Chapter 22
Tessa
It finally felt like I was getting somewhere. With Felix’s help, I’d hauled out three more dumpsters of trash, and the brownstone no longer looked like a hoarder’s house. It had officially been downgraded to “messy” status.
I’d sorted everything worth keeping into their proper rooms—office supplies in the office, linens in the closet or bedroom—and was working on putting them away, though I kept getting sidetracked by some new mess along the way.
The “new mess” I stumbled on today was some kind of sticky substance smeared across the floor of one of the unused bedrooms. I’d found it the hard way; by stepping in it while I was trying to put clean sheets on the bed.
“Fuck,” I muttered, looking at my foot.
With my clean foot, I hopped toward the bathroom, wobbling like an idiot and clutching the wall for balance. I nearly toppled over more than once, but somehow managed not to faceplant.
I finally made it to the bathroom and stuck my foot in the tub, scrubbing at the sticky gunk with a wad of toilet paper first, then rinsing it under the faucet. It took way longer than it should have, and I nearly slipped twice just trying to balance on one leg while I cleaned the other.
With my foot finally clean, I made my way back to the bedroom. Time to tackle that spill before it claimed any more victims. And by victims, I meant me.
It proved to be exceedingly difficult. The sticky stuff clung to my hands, my knees, even my elbows, and I fought it like a stubborn enemy in an epic battle. Every swipe was a skirmish, every scrub a full-blown clash, and I was beginning to wonder if this floor had declared war on me personally.
I was mid-swing, scrubbing with all the might of a warrior facing a fearsome foe, when I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. Felix was standing in the doorway, arms crossed, watching me with an amused smile.
“You’ve done more for this house in the past few days than I managed in months,” he said, voice easy, but I could tell he wasn’t just talking about the cleaning.
“I don’t think you did anything for the house before I got here,” I teased, swiping at a stubborn streak of sticky gunk as I spoke.
He raised an eyebrow, that amused smirk still tugging at his lips. “You really do take over everything, don’t you?”
“I told you,” I said, waving a hand at the mess I’d been battling, “I work better when I have a purpose.”
“You would have been shit at the strip club, then,” Felix responded. “No purpose there except getting high and money.”
“Guess you made the right choice bringing me here, then.” I grinned, swiping the last of the sticky mess.
Felix stayed quiet for a moment, leaning against the doorframe, his usual smirk fading into something softer. “I didn’t grow up with anyone I could trust to get things done right,” he admitted slowly. “Everything I touch ends up… complicated.”
I paused as his words hung in the air, a weightiness settled around us.
My gaze dropped to the floor, a flurry of emotions swirling in my chest. I wasn't used to seeing this side of him; vulnerable and raw.
It was like peeling back the layers of a carefully constructed facade to find a tender heart.
“But… what about Rocco?” I asked, and I immediately regretted my question.
Felix’s shoulders tensed slightly, and I could see the tension ripple through him. “He’s my twin. He’s reliable in his own way.”
He paused, running a hand through his hair, eyes flicking away before meeting mine again. “You make this easier.”
My heart stopped. I had this giant, dangerous man telling me I made his life easier. It didn’t compute. My brain short-circuited somewhere between disbelief and pride, and I had to force myself not to laugh, or cry.
I leaned back, letting the remnants of my cleaning battle drift away on the breeze of his vulnerable admission. I had never witnessed this side of Felix before, and I felt a warmth creeping into my cheeks, a kind of exhilaration tinged with uncertainty.
“I didn’t think I could matter to someone like you,” I admitted, my cheeks heating as the words slipped out.
And just like that, Felix’s mask slid back into place, the vulnerability vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. The hardened mafia man returned, but the tension between us shifted, charged in a different way.
He straightened, clearing his throat. “Enough with the cleaning. It seems to me,” he said, eyes roaming over me like he was appraising me, “that you need a shower.”
Heat flared in my chest, a mix of embarrassment and something far more dangerous, as his gaze lingered longer than necessary.
“Oh, um, I’ll get right on that then,” I said, pushing myself off the floor to stand.
