15. Chapter Fifteen #2
She gasps as her orgasm hits her for a third time.
And finally, I get what I want.
“Matteo!” she moans loudly, her voice taking up the space in the room, as she drops her head back and fully lets herself find the release I know she’s been craving. Because I’ve been craving it just as badly.
Hearing her moan my name finally sends me over the edge. My release spills inside of her.
She slumps onto my chest, burying her face into my neck. I wrap my arms around her. The need to hold her close is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before. Never have I wanted to protect someone this much.
With Luciana, it’s all new.
“Good,” I say, pressing a kiss to her temple. “You did good. I’m so proud of you. How do you feel?”
“I feel… relaxed. It’s the most relaxed I’ve ever felt. Only you’ve made me feel this way.”
“That’s the power of an orgasm.”
She laughs softly. It’s the first time I think I’ve ever made her laugh. “I always thought that a good wife was just supposed to lay there and accept what her husband did to her but you’ve helped me see differently. You’ve helped me learn that I can enjoy this.”
“You can. You don’t have to fight it so much, Luci.”
“Luci,” she breathes out. “I like hearing you call me that.”
“And I love hearing you scream my name,” I growl into her neck, rolling her onto her back and pressing kisses all along her skin.
She arches into me instead of pushing me away.
How far we’ve come. “Isn’t this so much better?
Having sex because you want to instead of doing it out of shame or obligation? ”
“Yes,” she admits. “So much better.”
I lift my head to gaze down into her eyes. “You don’t have to hide from me, Luci. You don’t have to push me away. We’re married. We’re in this together. We both agreed to this marriage for peace. But we can also be happy in it.”
Her eyes soften and it’s the most open I’ve ever seen her look. “I want to be happy. So happy.”
“Then you can choose it. We can choose it. We can have sex every day if you want it. We can be happy in this marriage even though it was arranged.”
“But you didn’t choose me.”
“I’m choosing you now. Fuck, Luciana. I’ve been fighting for you since we first met. Can’t you see that?”
“I’m starting to. I want to stop being worried all the time. I want to let go of all this pressure on my shoulders.”
“Then let it go. You can do that with me.”
“Tonight, when you saved me from Joan and Gregory, it opened my eyes. I saw how protective you are of me. I realized I don’t have to fear you as much. That I don’t have to fear my feelings as much.”
I press a kiss to her lips. “You don’t have to fear your feelings at all.”
“I really want that.”
“Then you can have it.”
Luciana kisses me deeply and for this moment, I forget about everything else.
Luciana
For the first time since I married him, waking up beside Matteo excites me. But when I open my eyes and see that it’s still dark out, I frown. Why would I wake up so early? I was exhausted from the party and having sex. I should still be asleep.
I glance at Matteo beside me who’s dead to the world.
It’s then that I hear something. A sound in the corner.
A man steps out of the shadows and into the moonlight shining in through the window. It’s then that I see who the man is.
Dante Zaneli.
I scream and that wakes Matteo right up. He jerks awake and takes one look at Dante before he dives for his gun on the bedside table. But he doesn’t get to grab it before Dante raises his own gun.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Dante warns. “I’m not sure you want me killing your pretty wife. Alexandra Ricci. Or should I said, Luciana Santori.”
“It’s Luciana Marani,” Matteo snaps. “We’re married. Show some respect.”
Dante huffs. “I was lied to. You lied to me,” he says, turning his eyes onto me.
I’m rooted in place, unable to move. “You told me you were Alexandra Ricci when you showed up at my restaurant. I was intrigued. I could tell right away that you were a mafia girl. You could sense the danger you were in. I tried looking for you. Come to my surprise when I found out you had given me a false name. I killed the other Alexandra Ricci, thinking she was the fraud. But really, Luciana, you are.”
I bow my head as shame hits me hard in the chest. “I’m sorry. I was scared. I gave you a name without even thinking about it.”
“She has nothing to apologize for,” Matteo snaps. “You killed an innocent woman because you’re deranged. Get out of our house. Now.”
Dante waggles his gun at us. “I don’t think you’re in a position to be making demands right now. I don’t appreciate being scammed. I went looking for you, Luciana, and discover my surprise when I find out that you’re already married. Such a shame. You two are coming with me.”
“Me and my wife are going nowhere with you,” Matteo says in a clear, calm voice. Never have I been this grateful to him for being stoic at times.
“Fine. If you won’t come with me, I’ll kill you both in cold blood, right in this moment.” Dante’s face and tone show just how serious he is.
Matteo turns to me and cups my face. “I can’t risk you dying. We have no choice.”
“I know,” I whisper. In this moment, I only feel numb. Nothing has fully hit me yet.
Matteo slowly gets out of bed. He’s in nothing but his pajama bottoms. I’m grateful I put on a crop top and loungewear pants before I went to sleep. At least I’m not exposed but despite my clothes, I feel naked when Dante looks me up and down.
“Perfect,” he says darkly. “Let’s get going. Shall we?”