49. Almost Home
CHAPTER 49
ALMOST HOME
A ntonio
The Roman countryside zips by, the gentle rocking of the train lulling my churning thoughts. Running my fingers through Serena’s hair as she lays across my lap, I glance down at the woman I love . I didn’t think I was capable of the emotion, and yet, now that I’ve given up fighting it, the truth of it swirls deep within the marrow of my bones. She’s still naked, we both are, and my cum slickens her thighs. It’s the most glorious thing I’ve ever seen.
Her eyes are closed, breaths soft.
She’s my tesoro , my real-life treasure. I will never let her go now. Whether she likes it or not . That monster that lives in the dark recesses of my mind growls that last bit. Ignoring the truth of his words, I draw in an incredibly sated breath. I can’t remember the last time I came so many times. And the craziest part is that I could do it again. Just the thought of Serena has desire igniting in my core and my cock twitching.
I never knew sex and love could be so intrinsically intertwined.
For the first time in years, I actually sympathize with Raffa. I finally understand what he did and why. Because only a few weeks with Serena and I can honestly say without a shred of doubt that I would destroy anyone who came near my tesoro . I’d raze the entire country if that’s what it took to keep her safe.
And I will… as soon as she is tucked away in my safehouse in Roma.
But that would mean leaving her alone and the thought of that is suddenly unacceptable.
It wakes a fiery rage in my gut and has heat pummeling my veins. My instinct to protect her seems innately tied to my desire to fuck her. It’s as if when my cock is nestled deep inside that warm pussy, I know that no harm will come to her.
The train begins to slow, and a pit of dread unfurls in my stomach. Our blissful reprieve has come to an end.
Serena must also sense the deceleration because her lids open, and she stretches across my lap, the haze of deep satiation across those mesmerizing sapphire orbs breathtaking. “Are we there yet?” She smirks.
“We’ll be arriving in Roma in minutes. We should probably get dressed.”
Her lips purse, and it brings me an inordinate amount of pleasure. “Ugh, do we have to?” She’s just as obsessed as I am. Only she completely ignored my confession of love.
It should irritate me more…
It does, but then again, our relationship hasn’t exactly been conventional. But I remember someone telling me the best love stories never are.
Dio , what has this woman done to me? I’m daydreaming about love…
“Yes, we have to.” Leaning over her head, I reach for her discarded clothes and offer the bra and panties first.
With a growl of frustration, she sits up so that I’m finally free to move around the compartment. Maybe she’s as nervous for what’s to come as I am. Crouching down to pick up my pants off the floor, I dig through the pocket for the cell phone gifted to Serena by Santi. In the ultimate show of trust, she’d given it to me to hold. It’s a fair trade since she still has my gun.
I glance at the screen, my fingers frozen above it. I’ve known Pietro my entire life and still, my faith in him falters. After everything that’s gone wrong since stealing Serena away, I can’t help but question everyone’s loyalty.
“Just make the call,” Serena whispers as she tugs her top over her head. “At least we’ll know where we stand one way or another.”
I nod. We discussed this part of the plan briefly before reaching the train, before we could keep our hands off one another. My fingers fly across the keyboard using the emergency code we’d developed years ago. If Pietro is alive and still loyal to me, he would meet us at the safehouse.
The train grinds into the station, the brakes squealing in protest, and Serena stumbles into me. Curling my arm around her waist, I hold her close, my heels digging into the floor to keep us steady. I press a kiss to the top of her head, then brush another one on her temple. A breathy sigh escapes her lips, and that familiar fire starts to rage.
Tamping down on the sensations, I give her one last chaste kiss to the cheek as the train finally halts. “I love you, tesoro ,” I whisper against her ear. The confession is so quiet, I’m not certain she’ll hear it. But the way her body stiffens against me confirms that she does.
Begrudgingly, I release her, unable to keep the damned hurt from rising at her rejection. No, a rejection I could understand given the circumstances, but she’s completely ignoring me. For some reason, it’s a hundred times worse.
A chime sounds and the train doors glide open, the sudden flurry of movement jerking me from my pity party. “Let’s go,” I mutter and unlock our private cabin. She nods, swings her purse over her shoulder and follows me without a word.
We weave between the hordes of people flooding the binario of Termini Station and despite that damned ache of uncertainty, I reach back for Serena’s hand. Her fingers easily entwine with my own and I tug her down the platform and across the congested terminal until we reach the storage lockers. Moving quickly through the space, I head straight for the locker on the end of the row. Within minutes, we’re equipped with my go bag and on our way to the taxi stand outside.
The cacophony of horns, shouts and revving engines feels like home, and in spite of the polluted air the tightness in my chest subsides. I wave down the first taxi I see and usher Serena into the backseat. Glancing over my shoulder through the rearview window, I scan the busy streets for a tail. None that I can make out, but the avenue is much too crammed with vehicles to be sure.
Over the chaos, I shout the address to the driver and settle in beside Serena, releasing her hand. As the taxi darts into mid-day traffic, my phone buzzes, and relief floods my system at Pietro’s response.
With my righthand man on board and headed to the security of the safehouse, I’m certain we’ll finally be able to piece together who is behind this.
The small stretch of land nestled on a quiet street in the outskirts of Rome comes to view from down the road. Tall hedges and a wrought iron fence line the perimeter, keeping most of the house from view. It isn’t much, a small three-bedroom house I bought from the money I earned at the first café I worked at in college. It was well before I’d become entangled in Papà ’s illegitimate operations but not before I understood how things worked in our world.
