This words leave me questioning everything, Does he want just a physical connection, or is there something deeper here? I want to ask, but I’m afraid of adding more contusion to my already chaotic emotions. It feels like I’vended on a new, unfamiliar world


    With Luciano, things were never like this–nni was right. As unsettling as it was to gag on him, it was also thrilling Eachpliment and finnst spurred <b>me </b>on to please him even more. I wanted to be the one who made him happy, who made him


    The salty tang of his cum still lingers on my tongue. Before now, had never swallowed. It wasn’t half as bad as I expected. If anything, I feel closer to him than I ever did before. Even through the worst of it, we were in it together. He pushed my boundaries, but wanted it.


    My thighs rub together<b>, </b>the insides slick with the juices of arousal by the time he helps me to my feet Another first just having him in my mouth, listening to his grunts and the filthy things he said, was almost enough to make mee. <b>And </b>the way be used me so roughly, holding me in ce, forcing his cock into my mouth, it made my pussy drip just like he said.


    That was then. Now he’s tender, sweet. I can almost forget how brutally he treated me only moments ago.


    He cups my cheeks in his palms, studying my face. I wonder what he is searching for. Whatever it is, that’s what I want to be.” You are the best kind of torture, Caterina.” His voice is full of wonder, as he gazes at me as if I’m the most precious thing in the world


    My heart swells and warms, <b>and </b>I hope it’s not something he’ll regretter.


    “I shouldn’t have touched you,” he admits, a wry smirk tugging theer of his mouth. “God knows I should’ve walked away. should’ve stopped what I was doing the night I saw you in the kitchen.”


    <b>H </b>


    His chest rises and falls in a sigh. “But I didn’t. <b>I </b>couldn’t even if I tried.” Pulling me closer until our breaths mingle, he whispers, “There’s something about you I haven’t been able to turn away from. That I can’t let go of, that I don’t want to lose<b>.</b>”


    “I know what you mean.” That was tough to admit, but the raising at his brow–like he’s happy to <b>hear </b>it makes it worthwhile and gives me more courage to continue. “I’ve been telling myself it’s wrong, and I should stay away from you. I knew it was wrong that night when I found you on the patio<b>, </b>and then everything fell apart that night on your desk. But ever since then, 1 couldn’t stop myself from thinking about you.”


    Now that I’ve started, it’s easier to tell him everything I’ve been bottling <b>up </b>all these years. “I’ve wanted you for so long, but…I always told myself you would only <b>see </b>me as a little girl”


    There is a tinge of regret in his chuckle “Tonly wish I could see you like that. It would make all of this a lot easier.”


    My heart’s ready to explode, my pussy dripping, and all he’s doing is touching my face. I’m gripped with confusion; my questions, doubts, and yearning swirl around until I don’t know which way is up, I trust Gianni. I want him. So badly. But I’m still conflicted. We need to talk about his reaction from the other night. <b>Was </b>it fear, or was he trying to push me away?


    Suddenly, the vulnerability hits me, and I’m ovee with the need to lide myself, like that will protect me from the intensity of what we’re exploring. I reach around him, grabbing for the nightshirt I left on the bed before getting in the shower.


    He waits until I’ve pulled the oversized shirt over my head and thrust my arms through the sleeves before speaking. “Whose shirt is that?”


    I should lie. I <b>don’t </b>want to ruin the moment we’re having by bringing Luciano up, but the tune of his voice bridges no excuse. I’d only make it worse by lying.


    “It’shis, isn’t it?” he answers for me. Disgust drips from his voice and anger, which gets my heart pounding all over again.


    Inod, gulping. “I should’ve gotten rid of it, maybe burned it, but as in such a hurry to pack everything and get out of there. I had to get away from the memories. I didn’t think to throw it out!


    I can’t believe how guilty I feel when I haven’t done anything wrom: “And I always use big T–shirts as nightgowns,” Ladd, like that’s going to help things. “It’s just a shirt,”


    The silence stretches between us, and I shiver beneath his gaze ni ispletely still, down to his story expression Damm, Luciarin Helinds a way to ruin everything, even when he’s not a part of it.


    My heart’s on the verge of giving out by the time his hand shoots out like a striking snake. It curls around my throat and lifts


    very hair m my body with the slightest pressure


    “Lam going to destroy that shirt.” He speaks slowly, carefully enunciating, while his grip tightens


    I don’t know what parme this is only know it’s unnerving and exching, the way he slides out of one mood and into another out of nowhere. I neverw what’sing next. I yelp in surprise when be releases my throat and wraps an arm around my waist, lifting me and cing me over his shoulder. At first, I imagine him throwing me onto the bed, but he marches toward the door


    prapuj


    “Where are we going? I squeak out as he carries me down the hall


    I really hope nobody sees is, like his guards or his cook. Tatiana can’t find out. No matter what happens.


