfect amount of pressure. My orgasm crests and Stefan curses. The feel of me squeezing him sends him over the edge. He moans, and it’s deep and rumbly in his chest, and he goes for it. He thrusts.
And thrusts.
And thrusts.
Fucking me harder than I’ve ever been fucked.
“Yes, yes!” I slam into my orgasm like a sledgehammer to dry wall.
The contractions in my pussy are almost painful as my legs shudder and shake. I try to close my thighs, but Stefan pins his hips hard against mine, forcing them to stay. He continues to thrust, pounding into me relentlessly. I feel the tension in his body as he fights to hold on for a few more strokes, but I want him to feel as good as he made me feel. I want his muscles to feel lazy, like mine do. I spread my thighs as wide as I can and grip his muscular ass in my small hands. I pull him into me, arching my back.
“Come inside me,” I beg, and it’s met with a low growl.
He lowers his body flush against mine and tangles his fingers in my hair. It isn’t until he presses his lips to mine that he finds his own release and spills inside of me with loud, uneven groans and violent jerks from his cock.
I hold him close, dragging the tips of my fingers along his damp back as he buries his face into my neck and pants, desperate to catch his breath. Eventually, he lifts his head and I see something in his stare that sends dread hurling through my stomach.
“Don’t tell me you regret that,” I say, swallowing hard.
“I want to…” His volcanic gaze flicks to my lips. “I should…but I don’t.”
It strikes me then, that it’s not regret I see in the dark depths of his hypnotising eyes. It’s worry…and that’s even scarier than regret. What does he know that I don’t?
Stefan slips from my body with a quiver and takes my hand. I go with him, allowing him to tug me from the bed and escort me through his dimly lit bedroom and into the bathroom. I stand in the middle of the room, awkwardly holding my arms against my chest while Stefan pulls open the shower door and turns the shower on. The sound of water as it spills from the head and crashes against the tiles fills my ears. I can’t wait to get underneath it and wash away the stickiness between my legs.
To my surprise, Stefan turns on a dim white wall light by the mirror instead of the bright ones above us. It brightens the space well enough for me to see the room, but not nearly enough to shower efficiently. He takes my hand again and tugs me toward the shower.
“Why that light?” I ask, curious.
He smiles at me over his shoulder. “I’ll show you.”
We enter the shower and Stefan lets me under the hot streams first.
“Close your eyes.”
I do as I’m told. I tilt my head back, letting the water cascade down the length of my hair, and sigh. I see. Showering in this light is almost tranquil. I feel his body brush against the front of mine then and I straighten my head, meeting his stare. He soaps up his hands and the sweet, berry smell wafts into my nostrils, warming my chest.
“See what I mean?”
Opening my eyes, I nod. “I don’t ever want to get out.”
Stefan reaches above me and pushes the head of the shower away. Cool air clings to my skin, raising goosebumps in its wake.
“Turn around.”
Pulling my hair over one shoulder, I turn on the spot and immediately feel his wet, naked body against my back. My lungs shrink, lessening the air I’m able to hold inside them.
“Aren’t you afraid of slipping over?” I ask as he soaps me up with his large hands.
“No.”
I smile. “It must be nice not being afraid of anything.”
I hang my head, watching the bubbles circle the drain. I have never felt so taken care of in my life and it’s from someone I barely know. I can’t help but feel like…maybe…Stefan is the one I’m meant for. Is that crazy? Am I being crazy?
“I’m afraid of you.” He glides his soapy hands around my waist. They drift easily across my stomach and then up underneath my breasts.
“Of me?” I frown, turning my head. “Why are you afraid of me?”
Stefan lowers his mouth to my ear. “I’m afraid of what you do to me.”
“And what do I do to you?”
“You make me reckless.” He flicks his tongue along the shell of my ear and I gasp as he slides his hands between my legs. “You consume my thoughts and warp them completely. You make me think that the most important thing in my life is to get between your delicious thighs.”
I close my eyes and let my head loll back against his shoulder as he cleans himself from my creases. Touching my ass is his hard erection. It twitches every now and then whenever he sinks his finger inside me, and it occurs to me that I’ve yet to see his penis. I turn around, grabbing Stefan low on his hips. In the light, I can see his face and my heart constricts. He is the most beautiful human being I’ve ever seen. He has this constant angry look to him and it sets fire to my blood. I’ve always loved angry looking men. I don’t know why. There’s something about their fiery glares that just speak to me.
I rake my stare down his large, masculine body to the rigid cock pointing up at me. It’s big. Much bigger than I expected. Much bigger than what I’m used to.
If Christiano could see this…his masculinity would deflate like a balloon with a pinhole in it.
I step forward, pressing Stefan against the glass. Unable to help myself, I slide the palm of my hand along the underside of his shaft, and he sucks air between his teeth.
“I just wanted to see it,” I say over the roar of the shower.
“And? What do you think?”
“I’m not much of an oral sex lover.” I lift myself onto the tips of my toes and plant a soft kiss on his lips. “But I really, desperately, want to put your cock in my mouth.”
