Chapter 21
C ALLUM
The following morning
A breeze rolls over the breakfast table in the gazebo. White linens, flowers, fresh food. Coffee that smells like heaven.
I had the staff set the table for her and me––that’s why it's fancy––but she slept in, so my men had coffee with me.
Cosimo sits next to me as we discuss the last details.
“They’ll meet you in Rome,” he says, peering at his phone, checking something unrelated to our conversation.
“Who’s that?” I ask before taking a sip of coffee.
I flick my chin toward his phone.
“Nona.”
“Is she texting you?”
“Usually, she’s not, but she is now.”
“Something happened at the house?”
“That’s what I want to find out.”
I let him do his thing while I shift my eyes to the pool.The weather is perfect for a swim, which I won’t be doing today.
We still have a lot of work to do, especially since I’ll meet them in Rome.
One of the men tells a joke, and they all laugh loudly.
I glance up at the windows of our bedroom, unable to suppress a smile.
She barely rode her horse last night.
We ended up fucking two more times, which must’ve been painful, to say the least, and she was still bleeding.
Not much, but she was.
She insisted we’d do it again. And although I was convinced she was doing it for me more than for herself, I couldn’t say no to her.
She wouldn’t take no for an answer. Besides, we felt so damn good together. I didn’t lie when I said we’d have a lot of fun together.
She fell into my arms as she slid off her horse, and I carried her upstairs.
Good thing we didn’t run into anyone.
Later, she shed her clothes and joined me in the shower.
We kissed in the stream of water, and then I cleaned her thoroughly, like she mattered to me––because she does.She watched me with grateful eyes, which she’s done a lot lately.
Before long, we hit the bed and fell asleep.
She was still sleeping when I walked out this morning.
“Giorgio and Sylvia packed their bags and left,” Cosimo says, reading Nona’s message. “It was an unplanned leave, according to Nona. They left no instructions.”
I put my drink down and pull out my phone. A moment later, the line is ringing.
Nona answers at once.
“What’s going on?”
“I was just texting Cosimo.”
“Yes, I know.”
“They left this morning.”
“Where?”
“They didn’t say. I found out they were gone when I woke up. And I wake up early.”
“Took a driver?”
“Yes. He hasn’t returned yet. So, maybe it’s some local destination. I don’t know.”
Someone speaks in the background before she talks to me again.
“Let me call you back. The driver just pulled in.”
I hang up and look at Cosimo.
“What do you think, Boss?”
“They’re doing what we’re doing. They’re looking for backup.
It’s going to be war. There’s no doubt about it.
I can’t tell which side the Gallos will be on or whether they’re playing Varela’s hand or not.
As far as I know, Varela dislikes relying on his enemies. According to him, everyone’s an enemy.”
“That’s what I’ve heard,” he murmurs just before my phone rings again.
“He drove them to the airport. They’re flying to New York.”
“You heard that,” I say to Cosimo. “Did anything happen at the house?”
“They were on the phone a lot,” she says, quietly, as if hiding from the rest of the staff.
“What kind of mood were they in?”
“They weren’t in a good mood. And Flavia travels with them, too.”
“No kidding.”
I look at Cosimo again.
“All right. Keep us posted. And keep it to yourself. It’s hard to tell who’s reporting back to them in that house.”
I set my phone down and glance at the windows again.
“They’re surely onto something,” I murmur, distracted, and before long he looks at the house, too.
I just noticed Lani’s silhouette on the second floor, and now the door opens, and she steps out, wearing a two-piece swimsuit.
“Okay. Round up your boys, and give them something to do away from the pools. Preferably inside. Chop, chop,” I say, grinning as Cosmo rises from his seat and signals to his men to follow him, while I murmur to myself. “The princess is about to tease me.”
My eyes move over her bouncy tits, teasingly curved hips, long legs, and the hair that frames those mesmerizing eyes. I can’t believe I entered her last night and filled her with my cum.
She gives me a little wave as she struts to the pool, wearing heels?
The fuck.
I nod at her in a soft greeting, wearing a wolfish grin.
I hope her pussy is no longer sore. I’m already packing a raging erection.
Carefully staging her moves, she slides off her heels, propping a hand on the balustrade and angling her chest so I can see her boobs moving, almost spilling out from her bra.
I’d like nothing more than to remove it and let her swim without one. It’s not possible. Not here. Not with so many men on the property.
Still smiling, she ties her hair into a bun at the top of her head and descends into the water before she starts swimming, careful not to wet her hair.
