Chapter 23
Donatello
As I pulled Emmeline on top of me, I gauged her sincerity by the glimmer in her eyes. When I ripped out the tie holding her hair in a ponytail, she gasped as if I’d caused her injury.
“Now it’s my turn to be in charge. From here on out you’ll follow my every command.”
“You just think I will,” she cooed.
“Oh, I know you will. Unless you want your bottom reddened every day. Come to think of it, not a bad idea.” As a little reminder, I pulled her from the water, cracking my hand across her bottom three times.
“Oh, you’re such a bastard.”
“I am.” I repeated the move, enjoying the shocked look on her face almost as much as the act itself. My fingertips were already tingling, electric sensations rocketing through me.
So I did it again, this time with a more brutal smack than before.
“Ouch. I haven’t done anything wrong. At least recently.”
“Recently being the key word. Since this is our wedding night, I’ll need to start your weekly spanking regime.”
“Oh, no, you don’t. You’re not going to spank me weekly.”
I cracked my palm against her bottom once again and this time, we both sloshed water onto the floor. Afterward, I rubbed my jaw. “You’re right. How silly of me. Daily.” I added another two, all while my desire was burning hotly, so much so I feared the water would begin to boil.
Her nose turned up, her eyes pinpoints of prickling light. “That’s not going to happen.”
“Well, I do realize it will take you some time to get used to it, but I’ll learn to have patience all while marking your lovely bottom.”
“Not happening,” she purred.
I’d be damned if the woman wasn’t tempting both the beast curled inside as well as the devil himself. Talk about taking risks.
Her family would never go for allowing me into a permanent role within the family.
Granted, Baptiste had talked about utilizing my loyalty in an alliance with another crime syndicate years before.
I’d known what he’d meant and had been eager and willing to step up should he have asked. This wasn’t the same.
At least not in my mind.
“Mmmm…” She slipped her arms around my shoulders while shifting back and forth across my already aching cock.
“My little troublemaker,” I whispered and continued enjoying the quiet moment shared between us.
I had to be asking for a bullet to the brain.
Marriage? The concept was something I’d never wanted.
Not once.
Well, maybe I had thought about what it would be like to have a tight family like I’d once had, even comparing what I’d consider the perfect family with the Princes. However, never had I truly given it enough thought to even consider if I’d make good husband material.
And I wouldn’t.
All I had to do was to give it minimal thought. Coming home late from work would take on an entirely new meaning. And there would be no hazard pay. What about if we had kids and…
The same ugly reality of what she was facing and enduring hit me. In truth, the thought of bringing children into this misguided world seemed outrageous. Even if Emmeline would make an amazing mother.
We’d toyed around everything else in the last few days, more so than in the number of years we’d known each other. The torment both physically and emotionally had been bound to leak over, affecting our hearts.
But right now, the organ I’d often wondered if I even owned was pounding with such intensity I couldn’t breathe.
I gripped her hips, pulling her up from her sexy lap dance.
When I slipped the tip of my cock against her swollen folds, she stopped moving altogether.
I did so adore her tempting smile and the way her long eyelashes skimmed across her porcelain skin.
I even took additional time brushing her cheek with my thumb, completely enamored by how different she looked tonight.
Every inch of skin glowing.
She gripped my shoulders, darting her eyes back and forth across mine as she undulated her body so my cock slid inside. Her lower lip quivered and I could see both dozens of questions as well as thoughts roaming around in her huge brain.
Her analogy of why our coupling would work lingered in my mind, which was crazy. There were no similarities between French Cajun and Italian families.
Other than their strong belief in religion.
Okay, and maybe their love of family.
Their acts and requirement of loyalty.
Her subtle moans pulled me away from an anxiety I hadn’t expected. “So beautiful,” I whispered.
I pressed my lips against her cheek, inhaling her sultry perfume. Her scent alone brought an intense ache to my dick every time.
She pulled up from her seated position, purposely sloshing the water.
Chuckling, I was surprised she was able to be as playful as she was, but I loved every second of her letting go. The walk on the beach. The conversation. The playful command. Even the music she’d selected. I’d never had this before. Not once. Nor had I wanted anything like it.