Groaning, he flexes against me and I can’t tell if he wants me to do it, or if he’s trying to talk himself out of it. Stefan looks at me, really looks at me, and I see the intensity in his face change from lust to concern.
“As much as I would love that, I think we both need to get some sleep.”
The second the ‘s’ word leaves his lips I feel it in my eyelids. I could definitely go for some sleep. I stroke his penis a few times, contemplating my next move. I guess we have all day to explore each other more thoroughly. He kisses me roughly before slipping out from underneath me to wash himself in the water. Intrigued, I watch him. It’s funny watching an imposing man like Stefan do something so normal like washing his hair.
I leave the shower while he scrubs down his body and dry myself with one of the six towels on the rack. The air is cold, forcing my nipples to harden to maximum point as I leave the bathroom. I bypass Stefan’s bed and head for the door. With a heavy yawn, I leave his bedroom and trot down the hall to my room. Seemingly in a daze, I throw on a tee and climb into my bed. It’s not as inviting as his, but it does the job.
I close my eyes, only to reopen them—what feels like—a second later. I’m weightless as Stefan scoops me up into his arms and carries me out of my room.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, swiping at my face.
“Sleep with me.”
I don’t protest, mostly beca
use whatever I say he’ll ignore…and also because his bed is way comfier than mine.
Stefan lays me down on his bed and climbs in next to me. I notice, as he pulls the blankets up and over me, that he’s changed the sheets. They’re no longer satin, but cotton instead.
I roll onto my side and he slides up behind me.
Naked.
It’s hard to focus on sleep when he’s holding me so tightly against his body. I shuffle minutely and it’s enough to stir his cock from its slumber. Even over the whoosh of the ceiling fan, I hear Stefan curse.
I glance over my shoulder with a chuckle. “You’re insatiable.”
“I can’t sleep like this.” He groans, gliding his hands up my shirt. “I don’t know what has gotten into me.”
I turn my body to face him and he drags his teeth along my collarbone, his palm sliding along my thigh.
“Open your legs,” he demands, tensing his entire body.
I’ve never seen a man want it so desperately. Never in my life. My blood warms under my skin at the thought of Stefan needing me the way he claims to need me.
I want to spread my legs. I want to let him back into my body for a second time, but we’ve spent so much time as it is. What if he has to work tonight? The thought of him doing that drive on so little sleep is scary.
I squeeze my legs shut. “You need sleep.”
Grunting, he snatches me in his large hands and lifts me with ease before dropping me onto his body. I’m straddling his hips, my bare pussy pressing against his abdomen.
“I’ll sleep when I have nothing left to give you,” he says, his hands flying to my ass.
I’m wet again. I know because I can feel it slicken his skin underneath me. Exhaling, I lean forward and he pulls me open, lifting me high enough for him to press his cock against my entrance. I shift my hips and his entire body tightens.
He pushes me onto him and we part our lips in unison as our bodies are reunited once more. Pressing my hands against his chest, I rest my forehead against his, asking him a silent question. What are we doing, Stefan?
His silent response is deafeningly loud to me.
I don’t know.
Chapter Fifteen
∞ Stefan Valentino ∞
She sleeps for most of the day. I try to sleep, but sharing my bed is an adjustment I’m struggling with. Cammie sleeps like an animal, constantly tossing and turning. Do all women sleep so…vigorously? I can’t attest. I’ve never shared a bed with a woman.
I roll onto my back, turning my head to look at Cammie. Moretti wants me to take her back to Christiano. Apparently, the Scorpions have gained a lot of momentum and the Russos have been too busy dealing with the Morettis to keep them in check. A rookie mistake, really. The Russos can’t take the Scorpions down alone.
I had to sit through dinner with Marco, Christiano, and Franco last night. Christiano watched me with angry eyes the whole time. He smelled like expensive cologne and whiskey—a smell I imagine Cammie would be familiar with. The mere thought was enough to turn my stomach and I had to fight with my inner demons not to stab him in the throat with my fork. I could have. I could have killed them all and went home.
I don’t know why Franco Moretti insists I join him for these things. I’m an independent contractor and I filled my last contract, but he demands I see this through until the end. Since he’s my best client, I don’t push it. I could bail. I could go back to America and forget all about the Russos and Cammie Connors, the feisty doctor from Sydney, Australia…but I can’t bring myself to throw her to the wolves.
I reach out and swipe the lock of caramel hair out of Cammie’s face. According to the story Moretti told the Russos, I’m risking my life on their behalf to retrieve Cammie from the Scorpions today and will have her picked up on Moretti’s doorstep by midnight tonight. I was trying to convince myself to do it the whole drive home late last night. I just…I don’t know if I can.
Buzzzzzz. Buzzzzz.
I snap my head toward my bedside table and grab at my cell phone. I hit the answer button before checking the caller I.D. Fuck.
“Yeah?” I push myself onto my elbows and the sliver of cotton sheet that I had covering my lower half is tugged from my body by Cammie, who rolls over with a heavy exhale.
“It’s lunch,” Moretti snaps. “Where have you been, Stefan?”
