Chapter 19 Luca #2
She reaches between us. Wraps her fingers around me. Strokes once. Twice. Slow. Firm. I groan into her mouth. The sound vibrates between us. She lines me up. Sinks down inch by inch.
The stretch is exquisite. Tight. Hot. Wet. She pauses halfway, breathing hard against my lips. Eyes locked on mine. Wide. Searching. I hold her gaze. I don’t look away.
“Stay with me,” I murmur.
She nods. Sinks the rest of the way. Takes me fully. We both exhale at the same time. A shared breath.
She starts to move. Slow rolls of her hips. Grinding more than thrusting. Finding the angle that makes her gasp. Her hands grip my shoulders.
I let her set the pace. My hands roam her back, up her spine and down again. Cupping her ass. Helping her rise and fall when her thighs start to tremble.
Her forehead drops to mine again. Eyes half-closed but still on me.
“Luca,” she breathes. She says my name like a plea.
I cup her face. Thumb brushing her cheekbone. “I’m here.”
She kisses me. Soft. Lingering. Then faster. The rhythm builds. Her hips rock harder. Deeper. I meet her now, thrusting up gently. Matching her. The desk creaks under us. Neither of us cares.
I lift her smoothly, arms under her thighs, and carry her out of the study, still inside her. The hallway is dark. Silent. Empty. Moonlight filters through tall windows, painting silver stripes across the floor. Our bare feet make almost no sound on the hardwood.
We pause halfway. I press her back gently against the wall.
Kiss her throat. Her collarbone. She tilts her head back, fingers tightening in my hair.
I nip softly along her jaw. She shivers, presses her palm to my chest, and strokes down to where we’re still joined.
I rock into her once. Slow. Deep. She gasps against my ear.
Another few steps. Another pause in the shadowed alcove near the staircase. She kisses me hungrily now. Tongue sweeping mine. Hands roaming my back. I cup her breast, thumb circling the nipple until it tightens further. She arches, breath hitching.
We reach the bedroom. I ease the door open with my shoulder. Moonlight spills across the threshold from tall windows, bathing the bed in soft silver. I carry her inside. Set her gently on the mattress.
She pulls me down with her. I cover her body with mine. Slide back inside in one long, smooth glide. She wraps her legs around my waist, pulling me closer.
We move together, her eyes never leaving mine. Her hands brace on my shoulders, then slide into my hair, gripping gently when pleasure spikes. I thread my fingers through her hair in return. Tug just enough to tilt her head back. Kiss the exposed line of her throat. Soft. Reverent.
“You feel so good around me,” I whisper against her skin.
She gasps and arches beneath me. “Don’t stop.”
I don’t. I keep the long, rolling strokes, sinking deep each time while her walls flutter and grip around me. Her breath comes in short, ragged pants as she clings tighter.
“Luca…” Her voice is breathy. Almost surprised. “I’m close, I’m so close…”
I keep the rhythm steady. Deep. Let her chase it. Her thighs tremble around me. Her eyes stay locked on mine. Wide. Glassy. Beautiful.
She comes first. Slow-building waves that roll through her entire body. She trembles beneath me. Clenches around me in pulsing rhythm. A soft cry escapes her. My name again. Her fingers tighten in my hair. Holding on as the pleasure washes over her.
The sight of her like this. Open. Trusting. Letting go with me. It undoes me.
I bury myself deep. Groan low against her neck. Pulse inside her. Hot. Endless. My arms wrap around her. Holding her close. Not letting go.
We stay like that. Connected. Breathing hard. Hearts slamming against each other. I don’t pull out, and she doesn’t push me away. Her legs stay wrapped around me, hands sliding down my back, tracing lazy patterns over sweat-slick skin.
Afterward, she rests her head on my shoulder. Her fingers trace absent patterns on my chest. I can feel her heartbeat against mine. Still racing.
“What are we doing?” she asks again. Quieter this time.
“I already answered that.”
“No, you gave me a non-answer. ‘Figuring it out’ isn’t an answer.”
“It’s all I have.”
She lifts her head to look at me. “We hate each other.”
“Do we?”
“I should hate you. You forced this marriage. Threatened my children. Had my friend terrorized.”
“And yet you’re here.”
“Because I’m exhausted and I needed…” She trails off.
“Needed what?”
“I don’t know. Connection. Escape. Something that isn’t fighting or crying, children or hostile stepsons.”
“So you came to me.”
“I came to thank you for defending me. This just…” She gestures vaguely between us. “Happened.”
“This keeps happening.”
“I know.”
“Eventually we’ll have to acknowledge what that means.”
“And what does it mean?”
I brush hair back from her face. “That maybe we’re not as good at hating each other as we thought.”
She makes a sound that’s half laugh, half sob. “I don’t know how to do this. Be married to you. Raise children with you. Pretend this is normal.”
“We’re not pretending it’s normal. We’re making it work anyway.”
“How?”
“Day by day. Like I said.”
“That’s exhausting.”
“So is fighting me constantly.”
“I know.” She slides off my lap and fixes her clothes. Pushes her hair out of her face. “I should check on the twins.”
“They’re asleep.”
“I know. But I need to see them. Make sure they’re okay.”
I don’t stop her. Just watch as she walks to the door.
She pauses with her hand on the doorknob. Doesn’t turn around. “Luca?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you. For tonight. For defending us against Maxim.”
“You already said that.”
“I mean it this time.”
Then she leaves.
I sit alone in my bed. Still naked.
My phone buzzes. Text from Pavel: Maxim called. Wants to meet tomorrow.
I text back: Tell him I’ll consider it after he apologizes to Anna.
Three dots appear. Disappear. Appear again.
He says that’s not happening.
Then neither is the meeting.
I set the phone down and stare at the door Anna just walked through.
Something between us shifted tonight. The anger is still there. The distrust. All the damage we’ve done to each other. But something else is there now too. Something neither of us knows how to handle.
My phone buzzes again.
He’s threatening to go to the Kozlovs. Says if you choose her over him, he’ll find allies elsewhere.
I read the message twice.
Then I call Pavel.
“Handle it,” I say when he answers.