Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
ONE MONTH LATER
Ariana
Things with Luca and me never got better. He stayed away from me, as I did from him. As soon as I obtained my attorney license, he had me move down one floor into a spacious office with some junior associates. It was for the best. The less I had to see him, the better off I was. He got Vi to confess on the stand for killing Mrs. Michaels. He broke her, just like he said he would. In the interim, I met a man one night about three weeks ago at a bar when I was with Olivia and Harry. He was cute, and his name was Jimmy. He stood about six feet tall, had short blond hair, green eyes, and a medium build. He was there celebrating his sister’s birthday with the family when we accidentally bumped into each other, trying to push our way through the crowd to get to the bathroom. He apologized. I apologized. We ended up talking, and I thought he was nice. He bought me a drink, I gave him my number, and we went out a few times. A movie, dinner, the bar. Yeah. He was a really nice, uncomplicated guy who worked for a cement company.
I craved normalcy, and Jimmy was normal. Olivia told me that he was a rebound from Luca and that I was using him to overcome my hurt feelings. She also pulled the “I told you so” card where Luca was concerned.
It was a Saturday night, and Jimmy took me to dinner at Del Posto. As soon as we were seated, I excused myself to the restroom.
“I need to use the restroom. I’ll be right back.” I smiled.
“Shall I order you a glass of wine?”
“Yes. Please,” I replied.
When I was finished, I headed back to my table and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw who was sitting at the table next to us. I swallowed hard and ran back to the restroom's hallway. Standing against the wall, I tried calming my rapidly beating heart. Of all the restaurants in New York City, why did he have to choose this one tonight? I took in a deep breath and thought about texting Jimmy and telling him I wasn’t feeling well so I left. But that wasn’t fair to him, and it had become apparent to me that all I did was run when I didn’t want to face certain situations. So, I pulled up my big girl panties and strolled over to my table.
“Ariana?” Luca cocked his head as I sat down.
“Luca. What a surprise.” I smiled.
He glared at me and then over at poor Jimmy.
“Jimmy, this is my boss, Luca Russo. Luca, this is Jimmy.”
“Nice to meet you, Luca. Ariana has told me a lot about you.” He smiled as he held out his hand.
“I’m sure she has.” His eye narrowed at me. “Grandfather, I would like you to meet Ariana. Ariana, this is my grandfather, Franco Russo.”
“Ah, so this is the beautiful and highly intelligent Ariana Williams.” Franco smiled as he took my hand and pressed his lips against it.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Russo.”
“Please, call me Franco,” he insisted.
“Have the two of you ordered yet?” Luca asked.
“No. I was waiting for Ariana to return from the restroom,” Jimmy replied.
“Then you must join us.”
The sick feeling in my stomach intensified.
“That’s okay. We don’t want to intrude on your dinner,” I spoke.
“Nonsense. You wouldn’t be intruding at all.” Luca’s brow raised.
The four of us ended up having dinner together, and I had to sit there and watch Jimmy be put on trial. Luca asked him all kinds of questions: How we met. When we met. How long had we been seeing each other. What he did for a living. The only question he didn’t ask was if we’d had sex. But I knew damn well he was thinking about it. Once dinner was over, Jimmy drove me home. He wanted to come up, but I politely thanked him for dinner with a kiss on his cheek.
“I’m really tired, and I think I might be coming down with something,” I lied.
He placed his hands on my shoulders. “Get some rest, and I hope you feel better.”
“Thank you. I will.”
I pushed the button to the elevator and waited for it to open. What an exhausting night. Dinner was awkward and draining, something I never wanted to experience again. The doors opened, and I stepped inside and pushed the button to my floor. As they began to close, a hand stopped them, and Luca was standing there when they reopened.
“What are you doing?” I asked with irritation.
He stepped inside the elevator and stood next to me.
“Did you fuck him?” he asked in a stern voice.
“That’s none of your business!”
“The hell it isn’t.”
He grabbed me and pushed me up against the wall, smashing his mouth into mine. I was taken aback and wanted to fight him off, but his lips on mine again felt too good. When the elevator reached my floor, the doors opened, he broke our kiss, grabbed hold of my hand, and led me to my apartment. Neither one of us spoke a word. My heart was pounding out of my chest, and I didn’t know what to expect once we reached my apartment.
“How dare you,” I spoke as I stuck the key into the lock. “You had no right to do that.”
“I didn’t see you fighting me off,” he whispered, kissing the side of my neck from behind.