“I’ve been busy. What do you want?”
“You left abruptly during our dinner last night. I want to know where we stand after our discussion.”
“I don’t know where we stand.”
“You better figure it out. The Russos are expecting her at midnight. You have two options. You either bring her in or you kill her and push the blame onto the Scorpions.”
I grit my teeth. There’s only so much we can dump on the Scorpions before the truth becomes painfully obvious, and then what? I sure as hell am not going to be here when the shit hits the fan.
“Can I call you later?”
“No.” The malicious tone of his voice tightens the muscles around my spine. “Are you with me or against me, Valentino?”
I swing my legs over the edge of the bed and stand up, raking my fingers through my hair.
“You just expect me to just hand her over? A month later?”
I bend low and reach for my sweatpants.
“She’s not yours, Stefan,” Moretti snaps as I slip into my pants. “They’re trading a lot of their territory for our assistance.”
“And they’ll take it back the second the Scorpions aren’t in the picture. Have you forgotten who brutally murdered your wife, Moretti?”
I storm from the room.
“Of course I haven’t forgotten!” he bites out. “You owe me to finish this. We can rule Sydney with what they’re giving us and then crush them under the weight of their mistake.”
“I don’t give a shit about Sydney.” I stalk through the house and into the kitchen. I shove the fruit bowl across the bench and grab the packet of cigarettes underneath.
The dead silence through the earpiece sends dread hurtling through my stomach. I exit the house, putting a cigarette between my lips. My dogs circle my feet before dropping against the cool stone.
“Non capisco…” I don’t understand. Then it hits him. “You fucked her, didn’t you?” He speaks through gritted teeth. He’s furious. Of course he is. He warned me not to do it. He told me not to get attached on the off chance that we could use her.
Like now.
If it makes him feel any better, I tried very fucking hard not to have sex with her. Hell, I massaged her naked back and listened to her gentle moans and didn’t try anything. It was fucking torture, but I got through it and I would have made it another day without having her if she hadn’t barged into my room and forced herself on me. It’s not my fault she wanted me and it’s not my fault I gave in. She had her tits out, and she was straddling me, feeling so incredibly warm against my thighs. Throw her at any man and see if they last as long as I did. I guarantee they wouldn’t.
“You idiot! You better pray Christiano doesn’t find out.” He curses and spits, throwing things around his room. “I threw at least ten girls at you last night and you denied them all, and for what? Another man’s whore?”
Pursing my lips, I pluck my lighter from my packet and light the cigarette. I step over my dogs and saunter to the other side of the porch. I have to remind myself that killing Moretti is bad for business. I take a draw of the cigarette and it flows into my lungs. They expand and tingle as I hold it for a brief moment before blowing it out with a sigh.
Relief.
“What I do in my spare time is none of your business,” I tell him, flicking the butt of the cigarette, making ash drop to the floor.
“It does if you’re screwing with my plans!”
I hear my dog’s claws against the stone as they rush to their feet. I turn around just as Cammie closes the door behind her, her back pressed against the glass. My heart stutters in my chest at the sight of her wearing
one of my shirts. The fabric doesn’t cling to the slopes and curves of her feminine body and her hair is messy, but she still looks incredible. She looks down at Romeo and Juliet, her whiskey eyes wide and fearful as they lick at her ankles.
“Okay,” she says, her voice a few octaves higher than normal. “Okay. Okay. Hello.”
I whistle and they run over to me.
“Stefan? Are you listening to me?” Moretti demands and I ignore him.
“Go,” I tell the dogs and they run off of the porch. “I’ll call you back in five minutes.”
“Stefan! Don’t you dare—”
I hang up on Moretti, slipping my phone into the pocket of my sweatpants. I don’t know what the fuck I’m going to do. Say I do help Moretti get what he wants. What happens when the two families start fighting each other again? Cammie will be on the opposing side to me and, if Franco Moretti doesn’t go for her first, she’ll definitely be caught in the crossfire. How can I carry that on my shoulders?
Nervously eyeing the dogs, Cammie saunters over to me. The closer she gets, the less worried she is about them until I am all she focuses on. There’s a glistening in her irises that I haven’t seen before and it makes something in my chest float. I’m not wearing my watch, but I don’t have to to know my heartrate is elevated. I can feel it. It thunders violently against my ribs and I hate it. I can’t take her back to him, but at the same time…I can’t share my life with her. It’s too dangerous.
“Smoking is bad for you, didn’t you know?”
I forgot I was even holding a cigarette. “Thanks for the advice, Doctor Connors.”
Smirking, she plucks the cigarette from my fingers and places it between her supple lips. She inhales, dragging the smoke into her lungs before blowing it out on an exhale.
“You’re so crisp, and clean, and perfect,” she says, holding it out for me to take. “I didn’t take you for a smoker.”
I shake my head as the drag I just took churns my stomach. She shrugs, taking another draw of the cigarette, tilting her head back.
My stare falls to her slender throat and I recall how many times I bit, kissed, and licked it last night. I was careful not to leave any marks just in case I decided to take her back.