14. Marchella
CHAPTER 14
MARCHELLA
I t was a distraction. Plain and simple.
That’s the story I’m selling.
Sleeping with Roman was just a way to keep me from letting my nightmares grab hold of me once more.
I needed a reprieve.
Period.
What I got, though?
Oh my God….
It was nothing short of the most sensuously blissful experience I’ve ever encountered.
I’m talking toe-curling, light my insides on fire, can’t see anything but stars and glitter blissful.
When I used to daydream about his body pressed against me, he was just a boy. Now, he’s all man — strong, sexy, and sensual.
And he just completely ruined me for any other guy who crosses my path in the future.
Well, if there is a future.
But like I said, it was just a distraction.
And the orgasms that rocketed my body into oblivion also damn-near melted my brain.
That will help when my head hits the pillow.
I don’t think I can even conjure up the energy to dream after that.
It’s like my brain short-circuited…in the best possible way.
But I can’t stay here. I can’t feed these insane feelings swirling through my insides. It’s nuts! He’s a criminal!
Assault!
Kidnapping!
And that’s only what I’ve witnessed.
Lord only knows what else he’s done.
I don’t even want to try to imagine it because I’d really love for these body tingles to last a little longer. The aftershocks ripple over me like gentle waves, and I want to sing out with glee because he’s made me feel lighter, brighter, and unexpectedly more peaceful than I have in months.
I can’t stop smiling either.
And he definitely noticed that fact.
“You look…relaxed,” he says, flipping onto his side and slinging an arm over me.
I think he might be doing that to make sure I don’t launch a tickle attack on him.
But really, I’d much rather have his shredded muscles plastered against me.
I nod. “Yes. I feel kind of amazing, actually.”
He grins. “That’s good feedback. Thanks.”
I reach around him, running my hand down the slope of his spine. He stiffens slightly because he doesn’t know what I’m about to do next.
I can’t blame him.
I swallow a chuckle.
Nice to have some of the power for once.
My mind flickers back to the nightmare that woke us both, the one that brought him to me, the one that led me to his bed.
And suddenly, the clouds of euphoria part and an icy hand clenches my heart.
I should have known the feelings of bliss would fizzle out sooner than later.
“You look like you wanna say something.” His forehead creases.
Damn, he’s perceptive.
When you look at him, you don’t think he’s going to be firing on all cylinders. He’s just too gorgeous to have it all.
Another shocker.
His eyes blaze with longing, and while I want to flip him over and ride him until the sun comes up, he asked me something before and I need to give him an answer. I want him to know why what he did for me by bringing Bella here was so special.
I also need him to understand why she can’t stay.
“When you came into my room before, you asked me if I was okay.” I take a deep breath. “I’m not, for a lot of reasons. The past couple of days have turned me into a tangled mess of anxiety and panic and sadness. Oddly enough, even though you caused some of it, you did more than you know to relieve a lot of it.”
He wraps his arm around me, obviously sensing that I need to be held.
Like I said, very perceptive.
I stare up into his face, a face that over the past couple of days I’ve wanted to both punch and kiss at varying intervals. He’s gone from sexy to menacing to downright villainous. I get those transitions. It’s who he is that drives them.
But maybe it’s who he wants to be that morphs his expression into concern right now.
“It’s a little weird for me to hear that I’ve helped more than I’ve hurt.” A small smile tugs at his lips. “I don’t get that often.”
“Well, I guess there’s a first time for everything.”
“This is a first I never thought I’d experience.”
Tears sting my eyes. “When I was younger, we had a dog. She was a Boston, just like Bella. Such a good dog,” I muse.
“What happened?”
“Mama loved to visit me at school when I was at NYU. She’d take a car downtown and we’d walk in the park. Just the three of us. It was great. Those were the best days…” My voice trails off and an ache in my chest makes my voice quiver. “But then things got worse. The visits started to get more and more sporadic. Until the last time she came down to see me.”
