Chapter 26
Rosie
Enzo’s eyes drift over my face as he lifts his hand and cups my cheek. My pulse instantly kicks into overdrive when his gaze drops to my mouth.
Oh, Jesus. It’s happening.
When my breathing speeds up way too fast, he tilts his head and whispers, “You’re going to pass out on me. Take deeper breaths.”
A wave of embarrassment hits me right in the gut, and as I begin to pull away, he moves his hand to the back of my head and leans into me. The instant his cheek brushes against mine, every muscle in my body freezes and my eyes go wide as saucers.
“Just focus on me.” His breaths ghost over my skin right before he presses a kiss to my jaw. “There’s no need to be nervous or embarrassed. It’s just us.”
His voice is so damn low and seductive, I go weak in the knees and grab hold of his shoulder with my left hand while he keeps my right imprisoned against his chest.
Holy shit, this is intense.
Then I feel Enzo’s heart beating faster, and I realize why he placed my hand there. It’s so I can feel that he’s affected too, and it’s not just me.
His fingers tighten slightly in my hair, and he presses his forehead to mine, and we stay like this for a moment, neither of us speaking.
Emotion wells in my chest, and a lump forms in my throat.
His eyes roam over my face, lingering on my eyes, my cheeks, my mouth, and every time they return to mine, my heart squeezes a little tighter.
The silence isn’t uncomfortable. Instead, it feels precious, like he’s giving me time to catch up to the fact that this is really happening.
We’re happening.
After all these years, Enzo is holding me while I’m on his lap and giving me the time I need to prepare myself for our first kiss.
I swallow hard and whisper, “Enzo.”
“Yeah?” The tenderness in his voice nearly undoes me.
My heart feels too big for my chest as I stare at the man I’ve loved for more than a decade.
There were so many times when I convinced myself this would never happen, that Enzo would never see me as anything more than a friend.
Yet here he is, holding me so tenderly and looking at me like I’m the most important person in his world.
My lips feel dry as I admit, “I think I’m freaking out.”
His gaze softens even more, and the corner of his mouth lifts. “I know. That’s why I’m waiting.”
A shaky breath leaves me. “This is really intense.”
“It is.” The words come out rough and honest.
I stare deep into his eyes, into all the affection he’s never let me see before, into all the tenderness I’ve spent years wishing was there. “How are you so calm?”
Suddenly, emotions flicker across his face.
Agony. Relief. Fear. Love. And something so deep it steals the breath from my lungs.
“I’m far from calm, bella mia.” The endearment sends my pulse racing even faster. His intense gaze drifts over my face again before settling on mine. “I just want this to be perfect for you.”
More emotions flood me, making tears sting my eyes.
For a second, it feels like my heart doesn’t know how to survive the reality that we’re finally a couple and I’m seconds from experiencing my first kiss. With the man I’ve crushed on, no less.
Enzo brushes his thumb over the swell of my cheek, and God, the tenderness in his touch almost hurts.
“I thought I lost you, Rosie.” The confession settles heavily between us. “It was excruciating without you.” I see all the pain he suffered when he thought I was gone. “I never want to live through a day without you again.”
I can’t stop a tear from escaping, and when it rolls over my skin, Enzo gently wipes it away.
The man I’ve loved for half my life is letting me see that the thought of losing me nearly destroyed him.
It feels as if the bond we’ve always shared becomes something sacred, weaving together every broken piece until we’re no longer fractured, but one soul.
“This is me swearing my loyalty to you and only you. I will spend my life guarding and protecting you.” His voice grows even deeper and rougher. “I love you, Rosie.”
He presses a kiss to my cheek, his voice hoarse as he whispers, “I love you so fucking much I can’t function without you.”
My tone is strained with emotion as I look into his eyes and say, “I love you, Enzo. From the very beginning, until the end. There will never be anyone else for me.”
His expression tightens even more, his eyes filled with so much tenderness, it makes me feel treasured.
“You’re my sanity,” he whispers.
