Chapter 24
We made the trip back to the villa in silence, though I’m certain we were both lost in the same thoughts.
The sexual tension between us is so thick it could be cut with a knife.
Proof of that comes when the driver takes a sharp turn and our thighs brush. The jolt between us makes us lock eyes, as if struck by lightning.
When the driver finally parks, I dismiss him and step out to open her door.
I place my hand at the small of her back and feel her shiver at the contact. I don’t remove it; I want her to get used to me. She can stop me at any moment, and she knows it.
“Did you enjoy the evening?” I ask once we’re inside.
“Yes, but I thought you said the fun wasn’t over yet.”
I move closer, forcing her to look up at me. “You want to keep speaking in code?”
“Isn’t that what we’ve been doing all along?”
“No. I’ve made it very clear that I want you.”
“Why? Because I’m convenient?”
“Don’t diminish yourself like that. You’re a beautiful, intelligent woman with a fiery temper. Why wouldn’t I be attracted to you?”
“That’s not what I meant. I meant that, at the moment, I’m the most readily available.”
“I’m not the kind of man who chooses the easy route, Elodie. My cock doesn’t control me.”
I turn and start up the stairs.
“Going to bed already?”
“The other option would be to throw you over my shoulder like a caveman and carry you to my room.”
“What’s stopping you? Social rules?”
“Even though you’re lying to yourself by denying what we both want, I’ve never forced a woman. Every single one who’s been in my bed made the choice to be there.”
“Really? And how many came to your house against their will?”
Suddenly, the conversation exhausts me. “Do you want to leave?”
“Would you let me?” she asks, doubtful.
“If that’s what you want, yes.”
I’ve just reached the conclusion that I’m done playing the jailer. There will be another way to get to Angelo.
“You can’t be serious,” she says, her voice tinged with insecurity.
“I never bluff, Elodie. What time do you want to leave tomorrow?”
“I. . .”
Her gaze drops to my tie as if it’s the most fascinating thing in the world.
As for me, even though it pisses me the hell off that a woman can have this much power over me, I can’t look away from her beautiful face.
“I can arrange for the plane to take you anywhere you want. I’ll call the pilot, and he’ll be here by tomorrow afternoon at the latest.”
“I don’t have documents.”
I walk past her, heading toward my office.
I know she’s following me and watching as I unlock the safe and pull out an envelope.
I hold it out to her.
“Everything you need is in here. They’re not your real documents, but you can use them to get back to the United States and then apply for official replacements. After that, you can go find your sister.” I pause. “The most important thing is that you’ll no longer be my prisoner.”
She makes no move to take it.
“You said you would protect me.”
Jesus, this woman can make my blood boil, and this time, it’s not just lust.
“I gave you my word, and I’ll keep it if that’s what you want.
But I won’t feed into your fantasy that you’re here against your will.
I didn’t give you a choice when I brought you here, and I admit I did it for my own reasons.
But I could have kept you in Europe, far away, without you being under my roof. ”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Because from the moment I laid eyes on you, I wanted you.”
That finally seems to unsettle her.
“What do you mean, ‘from the moment you laid eyes on me?’”
“The man who took you from the Sicilians was wearing a hidden camera that day. Yes, I ordered him to offer whatever it took to buy you, because I wanted to use you as a weapon against Angelo. But the second your face appeared on that screen, it stopped being about revenge. It became about this feeling between us. A visceral hunger for you.”
Our eyes are locked, the powerful pull of mutual desire making the air in the office thin, almost impossible to breathe, as though someone is rationing the oxygen.
I notice a vein pulsing in her neck, and my own body isn’t in much better shape.
I feel like I’ve been forged from pure steel.
“Say it again.”
“What?”
“Swear to me that even if I dive headfirst into this madness, if I’m brave enough to give in to what every cell of my body craves, I’m free to walk away at any moment.”
I hate hearing the insecurity in her voice. I like her defiant.
I close the distance between us, pulling her against me by the waist.
“Don’t you see yet? The freedom you crave, no one can give it to you or take it away.” I place my hand over her heart. “It’s right here, my Romani girl. You were born free. You’ll always be free.”
“Gianni. . .”
Her moan of surrender shatters any hope of self-control.
I can feel her hardened nipples through the thin fabric of her dress, rubbing against my chest in an involuntary provocation.
Her face is flushed with desire, and when I take her mouth, Elodie is scorching hot, like there’s a burning flame inside her.
There’s no more pretense, no disguising the hunger we share. She stumbles under the intensity of our devouring kiss.
I grip the firm flesh of her ass, making her whimper as she grinds against me.
With one arm, I lift her into my arms, and with the other, I sweep everything off my desk to the floor.
“I need to taste you,” I warn.
“Here?”
“There’s no one else in the house, amore.”
She nods, giving me her silent yes, and my cock strains against my zipper in anticipation.
I settle between her legs, my hands hiking up the long dress, my mouth devouring hers with savage hunger, but I force myself to pull back, to give her a chance to breathe.
Elodie is panting, licking her lips, which are swollen from my voracious assault.
My hands slide up the insides of her thighs, our eyes locked the entire time.
When I reach the damp silk covering her core, a guttural growl rips from my throat. “Jesus, Elodie!”
She’s soaked, and at the first touch of my hand, she moans sweetly.
I’m burning up. I don’t just want to fuck her—I want to consume her whole.
Every. Single. Inch.
I unzip the back of her dress and peel it over her head. Now this stunning woman is left wearing nothing but a tiny black thong.
The body I’d only imagined beneath her clothes is the kind that could bring a man to his knees in prayer.
The contrast of her impossibly narrow waist with hips that are not only curvy but also lush makes me desperate to taste them with my teeth and tongue.
Her breasts, full and perfectly proportioned to her delicate frame, her nipples wide and in a shade between pink and light brown, demand my mouth.
I kiss her again, cupping both breasts in my hands. They’re heavy with arousal, the peaks hardened into tight points of pleasure. When I roll her nipples between my thumbs, she nearly jumps off the desk.
I ease her back, leaving her sandals on, and place her feet on the edge of the desk.
I lower myself, inhaling her intoxicating scent before pressing my lips to the fabric still covering her.
I lick her through the thin material, savoring her sweetness even through the silk.
I slide her panties down slowly, and she props herself up on her elbows to watch me.
I get lost in those trusting eyes. I want them always on me. I will never allow her to stop looking at me this way.
My thoughts are chaotic, tangled, possessive, but I don’t care about making sense right now.
I want chaos.
I want to lose myself inside her.