Chapter 6
Lucia
Romeo may think his sporadic growls and the ice-cold shoulders he’s been throwing in my direction all day are enough to scare me off, but if that’s his plan, he’s seriously underestimating me. If there’s one thing I am, it’s persistent.
I want this man. And deep down, I’m pretty sure he wants me too. He just needs a little nudge. Or in this case, a well-placed shove in the right direction.
Phase two of Operation Takedown is already scheduled for later tonight. It’s technically the same thing I did last night, but this time I’m hoping he comes into my room like he threatened, instead of disappearing into the bathroom again.
I found the open bottle of my shampoo, discarded haphazardly on the tiles in the shower recess, this morning. That told me one thing: he used it the night before to get himself off. That knowledge made me feel almost giddy.
Big-O and I will be ready and waiting for him tonight.
If round two fails, I’ll have to be more creative.
I could always resort to nudism, I suppose.
I wonder how he’d react if he came into the kitchen and found me cooking in nothing but an apron.
A cheeky smile curves my lips as I mentally add that to the list.
I’m currently leaning against the kitchen doorway, watching Romeo spray the splashback with cleaning solution before diligently wiping it down with a cloth.
This man is a clean freak. He doesn’t just do the dishes after every meal. He dries them, puts them away, and then wipes down the entire space. There is nothing sexier than seeing him doing housework. It’s like domestic porn, the perfect thing to put me in the mood for my next mission.
“I’m going to head to bed,” I say.
Romeo glances at me from over his shoulder. “Umm … okay. Can I count on you to behave tonight?”
I lift one shoulder as I reach up and twirl a long strand of hair around my finger. “I’ll try,” I reply, giving him my best impression of innocent doe eyes. “But misbehaving is so much more fun.”
I roll my lips when his eyebrows pinch together. “I mean it, Lucia, this shit has to stop.”
“So, you’re allowed to pleasure yourself, but I’m not? That’s a little one-sided, don’t you think?”
I hear a growl permeate in the back of his throat as he turns around and continues wiping down the countertop with a lot more vigour than before. His broad shoulders are now taut, and for a moment, I actually feel bad for him, but I’m doing this for us.
This man is undoubtedly the best thing that has ever happened to me, but what he fails to realise is that I could be the best thing that’s ever happened to him as well, if he’d just give us the chance.
I will love, care for, and protect this man like no woman before me has.
I glance at the clock beside my bed when I finally hear Romeo’s heavy footsteps passing my room. It’s nearly 2 am. Did he stay up late hoping I’d fall asleep?
It sucks to be him if he was.
Granted, I’ve managed to read three quarters of my book while I waited, and I was starting to wonder if he was ever coming to bed, but I would’ve stayed up all night if need be.
The story I’m currently reading is a slow burn, and the hero and heroine are just now getting their shit together. I’m dying to know what happens next, but Damien and Rosie will have to wait. I have more important things to do, like breaking my future husband.
I carefully slide the bookmark between the pages and place it on my bedside table as I reach for Big-O, dropping it beside me. My hands slide under the covers; then I hook my thumbs in the side of my underwear and wiggle them over my hips.
I send a short, silent prayer to the sex gods above as I switch her on. Please let this work tonight.
Like yesterday, I start slow, using the lowest setting. It will be a tedious task because tonight I want to go all in. I never got to finish up last night, so I’m wound tight.
My lady parts have been pulsing all day, begging for a release, especially after watching Romeo clean the kitchen earlier. I’m unsure why that works for me, but it’s an effective aphrodisiac. It sends my pheromones into overdrive.
I move to the next setting, amping up my vocals as I do. The sound is enough to drown out his movements, because when my bedroom door suddenly swings open so violently, hitting the adjoining wall with a loud thud, I almost jump out of my skin.
“I fucking warned you,” he growls, stalking towards the bed. He looks furious. Hot and menacing. His jaw is clenched, and his eyes burn, but it doesn’t intimidate me.
I spent my childhood staring down the butt of my father’s gun, so I’m ready to take whatever punishment he’s prepared to dish out. Should I get up on my knees and beg him to spank me? I would be so down for that.
He stops at the edge of the bed, looming over me. There’s something else behind the fury, something darker. Desperation maybe, or fear. For a long second, we stare at each other, the silence between us thick with everything we haven’t said.