Roman just waits. He doesn’t speak, just gives me a moment to breathe. It’s like he can sense what I’m going to say next, and that it really needs no prompting at all.
“We went for a walk in the park, like always. Frankie came with her because she wasn’t in great shape but desperately wanted to have one of our days. It was a beautiful one, too. The sky was clear, the air was crisp and fresh, the grass so green. But Mama was really tired and weak,” I whisper. “And at one point, she collapsed onto a bench. I panicked and dropped the leash to help her. I blinked my eyes and she was gone, Roman. Forever.”
He brushes his lips against my forehead as the tears roll down my cheeks. “I lost her. I lost my Princess.”
“I’m sorry,” he murmurs. “That’s really horrible.”
“The worst part is, we chipped her but something went wrong with the microchip registration. Her chip was registered to another family, who also had a Boston Terrier. It was a crazy mix-up, but we never were able to find her. And then not long afterward, Mom passed. I lost Princess, my mom, my dad…” I sniffle. “And now Frankie…” I shake my head as the tears slide down my cheeks, forcing a dry laugh. “Wow, talk about post-coital bliss, huh? I just wrecked that completely, didn’t I?”
He shrugs. “Eh, bliss is overrated. I like to keep things real. They may suck and they may hurt but they make you stronger.”
“I don’t feel very strong right now,” I whisper.
“You are. More than you know. You may have resisted being a mob enforcer’s daughter, but that blood still flows through you. And you have that strength, Marchella. I can see it. I can feel it.”
“Chella,” I murmur.
He furrows his brow and I smile.
“Because we’re friends.”
He dips his head lower and takes my lower lip between his teeth, gently tugging it. “I think I like being friends with you.”
“Same.”
He brushes his fingertips down the side of my face, leaving a trail of kisses where the tears streamed down my cheeks. “Listen, I don’t want you to worry about Frankie,” he says. “I’m gonna take care of it, okay?”
I nod, another sob threatening to choke me. “Thank you.”
I sit up, swiping my eyes and flashing him a watery smile. “I, um, guess I should go. I don’t want Bella to wake up and get scared. She’s been through enough.” I grab the t-shirt that landed next to the bed and slide it on, running my hand through my sexed-up hair before I throw my legs over the side of the bed and stand up.
“You don’t have to go back alone.”
I can’t see his face at this point because my back is to him. I did that on purpose because I knew he’d see it on my face and in my gaze…how much I want to stay.
How much I don’t want to leave him.
I slowly turn in his direction, the irony of the situation not lost on me.
The guy who kidnapped me and stole my freedom now wants me to spend the night with him.
I tilt my head to the side. “Oh? And do you want to join me?”
His full lips lift and the dimple in his cheek appears.
Oh boy. The tingles are back in full force now.
“I do. Is that okay?”
I nod, a rush of heat flowing into my cheeks. “Yes,” I whisper.
He gets up, pulls on his boxer briefs, and laces his fingers with mine, leading me back to me room.
This has got to be some kind of alternate reality because in what lifetime would I even consider doing all of that with a guy like Roman Villani? A man who holds a hell of a lot of power right now — over me, over my brother.
I needed a distraction.
Yes, Chella. Keep reminding yourself of that! See how far it gets you!
It may have started as a distraction, but it’s quickly become more.
More.
But really, how much more can it possibly become?
This little fantasy bubble we’re living in right now is just that! He’s going to manipulate my brother to get what he wants and then he’ll let me go. We’ll both go our separate ways, in worlds which are galaxies apart. Neither one of us would have any clue how to exist in each other’s lives now.
Still…
It feels so nice to have his muscular arms snaked around my front, my body spooning with his and Bella cuddled against my neck.
I haven’t felt this safe or comforted in a long time.
Maybe ever.
When I drift off to sleep almost seconds after my head hits the pillow, one final thought floats into my mind.
The mafia thug actually brings me peace.
Who the hell would have ever guessed that?