I’d purchased the property under an assumed name to be sure it would never be entangled with the Ferrara family. Over the years, there were countless times I was thankful for my foresight.
“Almost home,” I whisper to Serena.
She nods, her gaze far away as she stares out the window.
The car ride has been spent in a semi-comfortable silence, each of us caught up in our own thoughts. I can’t help but wonder where hers lie. Twice I’ve admitted to loving her and still, she remains silent on the topic. It stings like hell.
The terracotta tiles of a familiar rooftop peek over the towering hedges a block down, and I lean forward to the driver. “You can stop here.”
He twists his head over his shoulder, eying the vacant surrounding fields. “ Sei sicuro ?”
“ Si , I’m sure.”
With a shrug, he pulls the old Fiat over, and I hand him the cash. I slide out of the backseat, offering Serena a hand and we wait along the edge of the field until the taxi has turned around and disappeared down the dirt road.
“How far do we have to walk?” she asks, the first words she’s spoken since the train. I hate how my pulse quickens at the sound.
“Not far.” I tick my head to the looming hedges at the end of the street. “That’s it over there.”
“Good, because I’m suddenly exhausted.”
“Probably from all those earth-shattering orgasms.” I offer a tentative smirk, and she rewards me with a smile in return.
“Maybe.” She snorts.
We reach the gate moments later, and I punch in the security code. The old wrought iron squeals as it heaves open. It’s been just a bit over six months since I’ve been here. When Papà informed me of his plans to move in on the Kings’ territory in Manhattan, I figured it wouldn’t be long until this place would come in good use.
I couldn’t have been more right. I just never thought I would be coming here with one of the princesses of the King’s empire.
Serena is unusually quiet as I guide her into the small house. The furnishings are sparse but enough to get by. Though I haven’t been here in months, I have staff who keep it stocked with necessities. There should be enough food and water to last for a month at least. I’d had it equipped for three at the time. Who knew in only six months I’d be the only Ferrara left in the business?
“Where’s my room?” Serena asks as she follows me down a bare-walled corridor.
I whirl around and she stops in her tracks, her palms smacking into my chest. “Your room or ours ?” Even I can detect that hopeful twinge at the end of the word. Dio , I’ve become soft for her. Father must be rolling over in his grave, but maybe Mamma is rejoicing in it.
Serena’s lips twitch as she regards me. “I thought you were going to leave me here to go track down the assholes after us?”
Right. I did say that. Then why does the idea of being away from her for even a few minutes have panic rising? I nod, choosing to ignore her question much like she’s been doing to me. Instead, I lead her down the hallway to the master bedroom at the end.
Much like the rest of the house, it’s simple but functional with a king size bed, full closet, dresser and well-equipped desk. The security system is top of the line and with a VPN that’s completely untraceable set up by my friend Valerio, I’m certain I’ll be able to track down exactly who’s behind this.
Serena drops her purse on the bed and turns to me. “I’m going to shower.”
My nostrils flare as memories of my cum slickening her thighs surge to the surface. “Do you have to?” I rasp, my voice already rough just from the vivid thoughts. “I love the idea of you covered in my cum.”
Her grin turns wicked as she tugs the top over her head, revealing her breasts through that lace bra. “You’ve been throwing that L-word out a lot lately.” Her jaw snaps shut as if she hadn’t meant to say it out loud.
But I won’t let her out of it that easily. I erase the space between us, framing her face with my hands. Her eyes are wild as they lock on mine, chest suddenly heaving. “I did not simply throw the word ‘love’ around. Much like I’ve never thrown my actual love around. To anyone.” I suck in a steadying breath, steeling my feelings for yet another rejection. “When I said I loved you I meant every word. You’ve become a part of me that I didn’t even know was missing. If I lost you, you would take a piece of me with you—it’s as simple and complicated as that.”
Raw emotion glistens across those lively sapphire irises. Her lips purse, and a tear slips down her cheek. I sweep it away with my thumb, completely speechless. Is she crying from happiness? Is she upset with me? I can’t for the life of me tell.
A loud chime rings out, breaking the spell between us, and I mutter a curse, whirling back toward the door. “I’m sorry,” I mutter. “That must be Pietro.” I press my thumb print to the digital scanner by the doorframe and the video surveillance system turns on.
Pietro’s full face fills the screen. “It’s me, capo .”
I press the button, granting him entrance, then turn back to Serena. “I’m going to let him in. Hold that thought, I’ll be right back.”
She nods and spins toward the bed. “Wait,” she calls out and I watch as she digs through her purse and reveals the gun I gave her. “Take little Toni with you. Just in case.”
The hint of a smile curves my lips. She may not love me yet but at least she’s proven time and again that she doesn’t want to see me dead. I’ll take it for now. “There’s a safe in the closet. There are guns, fake I.D.’s and enough cash to take you around the world. The code is zero six two nine.”
Mamma ’s birthday.
“Got it.”
I move toward the door, turning back with my hand strangling the knob. “Stay in here and if anything happens?—”
“Nothing is going to happen,” she blurts. “We still have to finish our conversation…” A full smile flashes across her face and Dio , it’s the most glorious thing I’ve ever seen. With foolish hope kindling in my chest again, I toss her a smile and close the door behind me.
Holstering the gun at my waistband, I look through the peephole when I reach the entrance. Again, Pietro’s familiar face fills the circular frame. Unlocking the door, I whip it open, and my heart catapults up my throat.
A man holds a gun to Pietro’s head, just outside the field of the camera’s vision. Tears stream down my friend’s cheeks, his face bruised and bloody. Merda . Then another familiar face pops up behind my righthand man.
Santiago.