But I’d come to learn there was a first time for everything.
I rolled one hand up and down her back while dragging my tongue from one side of her jaw to the other.
Her eyes were closed, her body quivering uncontrollably even with beads of perspiration trickling down both sides of her face. They shimmered in the flickering candlelight, keeping my attention drawn.
The feel of having my cock deep inside was an even more powerful draw than before. My balls were throbbing almost as much, the need to fill her with my seed as strong as anything else.
Including controlling her.
She seemed so tiny in my hold, so vulnerable. But there was very little about her that didn’t scream of strength or authority. Just something else that attracted me about her.
With her eyes half closed, she moved up and down my shaft, taking her time to do so.
I pulled my head away, relaxing against the back of the tub. Why not allow her to do all the work? She noticed the grin on my face, pressing her hand against my chest. “Be careful, big beast. I’ve been called a she-wolf in woman’s clothing, which means I do bite.”
“I’m waiting for you to do so, but I don’t think you will.”
Another little dare, another challenge accepted. Leaning over, she bit my neck and I’d be damned if it didn’t feel as if she’d broken the skin.
“Ouch!” As soon as she backed away, I slapped my hand against the spot.
She threw her head back, laughing and there was a single spot of blood on her lip. Without so much as a second of hesitation, I captured her mouth and fisted a handful of her hair. Her moan caught in the moment was a perfect representation of how we both felt.
As the taste of copper filled my mouth, I was reminded that she was right in that what we were sharing wasn’t normal. That’s why we’d initiated the games so long before. Maybe as a way of killing the boredom, while being the only way we could pretend our admiration had hopes of going anywhere.
The love–hate line was thin in any relationship, but in one where the balance of power was mixed with a heavy dose of danger, nothing was as it seemed. Not one damn thing.
I kissed her fiercely, as if this would be our last kiss until the end of time.
Being able to sweep my tongue inside her mouth was special, almost as much as having her in my arms. She remained unmoving as the moment of intimacy took on a life of its own, becoming rougher as our needs intensified.
Emmeline was as insatiable as I was, perhaps even more so now that I’d given her not only the opportunity but also the excuse for taking what she wanted.
After our tongues entwined for a full minute, she pushed me away, taking gasping breaths and laughing. Her eyes were already dilated, the gentle lighting highlighting the rich color of her irises.
She was truly a beautiful creature.
“I love your piercing,” she murmured.
“Oh, you do, huh.”
As she nodded her head ever so slowly, the time allowed me to tweak her nipple.
We rocked together, never blinking, barely breathing.
That was the way of lovers. There was nothing else more important in the world than the two of them.
That’s the way I felt about her. For all the years I’d tried so hard to be nothing but annoyed by her, the joy in being right here, right now was well worth any amount of physical torture.
Her soft lips remained pursed and as I rubbed the rough pads of my fingers of one hand along her spine, she took short, uneven breaths. Did she have any idea what she was doing to me? Could she know that I was pushed past limits of desire that few men were ever allowed?
The water softly lapped against the sides of the tub, daring to spill onto the floor. That didn’t stop her actions or her increasing needs. She arched her back, throwing back her head until she was able to study the ceiling. Her tight little nipples were too incredible and tempting to resist.
So I didn’t.
Cupping both, I swirled my tongue around one, taking my time doing so.
Her skin was sweet even mixed with the hint of bubbles from the water.
Not that a little soap would stop me. I flicked the tip back and forth until she moaned in response.
Every time she lifted her lips until only my cockhead remained inside her tight wetness, I was worried she’d continue with her acts of torment.
Which meant I could need to continue punishing her for acts of insolence. Why was it that my mouth watered from the thought? Because I was a very bad man.
I rolled my lips to her other breast, not only suckling on her tender nipple but also biting down until she cried out in pain.
“Wicked. Wicked man.”
The taste of her soft skin lingered in my mouth, enough so my stomach rumbled with additional need that had nothing to do with food. After getting my fill, which took some time, I lifted my head. Hell, my eyes were unfocused.