11. Luna
11
LUNA
I woke up with a startled gasp and looked around the room.
I… actually slept?
In Massimo’s arms. I blushed, thinking back to the memory.
Geez, way to keep up my guard around the man. I fell asleep in his arms. He could have done anything to me.
He could have done anything to me while I was awake. It wasn’t like I was much of a match for the man. I grimaced at the thought, my hand moving over to the space on the bed where Massimo had lain with me. It was cold. I doubted a man like him actually took midday naps. Hopefully, he’d left as soon as I had fallen asleep, although…
I didn’t want to think about that.
I shook my head and got out of bed. The sun was still shining brightly through the window, which told me I hadn’t slept for that long.
I wished I had slept longer because now that I was up, I didn’t know what to do with myself. Go back downstairs? What if I run into Lettie or Elena?
I didn’t even want to think about how that would go.
Or worse yet, what if I ran into Massimo?
But then… should I just stay in the room for the rest of the day?
That held no appeal either.
I hated how lost I was feeling now. That I was in a strange house I didn’t feel like I belonged in… like I would never belong in.
Before I could really make the decision, the door to the room opened. It wasn’t loud, but I still jumped, my heart pounding in my chest. I turned to see Massimo standing there, his expression neutral… or severe, depending on the angle.
Massimo De Luca wasn’t an easy man to read. Not at all, especially since I had been so adept at reading Andre’s expressions and those of the made men who frequented the house. But Massimo…
He was dangerous.
I quickly looked down at the blanket in front of me. He let out a small sigh, and it took everything in me not to flinch at the slight sound.
“Will you always be like this?” Massimo asked. His footsteps thudded over the hardwood floor as he walked. “Will you always be this meek, this shy?”
I didn’t know what to say to that. He had more of a choice than I did in picking a partner for marriage. Had he wanted someone confident, more outspoken—someone like Lina—he should have spoken up about that during the engagement dinner. Admittedly, I had half expected him to do so after meeting Lina and me for the first time.
“Will you always bring out the worst in me?” he asked, his voice a mere whisper. I wasn’t even sure if I had heard him correctly.
I frowned at him before I could think better of it. He smirked at the expression on my face, and I quickly tried not to show anything as he approached. He cupped my cheek. I thanked my lucky stars I didn’t flinch from the move.
His thumb pressed against my bottom lip, and I opened my mouth before I could think better of it. A dark look entered his eyes. He wore a similar expression on our wedding night. Just as he did before ridding me of my dress and…
I quickly shook away the thought.
“You make me want to do every unspeakable thing you can imagine and so much more, so much fucking worse than what you can imagine, just to preserve this fucking shyness of yours.”
What?
“Fuck me, Luna. But do you know what it does to me when you look like this?”
“Like what—” I gasped when he pressed his thumb inside my lips.
“Suck,” he commanded darkly.
I automatically sucked on his thumb. It never even crossed my mind not to obey him. Not only because I didn’t want to know what would happen if I didn’t obey but also because of the power and authority in his voice that demanded I just blindly follow.
His eyes darkened even more than usual.
“Fucking hell. Enough,” he said, pulling his thumb out and leaving me feeling… empty. Hell, why was I feeling like this? I rubbed my thighs together, and I hadn’t thought it was possible, but the look on Massimo’s face darkened further. “I’m not a man who gives into my emotions or primal urges.”
I believed him. He couldn’t have ruled over Las Vegas had that been the case. But why was he telling me this now? If he wanted to confuse me enough to give him an advantage in this marriage… he was succeeding.
I moved my gaze from his face and down to his body, but hell, it was just as intimidating. He was in workout clothes, sweat clinging to his tan skin. And he smelled amazing. How could he still smell amazing when he had obviously come back from a workout?
My mouth went dry, and he took a step away from me.
“I’m going to wash off.”
It wasn’t a question, nor was he looking for my permission or acknowledgment, but I still nodded. He turned and walked to the bathroom without another thought, leaving me to sit there, feeling even more lost than I felt when I woke up. Only now, there was another feeling that accompanied it. One I wasn’t sure of.
He left the bathroom door open a crack, and I stayed there and listened as the water turned on. Then, some rustling sound told me he was taking off his clothes.
My cheeks felt hot as I imagined him doing so, wondering why I was feeling like this.