I look at the back of her head until she reaches the concrete edge across from the gazebo, pulls out of the water, lets me lust after her juicy behind, and then, out of nowhere, does the last thing she should be doing.
She removes her bra, lets her hair down, and dives into the pool headfirst.
I rise at once and look around the property, making sure no one’s eyes are on her.
Sliding a hand into my pocket to distract anyone who might be looking from how hard I am, I walk to the pool, biting my lip.
I’m in so much trouble.
And soon she’ll be in trouble, too.
LEILANI
The underwater world is quiet, clear, and safe.
I push the blocks of water under me before the air becomes too scarce, and I shoot up to the surface to fill my lungs again.
My back faces the gazebo as I inch closer to the edge.
A smile grows on my lips as his footsteps ring nearby.
Resting my elbows on the concrete, I tilt my head to the side and watch him walk to me.
Italian shoes, sharp pants, sleek waistcoat, open neckline, a white shirt, sleeves rolled up.
Dark tattoos on his bronzed arms.
Blindingly gray eyes.
Shiny dark hair.
He is the epitome of hot sex as he looks at me with that prowling leopard hunger in his eyes.
“You like to live dangerously, don’t you?” he asks, with humor, his lips curled into a teasing smile.
I feel the effect of those lips even now.
They left me yearning for more last night.
They gave me a wet dream this morning when I woke up, clenching my thighs, and crumpling the sheet on his side of the bed with a tense hand.
What we did last night has changed my life and the way I see this world.
This can be fun, so much fun.
But with him, it can also be transformational.
I feel tied to him in ways I can’t even describe.
It’s like his blood runs through my veins. Like his fire licks at my heart.
I can’t stop thinking about him.
Not even when I’m asleep.
All I dreamed about was him being inside me. My dreams were so real that I thought he’d fucked me this morning while I was asleep.
He probably didn’t. I would’ve known.
I’m still in pain.
My body still hurts from last night. Not from his lips. Or his hands.
My pussy mostly does from the pounding he has given me. And yet, that doesn’t stop it from pulsing softly as I look at him.
He picks up a big towel from a nearby lounging area and flicks it open while I laugh and swim away from him.
“You want me to get into the pool with you today?”
“Uh-huh,” I say, laughing.
“Won’t happen today. I’ve got stuff to do. Maybe tonight.”
I laugh to myself.
He wants to make sure no one can see us.
“Sure,” I say to him.
He smirks at me, as I’m misbehaving, fully aware I’ll be in a lot of trouble soon.
“Get out, baby. There’s stuff we need to do inside.”
My center throbs at his words. If that’s the kind of stuff he has in mind, I can’t wait.
But I still want to play with him a little, so I swim a little longer, making sure I keep my distance.
Patiently, he walks around the pool, ensuring I’m doing laps under his eyes, his gun holstered under his arm, the sun shining on his broad shoulders.
Even having this view in front of me, with him following me, concerned that someone else might see me, makes it all worth it.
Eventually, I get tired and have to stop.
The pool isn’t deep enough for me to stand, and without that option, I have to return to the edge.
He stops in front of me, drops the towel next to me, and peers down.
The magnetism of those eyes will follow me into eternity.
His gaze slips to my boobs.
The bottom is underwater, the top on full display.
He gets all that with a playful smile.
“Don’t make me shoot someone today, Leilani,” he says quietly, while I bring my hand to the strings of my bikini.
“No one can see me. Only you,” I argue, tugging at them in a tease. “You can cover me when I walk out. I just want you to see me.”
He purses his lips before casting a glance around the compound. By the time he shifts his eyes back to me, my bottoms float on the water.
I touch myself under his eyes. The water is clear, so he can see everything.
How my fingers pinch a nipple. How my hand moves through my folds and touches my clit.
And then…
How I knead my breasts and stroke my pussy again.
His eyes stay on my hand, once in a while meeting my stare, while mine get drunk on his reaction.
“Okay. Enough,” he says, glancing around again. “Let’s go inside.”
He adjusts himself and picks up the towel before tossing it on me.
It soaks up the water while I smile, amused.
“You wrap it around your body now.”
“What about my bikini?” I say as it floats toward the middle of the pool.
“Forget about it. Let’s go inside.”
He touches his groin again, and I notice his big bulge.
I do my best to wrap the towel around my chest and move slowly toward the pool stairs.
“Make sure it doesn’t fall off,” he warns me as I take the first step up.
He watches me patiently until I finally touch the ground, and then, in one swift move, wraps his arms around me, lifts me up, and drapes me over his shoulder as I protest loudly.