I didn’t think it was possible for me to fall any harder, but somehow I do, and the anticipation that’s been building ever since Enzo looked at me with desire tightens until it feels almost unbearable.
Slowly, he leans into me, and I swear I’m aware of every inch of him.
His breaths ghost over my skin, the warmth of his body wrapping around me while his hand tightens in my hair.
The anticipation grows until it feels like it’s a living force, and I swear my heart is one beat away from bursting out of my chest.
God.
For years, I’ve dreamed about Enzo kissing me. I’ve imagined this moment so many times, but none of those fantasies come close to reality, and it hasn’t even happened yet.
Enzo closes the last bit of distance between us, and the instant his mouth touches mine, a shiver surges through me.
Instead of losing my ability to think, I’m highly aware of the warmth of his firm lips.
For one perfect moment, nothing else exists. Not our past, or the years I’ve spent wishing for something I never thought I’d have.
There’s only Enzo.
He tilts his head, and when his mouth nips at mine, I’m utterly overwhelmed by an intense rush of tingles. He lets go of my hair, then grips hold of my jaw and throat, his body pressing into mine and forcing me to lean backward.
Nothing… I mean, absolutely nothing could prepare me for the moment Enzo’s tongue sweeps into my mouth. It feels as if he instantly loses control.
The butterflies in my stomach morph into eagles, my legs go numb, a tremble racks hard through me, and I barely have enough brain function to breathe.
Then he lets out the hottest groan I’ve heard in my entire life, and it’s my turn to lose control.
I lift my hands to the sides of his neck, and following his lead, my tongue brushes his, and I savor what has to be the most addictive taste ever.
My God, this must be heaven.
Enzo kisses me like he’s done holding back, like months of grief, fear, and relief have finally caught up with him.
Every heated tug of his lips leaves me struggling to keep up, but I don’t care. I cling to him and give him everything I have as the intensity between us builds more and more.
A rough sound escapes him before he pulls back, just enough for our eyes to meet, and the look on his face steals whatever breath I have left.
Possessive. Starving. Brutal and completely undone.
“I’m fucking done denying myself the one thing I’ve always wanted.
” He shakes his head and stares so deep into my eyes, I swear he can see into my soul.
‘You.” Clenching his jaw, he shakes his head again.
“I’ve spent years telling myself I couldn’t have you.
Years convincing myself never to cross the line.
” Leaning a little closer, his tone is harsh and deep, and it sounds like a vow as he says, “You are mine. Every single fucking inch of you belongs to me. Got it?”
I remain silent as it finally dawns on me that losing me changed something fundamental in Enzo, and there’s no going back to who he used to be.
He gives me an impatient look and demands, “Answer me, Rosie.”
“Yes, I’m yours.” The words burst from me while heat pools in my core because he’s never been hotter than right now.
Enzo presses his forehead to mine, and his voice cracks when he groans, “Mine.”
Enzo
One fucking kiss, and there’s no more me and no more Rosie. From this moment forward, it’s us against the world.
Impatient to taste more of her, I wrap my fingers around the back of her neck and crush my mouth to hers.
Fucking nirvana.
I groan as my tongue strokes hers, her sweetness bursting over my taste buds.
A tremble racks through my body, and when Rosie moans softly, it does something to me. A desperate need for everything she’s willing to give consumes me, and her eagerness as she follows my lead drives me fucking wild.
I’m rock hard, and when I grab Rosie’s hips and push her down on my cock, air bursts from her.
Then I remember what she requested at the club and rip my mouth away from hers. “Why did you request no orgasm at Paradiso?”
“Huh?” She was so into the kiss it takes a moment for her brain to catch up. She shakes her head. “Sorry, what?”
“Why didn’t you want to orgasm during your appointment at the club?”
“Oh.” She shrugs. “I wasn’t sure I would be able to and didn’t want things to get awkward and for the guy to keep trying.”
I tilt my head. “Is that something you struggle with? Making yourself come.”