My thoughts wandered to that night when I found Lina with the guard. She had been uninhabited in her actions… her passion.
There wasn’t a part of me that judged her for it, and had I had my parents’ love, I might have been brave enough to explore that part of myself.
I didn’t… because Mom had been adamant that Lina and I remain in the “best” condition possible to be a mafia wife, and Andre had warned me that he wouldn’t have any qualms about kicking me out if I embarrassed him and the Lombardi name.
I believed him.
Lina never received any similar warnings.
That also meant I had always done what was expected of me.
Perhaps I should have rebelled more. Done something with my life that wouldn’t have made me feel so… meaningless right now.
Now I wished I had the bravery to act on my thoughts and feelings with my husband.
Massimo terrified me as much as he intrigued me. I spent half the time he was present wishing he wouldn’t come any closer and the other half wondering what he would do if I were brave enough to just reach out and touch him.
And right now, the intrigue was winning.
Slowly, I climbed out of the bed and moved toward the bathroom door.
Steam pushed out through the cracks from the doorway, and I took in a hard swallow, inching closer.
There weren’t any curtains, just a glass door offering me the full view of his naked body, warm water raining down on him. His dark hair was slicked back, and his eyes were closed.
What was I doing?
Things could go very bad for me. I couldn’t even think about how Massimo would react. But I just couldn’t make myself move away. I looked inside and took in the brute physique of my husband. Admittedly, aside from the scars, Massimo was an attractive man. Nothing like the ruthless monster everyone made him out to be.
And he hadn’t done anything to me. He didn’t yell or shove me around. He wasn’t abusive. I should want more than just for my husband to not be abusive, but as far as things went for someone in my position, this was probably as good as it got.
A low groan coming from Massimo brought me out of my thoughts. It was so sudden that I was almost convinced I hadn’t heard it.
But then another groan came out.
This one was louder than the first, mixed with what sounded like a monstrous growl.
My breath caught, and I took him in. His arms moved lower on his body. I gasped when I realized what he was doing.
Luckily, the shower water drowned out any noise I might have made, as I could only stand there and watch as Massimo fisted his cock, stroking up and down the impressive length.
Even in my memory of our wedding night, he was so much more than I could have imagined.
But this…
This was something else entirely. His muscles pulled and strained from his movements, his face contorted in a way that made me think he was in pain, but that couldn’t be right.
He wasn’t in pain.
He was in the midst of pleasure.
What was he thinking about?
Almost as if he could hear my thoughts, his lips opened, and he gritted out a gravelly, “Luna.”
My heart beat loudly and harshly over the simple utterance of my name from his lips just as a low groan escaped and cum squirted out of him. I licked my lips as I watched; the urge to find out how he would taste hit me so strongly, my knees went weak.
I didn’t think. I ran out of there so fast that I couldn’t be sure if I’d made any noise or not.
I didn’t care. I barely saw anything in my surroundings as I got to the walk-in closet and grabbed the first thing my hands came across.
A pair of gray sweats, which I quickly put on before I hightailed it downstairs, only to come to a stop when I heard voices coming from the living room. I hid behind the wall separating the staircase to the living room when I heard my name come out in a venomous tone.
It took a moment to realize it was Lettie. And she was talking to Elena.
“What am I supposed to do now that the bitch moved in, Mom?”
She was referring to me. I was the bitch . What was more surprising was the fact that Lettie was Elena’s daughter. And they hated me.
“Hush now. You know this marriage is one of convenience. Massimo is a man. It wouldn’t take him long to get bored with her. You just have to remind him why that is. And why you would be a better fit.”
A better fit?
Was that what all the animosity was about? She wanted Massimo. No, more than that. She wanted to be in my position. As Massimo’s wife.
“How can you be sure that would work? We already had sex, and he didn’t treat me any differently than he had before.”
My heart dropped, and, for some reason, I felt hurt over the fact that Massimo had slept with Lettie. But why would I be hurt? He had slept with her before our marriage, and it wasn’t like I had thought Massimo was a virgin before our wedding night. It was only the women in my world who were expected to remain “pure” for their husbands.
I took in a deep breath and walked out to the back garden before they could say any more. I didn’t want to hear any more. Las Vegas was supposed to be a new start. But how could I get my new start when there were just so many new complications?
I didn’t know.