Chapter 6
SIX
Capri
Tonight has been the single most profound experience of my life. Meeting Hades and learning who he was to me somehow changed me. I didn’t want to leave him, but what choice did I have?
I couldn’t exactly call my father and tell him I lost my virginity to my godfather—a man he hated—and I wanted to spend the rest of my days in Greece having mind-blowing orgasms with him.
Did that sound as bad as I thought it did? Probably worse.
“My father is expecting me home tomorrow.”
“Fate has other plans for you, little minnow.” Sebastian stroked my cheek. “I have other plans for you.”
“I thought you didn’t believe in any of that.”
“I changed my mind.”
“Why?” This was a dream come true. A rich, gorgeous man with a sexy accent from a foreign country wanted me to stay with him and explore a relationship in his beautiful home on the ocean. Is this for real?
“I need to see where this goes,” he said. “You’re curious. That’s why you’re here.”
“What you’re asking of me is impossible.
” I touched his shoulder. “You know the kind of man my father is. He’s stubborn and expects everyone to fall in line, especially me.
He agreed to let me come here to further my education.
I begged for the extra time after the program was finished, but I promised I’d come home and start training to run a hotel he bought for me. ”
“You’re too young to be tied down to something like that.”
“It’s a wonderful opportunity, and I’m grateful but…” I shook my head because I wasn’t sure the hotel business was what I wanted. But my father didn’t want to hear that. “It doesn’t matter what I want.”
“It matters to me.”
“You don’t even know me.” I rolled onto my back and stared at the ceiling. “I don’t even know why you and my father hate one another. What did I put myself in the middle of? As amazing as tonight was—and I’ll never forget it—I can’t stay with you.”
“That’s unacceptable to me.” He sat up and rested his back against the couch. “If you need me to call your father and tell him where you are, I’ll do that.”
“No!” I sprung into a seated position, holding the blanket against my chest. “That will taint what happened between us. I don’t want any negativity surrounding us.”
“The negativity was already there when you came searching for me.”
“Not for us.” I motioned between us. “Whatever this war is, it doesn’t involve what we shared.”
“You’re right.” He extended his hand for me and guided me to sit between his legs with my back to his chest. “I thought when you came here tonight, I could give you what you wanted.”
“You did.” I looked up at him. “I wanted one night with you. A memory I could take with me and cherish always.”
“I want more than one memory.” He wrapped his arms around my waist. “I want you to stay with me for a few weeks and see what happens. I’m not ready to let you go.”
“You’re asking me to go against my father’s wishes.”
His muscles tensed at the mention of my father. If I had my way, I would stay here. I wanted to get to know him better. I wasn’t ready to leave either, but how could I pull this off without even knowing what I was up against?
“I’m asking you to keep that adventurous, inquisitive side of yours. The one that made you approach me. I want the girl who scaled my fence. Can you be her for me?”
“Will you do something for me?”
“Name it. I might give you the world if you ask.”
“I don’t need the world.” I rested my hands on top of his. “Just some answers.”
“More questions?”
“What happened between you and my father?”
“Those are memories I don’t like to rehash.”
“If I had some background, I might be able to justify going to my father and defying his wishes for you. Shouldn’t I know if that’s something I should even be considering?”
“You shouldn’t have considered coming here tonight and letting me do the things I did to you without knowing who I really am, but that didn’t stop you.”
“That’s when I thought I would get on a plane and never see you again.”
“I’ll tell you as much as I can.” His voice softened. “You’re not going to like the picture I paint.”
“Is the painting honest?”
“I won’t lie to you.”
“Then I’ll listen.”
“I already told you that Leo and I were very close. We trusted one another with our lives.” He twisted a strand of my hair around his finger. “Your father had a business sense like no other. He figured out a way to help the rising families in the city become more lucrative.”
“You assisted with that.”
“Yes,” he said.
“What did you do for him?”
“Whatever was necessary.”
That was an answer my father would give with the same cold tone. My mother and I knew to back off when his mood turned darker. I couldn’t back off now, not if Sebastian wanted me to stay.
“What was necessary?” I asked.
“I was an assassin.” The job description rolled off his tongue as if it were a common position. “A hired gun for the most influential criminals in the world. My reputation preceded me. In some circles, it still does.”
“You kill people for a living?” My father’s world was brutal, but I never thought about the logistics or how people came into power or how other people left the organization. It wasn’t my business to know. Until now…
“Not so much anymore.” He continued to play with my hair, but it wasn’t as gentle as when he first started. He tugged harder and twisted the strands tighter. “I’m semi-retired, but that’s not part of this conversation.”
“What is part of this conversation?” I had just given my body to a killer. I didn’t see that coming. Run to the nearest exit. Don’t walk!