She lifts an eyebrow and glances down. “Wow, talk about giving me whiplash. Going from making my toes curl to making me want to crawl under a rock.”
Lifting my hands, I frame her face. “I just want to know so I can make things perfect for you, bella mia.”
Rosie takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly before she admits, “I don’t think it’s something I struggle with.
Sometimes I get it right in a couple of minutes and other times nothing I do works.
” She shrugs again, but then something changes in her eyes, and she begins to look vulnerable.
“It always feels empty and cold with a vibrator.”
I hate that for her. So fucking much.
“Are you okay with me touching you?” I ask.
Her gaze flits over my face, then she nods. “Can I touch you too?”
“Anytime. Anywhere.” I lean into her. “I’m yours, bella mia, and would love to feel your hands on me.”
Shifting forward on my lap, she presses her mouth to mine while her hands brush up and down my chest. Within a split second, I’m absorbed in her, and as our tongues dance to our own unique tune, I knead her lips and bite her bottom lip to my heart’s content.
I move a hand to her hip and push the other beneath her shirt. Trailing my fingers up her spine and over the dragon inked into her soft skin, a satisfied groan rumbles from my chest.
I’m a bit out of practice, but when I manage to unsnap her bra, a grin forms on my face. Breaking the kiss, I shove her shirt and the lace over her head and drop it on the couch.
Rosie’s chest rises and falls way too fucking fast, and her hair is tousled.
Fuck. I’ve never seen anything more sexy in my life.
When I place my hands on her ribs, I look down, and Christ, the sight of her breasts has my cock jerking behind the zipper of my jeans.
In complete awe of her, I move my hands up until my palms cover her perfect swells, and when I brush my thumbs over her nipples, I watch as goose bumps erupt on her skin.
I take in every beautiful inch of her before ducking my head and pressing a kiss to her shoulder. My lips move to a freckle above her left breast, and when I drag them over her nipple, she pushes a hand into my hair.
I feel her breath before she kisses my temple, and the instant I suck her nipple into my mouth, she gasps.
Fuck, I just want to worship her.
Rosie yanks at my shirt, and I let her pull it over my head, then our mouths collide again. Hooking an arm around her, I squash her breasts to my chest, and we both groan from how good it feels.
She breaks the kiss and pulls back, then looking down, her fingertips trail over the ink on my chest and shoulders. “This is why I got the dragon tattoo on my back,” she admits softly, her gaze darting to mine. “Is it creepy?”
I shake my head. “Not at all.”
She got a dragon to match mine. I fucking like that a lot.
Rosie caresses the ridges of my abs, and when she looks at me again, her eyes narrow slightly. “Since when have you loved me?”
I think for a moment, slowly brushing my palms up and down her sides.
“Remember the day I threw you in the pool?” Once she nods, I continue, “When you surfaced and coughed like that while struggling to breathe, my heart all but stopped. I jumped in and felt how fucking cold the water was, and after hauling you out… There was a moment you couldn’t get air into your lungs, and it put the fear of God in me.
” I move a hand up to cup her jaw, my gaze staring deep into hers as she hangs on my every word.
“That’s when I realized you were much more important to me than I had thought. ”
I take a deep breath before I get to what she actually wants to hear.
“The day I came to you after learning I’d tortured Yuki instead of some guy, I realized I loved you because when everything inside me was falling apart, you were the person I needed.
You’re the only one who can quiet the noise in my head. ”
A smile curves Rosie’s mouth. “That happened years ago.”
I nod. “We were already in a routine, and our friendship remained the most important thing to me.” I brush my thumb over her skin.
“I couldn’t risk losing you at the time.
” The hell of losing Rosie for two and a half months shudders through me.
“And now I can’t live without you. Not a single fucking day. ”
She leans in and presses a tender kiss to my mouth before combing her fingers through my hair and looking at me like I hung the fucking moon.
“Never stop looking at me like that,” I beg before I seal our mouths together and get lost in kissing my woman.