But before I could take a step, a pair of large hands wrapped around my waist and pulled me back against him. My breath hitched, caught between surprise and something else, as heat radiated from his chest into mine.
“I’ll come with you,” he murmured into my ear.
Before I could respond, he lifted me effortlessly, pressing me flush against his chest. The heat from his body pressed into me, every subtle movement sending sparks along my nerves. His lips brushed the shell of my ear, low and deliberate, and I couldn’t help the soft gasp that escaped me.
I wrapped my legs around him instinctively, holding on as his arms tightened around me.
Every inch of him pressed into me, his warmth and strength igniting a heat I couldn’t control.
My hands tangled in his hair, pulling him closer, and the sound of his low, approving murmur sent shivers straight through me.
I tightened my legs around him as he started walking down the hallway, and the movement sent my ass rubbing against his hardness. His free hand slid between us, tracing low on my stomach, and I couldn’t help the moan that escaped me.
Felix’s lips brushed against my ear, voice low and husky. “Careful. You’re making it very hard to focus on getting you to the shower.”
His lips found my neck then, sucking gently before growling softly against my skin. “Fuck,” he muttered, holding me tighter as we continued down the hallway to the bathroom.
Finally, we reached the bathroom. He didn’t slow down, just shifted me slightly so I could step inside, but stayed close enough that our bodies still pressed together. My heart hammered, every nerve on fire from the walk down the hallway, and I couldn’t stop the heat pooling between us.
My body shivered with anticipation as he slowly pulled my shirt over my head, the fabric sliding against my skin like the softest touch.
His eyes trailed over every inch of me, dark and intense as he took his time.
Tracing his fingers across my collarbone, around my breasts, down my abdomen, before reaching my sensitive bundle of nerves.
I gasped as he touched me there, the pressure enough to make me tremble. He watched me through hooded eyes, lips parted slightly, and I could feel the tension in the air thicken. I wanted him to touch me more, to make come so hard I screamed his name.
But Felix stepped back, just enough to let me step into the shower. The heat of the water hit me, and I felt every inch of my body buzzing from the closeness we’d just shared. He followed me in moments later, his bare body pressing against my back.
His hands found my soapy body, his fingers tracing over wet skin and slippery bubbles.
I moaned, leaning back against him, letting the water rinse over us as he continued his exploration.
The feel of his hands on me was a drug, addictive and powerful.
With every gentle touch, my eyes drifted closed in bliss.
He leaned in, lips hovering near mine, his voice a low growl. “I know exactly what you need,” he murmured, each word heavy with possession and intent. “And you’ll only get it from me. No one else will touch you.”
Heat pooled in my chest, my breath catching as my body reacted before my brain could. I was flustered, desperate, and unbearably aware of how much I wanted him—how much I needed him—right here, right now.
Our bodies met with a sigh, and his hands found my hips, pressing me against his growing erection. He groaned low in his throat, biting down on his lip as he thrust into me.
I could feel the heat from his breath against my neck as he whispered dirty things against my skin. Things that made my body shudder with need. I moaned in response, arching back into him as he took control of the moment.
The water sluiced over us, the sound of it mixing with the pounding of our hearts and the low grunts of pleasure. Felix’s hands dug into my skin, holding me close as he took me hard against the tiles of the bathroom wall.
My body shook with each thrust, my gasps catching in my throat as he took me without mercy. And somehow, it felt right. Like this was where I belonged, in his arms, feeling every inch of him inside me.
With a final thrust that had me crying out in pleasure, he held me tight against him as we both found release. Felix painted my insides white as my walls clamped around him, my body trembling as pleasure shot through me like fireworks igniting the night sky.
Our breaths came out ragged, our skin glistening with sweat and water droplets as we clung to each other. Felix’s hands were firmly planted on the wall beside my head as he leaned into me, kissing my neck softly as his heartbeat slowed down again.
I froze for a second, the intensity of him pressing into me leaving me breathless—and then realized I didn’t want it to stop. Not ever.
The thought alone was enough to make my my pulse race, and I knew we had crossed a line neither of us could come back from.