Chapter 9 Presley #2
I hesitated with my question but asked. “Your brothers went?”
Alex nodded silently. “They were there, but they were really reserved and quiet. The only time they’d light up or act normal was if they were around my aunt Wren’s kids. It’s crazy how long ago that felt, but it was only a month. It’s partly why I had agreed to come, Pres.”
She leveled me with a solemn glare. “You’re the missing piece.
I can’t bring myself to accept that you’re marrying Adrian, or that you’ll be here in Italy so far from me.
You’re not just like my sister, Pres. You are my sister.
Through and through. You’re my family, and deep in my gut, I don’t think you’re safe here. ”
She was right, and I felt it too, especially after tonight. Instead of confirming all that, I pulled her into a tight hug. “You’re my family too. I’m so glad you’re here, Alex.”
I needed to talk to Adrian and begin to sort out the mess that I had willingly stepped into.
Pulling apart, I said. “Text me if you need anything. Adrian’s room is on the third floor, last door on the right. Feel free to come and go as you want; his men won’t stop you or say anything. His staff is kind, and they’re good people.”
Alex nodded before tugging the pile of clothes into her hand that I had given her. I exited the room and pulled the door closed before releasing a pent-up breath.
She was safe.
That was all that mattered at the moment. Now I had to figure out how to get her home.
I shut the door behind me as I entered Adrian’s bedroom.
The lights were low, and there in the center of the bed sat Adrian with his head hanging in his hands. His tie was undone, his jacket crumpled on the floor and his hair looked like he’d been running his fingers through it possibly since we arrived.
“Hey.”
His head popped up, surprise forcing his brows to his forehead. “Presley.”
Did he not think I’d come back? “Of course it’s me.”
I smiled at him as I drew closer, all the while I slipped out of my heels and pressed my toes into his plush rug. The doors to the balcony were wide open, letting the night breeze into the room to caress us.
Adrian’s gaze seemed to move over every inch of me as if he was worried I’d just slip away at any second or disappear.
“I didn’t think you’d come. I honestly assumed you’d stay with Alex.”
I sat next to him and pulled his hand into mine, stroking down the length of his palm like he’d done with mine during dinner. I hadn’t realized how much it had quelled my anxiety.
“I wanted to come here. I think I’m used to sleeping next to you now.
” I smiled again, but the look of utter adoration on his face had my eyes transfixed on his mouth.
I had been holding off being intimate with him for so long, and deep down, I knew that reason was attached to the twins.
I knew I was subconsciously holding out some hope that they’d undo this damage that had been inflicted on my heart.
But there was no rescuing what we were or salvaging it.
“I’m so sorry, Bellissima, I had no idea.” Adrian choked on his words, making room for a sob before he lowered his head to my lap and hugged my middle. “I’m so fucking sorry.”
Stroking my fingers through his hair, I tried to calm him by muttering soothing sounds.
I knew now that the twins had been right about Adrian’s connection to Markos, and about his brothers.
I knew Adrian had lied to me. However, he’d also gained my patience and my trust. I didn’t know why or how to explain it, but, in my gut, I didn’t think Adrian was going to follow through with whatever plan his brothers had orchestrated.
I needed more intel; that much was clear, but pushing him away wouldn’t do anything but make me miserable.
Not when I was finally ready to have him remove the stain the twins had branded me with. The pain they’d allowed to fester in my soul and rot.
I wanted something new, and I wanted Adrian to be the one to have it with.
“Adrian, I need to know that Alex is safe here.” I pulled his face closer so our lips were just inches apart.
His blue eyes searched mine. “Of course she is.”
“Markos won’t be able to show up and take her, or me?”
His hand pulled mine until it covered his heart. “I swear it to you. No harm will come to either of you. I know I fucked all this up. I know I owe you a conversation. I know…just please don’t leave me, Presley. At least not without first letting me explain a small piece of this.”
He moved with me until he was in front of me, looking down.
His fingers gently held my chin until he was tipping my head back.
“I’m in love with you. When we talked about all these plans, all the shit my brothers planned and Markos, I didn’t think I’d care because I didn’t think you’d matter to me.
Then I saw you at that ball, and then I met you, and from the beginning I knew you were mine and that we could figure everything else out as long as that part were true. ”
His palm slid over my jaw until his fingers were pushing into my hair. “Do you trust me?”
I didn’t hesitate. “I do.”
His hand found mine, and he gently pulled me up until I was standing in front of him.
“Then let me have you, my love. Be with me, become mine finally.”
Our mouths crashed together in a rush. His hands clasped my waist in a tight hold while mine went to his shirt buttons, where I began pulling them apart, yanking the fabric free from his slacks and off his body. His undershirt went next, then his belt.
Heated lips found the pulse in my neck while he kissed and sucked against my skin, and I undid his pants, pushing them down.
He was a gorgeous specimen of perfection, with slick lines of muscle and rippled abs stacked on top of one another.
I continued to kiss him until he’d stripped me out of my clothing, and he helped me to the bed.
“I’ve wanted this for so long,” he whispered, pressing fevered kisses to my cheek and neck.
My eyes closed as flashes of raven-like hair slipped through my fingers, two sets of lips caressed my skin, and desperate words of need and desire had washed over me. I forced my eyes open to stay in the moment with Adrian and not go back to them.
“Adrian,” I rasped while he leaned over me and lined his rigid cock up with my center. I lifted my leg until he hooked his hand under my calf and stared down at my slick entrance.
“You sure?”
I nodded, and within the span of a single breath, he pushed inside me. I could hear the waves crash against the cliffs outside the balcony, and the stars gleaming in the velvet sky seemed to wink a little brighter as if they were merely an old friend hanging above to say hello.
Pushing my fingers into Adrian’s hair, I crossed my feet behind his back, taking him deeper.
“Oh fuck,” he breathed, while leaning down to take my nipple into his mouth. His hips rocked forward, his cock sliding in and out of me. I turned my head while our chests heaved, and he increased the speed in which he fucked me. The bed shifted, and the sound of skin slapping filled the room.
I would force myself to love this version of reality. Being with one man.
One heart instead of two that wanted to hold mine.
It had to be enough.
My eyes were closed when Adrian came, and when he asked near my ear if I came too, I lied, and whether he knew it or not, he didn’t press me.
He was certainly capable of bringing me to climax, but I knew that my mind was too muddled to allow it.
Too confused about what was happening. All I knew was that I had to get Alex out of here.
Once Adrian was finished and he’d cleaned up in the bathroom, he brought me a warm rag and began cleaning me. It was gentle and soft and so unlike when the twins had taken me, only to discard me immediately after.
“What’s wrong, Bellissima?”
I kept my eyes lowered as I tried to hide the various emotions at war in my chest. Instead of telling him that I was reliving what the twins had done to me, and there was still shrapnel in my chest from how they’d ruined sex for me, I tried to focus on something else.
“I want to get Alex home, but I don’t know how. I’m worried that your brothers will stop her, or Markos will interfere. I want to go with her, just so I can make sure she actually gets there. I won’t be able to relax until she’s home.”
Adrian pushed a few strands of hair away from my face while he inspected me. I was taking advantage of him in a way because I knew he felt guilty for whatever had been sprung on me tonight, but I didn’t care. Not when it meant Alex could go home.
He finally pressed his forehead to mine and replied, “I’ll find a way. I promise you.”