I suck in a sharp breath and hold it when he extends his arm. “Hand it over,” he snaps.
I’ve never been one to follow orders, but I don’t think twice before slapping Big-O into the palm of Romeo’s large hand.
My heart’s pounding like a war drum in my chest as I lie there like an inexperienced fool. This is what I wanted all along, but I never stopped to consider what I’d do if the plan actually worked.
I’ve read hundreds of books that include countless steamy scenes, but when my mind scrambles for something sexy to say or do, I come up with absolutely nothing.
I want him to take the lead. To tug back the covers and bury that handsome face of his between my legs.
I see Romeo’s nostrils flare as he suddenly turns, like he’s ready to leave, which has me immediately snapping into action.
“Where are you—”
My words catch in my throat as he spins back around, eyes sweeping the room like he’s looking for something, anything but me. Confusion twists in my gut when he pointedly avoids meeting my gaze. Did I misread why he came in here?
He pauses as soon as his gaze lands on the table beside my bed, and when his frown deepens, I know he’s found whatever it is he’s looking for.
Without a word, he strides forward, snatches up the book I was reading and storms out of the room.
“Hey!” I shout, quickly yanking up my underwear, throwing back the covers, and scrambling off the bed.
I dart out of the room just in time to see him re-emerging from his own bedroom. Big-O and my book are still clutched in one hand as he brushes past me, stalking down the hallway like a man on a mission.
I have no idea where he’s going or what the hell he plans to do with my stuff, so I follow him.
“Hey!” I shout again, but he doesn’t stop; he keeps moving forward, heading towards the rear of the house.
When he unlocks the back door and steps out into the night, I break into a jog. If he thinks dumping my things outside is going to stop me, he’s dead wrong. I’ll just pick them up and bring them right back in.
The sensor light flicks on as he crosses the lawn. Ki-Ki starts barking from somewhere inside just as I yell, “Romeo, give them back!”
Of course, he ignores me as he drops the book and Big-O to the grass below.
He reaches into the waistband of his boxers to pull something out. When he starts screwing it onto the tip of the gun he’s holding—the one I didn’t realise was in his other hand—it all suddenly makes sense.
This motherfucker is about to do a hit.
I leap over the three steps and sprint across the lawn, hurling myself onto his back. My knees grip his sides as I try to haul my body upwards by climbing him like a tree.
“Don’t you fucking dare!” I shriek, but the son of a bitch doesn’t even flinch. To my utter horror, he calmly aims the gun at the ground and fires.
The silencer muffles the bang somewhat, but it still releases a loud pop that echoes in the still night.
The shot is loud enough for one of our neighbours to hear, especially those who live closest. That doesn’t deter him in the slightest.
Big-O is the first to go as the red silicone toy explodes, shattered pieces flying everywhere as she’s blasted into oblivion, and my damn heart cracks right along with it.
He moves to the book next. The one I haven’t finished reading yet.
“Nooooo! Not Damien and Rosie,” I plead, but again, he ignores me as he blows a hole straight through the centre of the book. “You fucking, stronzo,” I scream, grabbing a chunk of his hair and tugging his head backwards. “You are going to pay for that,” I growl through gritted teeth.
When the bastardo chuckles, something inside me snaps. I lean in and bite the fleshy part of his ear. Not hard enough to draw blood, but my teeth will definitely leave a mark.
Serves him right.
I should bite it right off.
“Ouch,” he groans, pulling his earlobe free from between my teeth.
I release my grip on his shoulders, slide down his back, but when my feet hit the ground, I clench my hand into a tight fist and punch him right in the left kidney. His body is so hard I think it hurt me more than it did him.
I hear his laugh as I storm back towards the house. I hope he enjoys sleeping under the stars, because that’s precisely where he’ll be spending the rest of the night.
I march up the back stairs, and the last thing I hear as I close and lock the back door behind me is, “Lucia!”
I’m banging and slamming everything I touch as I stand in the kitchen cooking breakfast. I am still mad. Furious may be a better word.
At least I don’t have to worry about waking Romeo with my noise this morning, because I doubt he can hear me from the backyard.
When I returned to my room last night, he started banging on the back door, demanding I unlock it. I ignored him, even when he moved to my bedroom window.
Instead, I popped in my earbuds and fired up Spotify, letting the music drown out the noise.