“You asked about my past with your father so you could decide on our future. I’ll give you the skeleton version.” He rubbed his thumb in small circles over my hipbone. “Unless you want to forget what you asked and just stay with me.”
Did someone say silver fox hit man? Sign me up.
“Not a chance.” I settled against his chest. “Tell me what you can.”
“There was a young priest in the neighborhood. Everyone respected and admired him. His name was Father Emilio Santiago.”
“Any relation to Maria?” She was my mother’s best friend and my godmother.
“Her brother.”
“Then you know who she is to me.”
“I do.” He intertwined our fingers. “Maria and I were seeing one another before I left.”
“What?” Could this situation become any more convoluted? “Are you serious?”
“That’s not part of this story either, but I did tell you that you weren’t going to like everything I share with you. Do you want me to continue?”
“Yes.”
“Father Santiago was murdered on the altar late one night. It was a bloody and savage scene. One that haunts me, and I’m not one to hold on to those memories. In my line of work, one really can’t."
“It's awful that he was killed.” I turned in his arms, keeping the blanket secured around me. “Who would do that?” A startling revelation invaded my thoughts. “Did you?”
“When I arrived it was too late.” He reached for my arm and pulled me into his lap.
“After an unfortunate misunderstanding, powerful people came to the conclusion that I had eliminated Father Santiago to silence him for something he had seen. They ordered me to give up the name of the person who had hired me.”
“If you didn’t do it, why didn’t you just tell them that?”
“It was obvious their minds had been made up. I didn’t have any allies in that situation, and if I wanted to live, I had to get creative.”
“What about my father? If you were so close, why didn’t he stand up for you?”
“He had his reasons.” He swiped my hair over my shoulder and skimmed his fingers along my neck. “I had to leave my life behind in order to survive. I left everything. It took me years to reconcile those losses, but I managed to start over.”
“And then I walked into your club.”
“I thought your father had sent you, and it stirred up so many unwanted reminders of betrayal and deception.” He closed his eyes, probably rehashing the life he once cherished.
“All of that was behind me and then there was you. A vision that brought me back to the places I never wanted to go in my mind.”
“I’m sorry.” I brushed his beard with my fingertips. “I didn’t mean to cause pain for you.”
“You haven’t.” He cuffed his hand around my wrist and kissed my fingers. “You’ve awakened something inside me that has been dormant for a very long time. That’s why I can’t let you go.”
“I don’t want to leave yet either.” That stupid little voice of mine shook its finger at me because it feared I wouldn’t listen. Get up and go, girl! You’ve had your fun, now it’s time to go home! “Is that all the story I’m going to get?”
“For now.” He ran his hand along my back. “Let’s put your inquisitiveness to better use, and when we’re done, if you still want to go, I’ll open the door for you myself.”
“I find that hard to believe.”
“You’ll have to trust me.”
He traced his finger over my lips before leaning in and kissing me. My stomach pulsed with desire as the lust flowed between my legs. As our mouths danced together, he maneuvered me onto him until we were one.
I winced when he jostled inside me, but I didn’t want him to stop. Not after experiencing how good we felt together.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“It’s a pleasurable pain.”
“I’m holding back with you.” He trailed his lips to my jaw. “But if you stay with me, I’ll teach you how gratifying this can really be.”
“Don’t tempt me.” I gripped his shoulders, steadying myself as he rocked into me. “I’ll never leave.”
“That’s the point.”
I clasped my legs around him and held on as he thrust into me, lifting me up and sliding me back down. My head swirled and my erratic breaths filled the air between us. I wanted to be the center of his universe, sleeping in his bed every night, and learning everything he wanted to teach me.
The passion inside me burst free, throwing me into an uncontrolled and chaotic climax.
I held onto him with more than the impulse that brought me to him as he filled me with his hot stream of come.
It was a raw need that I couldn’t shake.
Whatever wonder brought me to him was now replaced with necessity.
I had to see whatever this was through or I would never be satisfied.
Was I brave enough to face the consequences?
“You’re incredible.” He swiped my hair from my face. “I can’t get enough of you.”
“I haven’t lived until now.” I rubbed his silver beard. “I feel like I haven’t breathed until you.”
“Are you staying?”
“You don’t have to open the door.” I tucked my unruly curls behind my ear and leaned into his lips. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“I’m going to unlock all of your potential, little minnow. I’ll satisfy your wild side and give you the room to be exactly who you’re meant to be.”
The hunger in his eyes devoured my soul. In two days, I had abandoned my responsibilities and defied my family for this dark, mysterious man who offered me the one thing I’d never had…the freedom to be me.
But by accepting his proposition, would it end up costing me everything?