Shit. I shouldn’t have, but I wanted him. I hadn’t had sex since we last saw each other, and I craved it. I craved him. It was wrong, and I knew it. It would only make things more complicated. But my body was on fire, and the ache down below needed to be soothed. The minute I opened the door, he followed me inside and shut it. Taking off my shoes, I turned around and looked at him. My breath hitched. He placed his hands on each side of my face and brushed his lips against mine. Not soft or gentle, but rough, like in the elevator. He was hungry, and he wanted to devour me. Our kiss was wild, almost as if we couldn’t get enough of each other, like two animals in heat. His fingers reached down to the bottom of my shirt as he lifted it over my head and tossed it to the floor. His mouth instantly swept over my cleavage as he unhooked my bra and then took each hardened peak in his mouth.
He picked me up and carried me into the bedroom, threw me on the bed, and hovered over me still fully clothed. His tongue slid across my neck and then back down to my breasts while his hand went up my skirt, pushing my panties to the side and plunging his finger inside me. I gasped at the feeling as he manipulated me in every way he knew how.
“Before we go any further, I need to know. Did you fuck him?” He stared into my eyes with his fingers still inside me.
“No,” I whispered. “I didn’t.”
His mouth once again smashed into mine as he hit the right spot, sending my body into an intense orgasm. He climbed off me, pulled down my skirt and panties, spread my legs wide, and devoured me down below. His tongue. God, how I missed it. When he finished, he stood up, slipped off his clothes, hovered over me, and brought my arms above my head while thrusting me rapidly. One stroke and he was buried so deep, I could feel every thick inch of him. He pushed in and out, kissed my lips, and held my wrists with a tight grip. It hurt, but it turned me on. After a few hard thrusts, he turned me over on my stomach and took me from behind, our moans syncing together from the ecstasy we both felt. His mouth kissed my bare back while his hand reached around from the side, and his fingers pressed against my clit. I couldn’t take anymore as my body geared up for another orgasm.
“Come for me. I need this from you, Ariana,” he spoke breathlessly.
My panting was out of control as I came for him. His thrusting went from fast to slow with smooth long strokes as he groaned and came inside me. His body dropped on mine, and our fingers interlaced. His lips pressed against my shoulder as he tried to regain his breath, and I lay there, not regretting what had just happened. Come tomorrow. It might be a different story.
He climbed off me and stood up. Walking over to the other side of the bed, he pulled the covers back and looked at me. He was staying, and I didn’t know what to say. I stood up, did the same, and climbed in next to him, cuddling against his body and laying my head on his chest.
“Why did you come here, Luca?” I asked.
“I don’t want you seeing him again,” he spoke, totally dodging my question.
“That isn’t up to you.”
“I don’t like him. He isn’t good enough for you.”
“And neither are you,” I spoke.
“I know.” He sat up, forcing me to lift my head.
I sat up, holding the sheet against me, and faced him.
“You barely spoke to me in a month. Only when you had to regarding a case. Then you see me out with someone else and think you can just come at me like you did?”
A smirk crossed his face. “I didn’t hear you complaining. All I heard and felt was pure pleasure from you.”
“Doesn’t matter.” I looked down. “What we did was wrong.”
“But it felt right. Didn’t it?”
I couldn’t answer him because if I did, then it made everything I felt for him true.
“Why haven’t you slept with him?” he asked.
“I don’t know.”
He lifted my chin with his finger, and I looked straight into his eyes.
“Because you aren’t really into him. You claim you don’t like me, yet you let me fuck you.”
“I never said I didn’t like you.”
“You said we couldn’t be friends,” he spoke. “But here I am, lying in your bed instead of Jimmy.”
“Why are you doing this?”
“I don’t know.” He looked away.
“This can’t happen again.” I got up and slipped on my robe. “You told me that you’re not the man I think you are, so tell me who you really are.” I turned and looked at him.
“I can’t and I won’t. I don’t discuss that with anyone. Why don’t you tell me what happened with your family?”
“No.” I walked out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.
He followed behind me, wearing nothing but his pants.
“You have your secrets, and I have mine. Tell me how you’re any different than I am.”
“I suppose I’m not.” I placed my hands firmly on the kitchen counter.
“I should get going,” he spoke.
“Yeah. I think you should.”
“I wish I could be the man you want me to be, Ariana. I’ve done things that I’m not proud of, and I’m doing this to protect you.” He walked away and into the bedroom.
“What do you mean ‘to protect’ me?” I followed him.
“It doesn’t matter.” He slipped on his shirt. “I won’t bother you again, and I’m sorry for tonight.” He grabbed his shoes and walked towards the door.
I was confused, and I needed answers. He placed his hand on the door handle.
“If you walk out that door, I quit the firm, and I don’t ever want to see you again.”
He looked down and softly spoke, “I’m sorry you feel that way, but it’s probably for the best. I accept your resignation and will give you nothing but the upmost recommendations to anywhere you go.”
“Fine.”
He opened the door and walked out while I stood there shaking, my eyes filling with tears. I went into the bedroom and ripped all the sheets off my bed in a fit of rage. The anger that filled me was out of control as I threw my lamp against the wall and fell to the ground, where I cried myself to sleep.