    He doesn’t seem to care about any of that as he continues carrying me through <b>to </b>his side of the second floor. “Ourbed<b>.</b>”


    Our bed? What does that mean?” My head is already spinning, thanks to <b>hanging </b>over Gianni’s shoulder and how suddenly this is all happening. He had to go and add a twist that makes my heart face and my breathe short. Our bed


    1 barely get a good look at therge, masculine room with its dark wood furnishings before he sets me on the king–size bed. The silk duvet is soft against my bare legs, and the scent of his spicy cologne hangs in the air. I want to wrap myself up in it.


    Fear and anticipation singe my nerves, and it freezes me solid when he takes the neck of the shirt in both hands–tearing it open, shredding the thin cotton. My heart jumps, and my nipples pebble when the cold air hits them.


    But he’s the real <b>reason</b>, just as he’s the reason I’m wet enough to squelch a little when I mp my thighs together.


    His eyes are almost ck by the time he pulls the ruined shirt from my body and crumples it in his fist. “If you want an oversized shirt,” he growls, “you’ll wear one <b>of </b>mine. Do you understand?<b>” </b>


    “Yes.” I gulp


    A look of deep satisfaction washes over his face, softening some of the sharp edges. “Good girl.”


    e, want me. Knowing I please


    Hearing him say that does something to me. All I’ve ever wanted is for him to see me, notice me, him is like the cherry on top.


    The shirt falls from his fist and hits the floor. “<b>Do </b>you trust me?”


    There’s only one answer he wants to hear, and it’s the only answer that <b>makes </b>any sense. I do trust him, even when he keeps me on the edge of my seat with all his mysterious mood swings.


    “Yes.” I <b>mean </b>it with all my heart


    Without another word, he walks to the foot of the bed and reaches down for something at eacher. I swear I forget to breathe. Watching, waiting. The anticipation has the power to kill me.


    At first, I’m not sure what I’m looking at. There are ck ropes with wide leather cults attached to the ends. I can’t figure it out right away.


    Not until he pulls out a third rope near the headboard. And a fourth


    Restraints.


    No wonder he wanted to know if I trusted film…


    My pulse takes off at triple speed. He’s going to tie me to the bed.


    12


    Oh, pod, yes. He’s going to te me in the bed


    I’m not <b>afraid</b>. I’m impatient. Tied to Gni’s bed. No way of stopping him from doing whatever he wants. Being at his merry My brain tells me no, but I want this. Want him.


    “Lie down.” There is no disobeying, especially when his jaw is clere hed so tight his math barely moves. He’s a man holding on by the skin of his teeth. Something dark and dangerous strains inside him, threatening to break loose and wreak havoc on me


    It’s easy to lie back then and give myself to him. I want II. Whatever it is.


    12.1


    “That’s right,” he mutters, wrapping the cuff around my left wrist cinching the metal buckle until I wince from the pressure.” You need to leam, and this is the only way I can teach you


    so intense 1


    I’m as confused as ever, even though my body’s <b>all</b>–in. Blood racing, skin flushed, the ache between my thighs so could cry. It he doesn’t touch my pussy soon, I might die..


    “We need to break down those walls you’ve built around yourself, he continues in <b>a </b>deceptively smooth voice, cuffing my left ankle, then my right. “You’ve spent your entire life telling yourse not to go too far. Haven’t you?”


    I nod, watching him test the strength of the restraints with a sharphug. He’s efficient like he’s done this before. I guess if he has restraints lying around like this, it means he’s experienced.


    If I could pick anybody to introduce me to these dark delights, I’mad it’s him. That thought <b>eases </b>the tension in my shoulders and back, making it easier to settle against the pile of pillows behind me


    The final cuff cinches tight around my right wrist, digging into my flesh. I test the strength of the leather with a bug that does nothing but make the edge dig deeper. At first, it appears to be enough for him to stand back and stare at me. Goosebumps cover my skin everywhere his gazends.


    “Think about everything you’ve denied yourself. All the pleasure you could’ve enjoyed.” He continues his slow study of my naked body while unbuttoning his tailored shirt, then opening it to reveal his inked chest and torso. Deep hunger unfurls in my core, and my fingers twitch at the thought of tracing every line until I know each tattoo by heart.


    “I’m the man who’s going to tear down those walls and show you everything you’ve missed.” He kicks off his shoes, then slowly lowers his pants to reveal the bulge behind his boxers. I was already hot and wet, but his little strip tease leaves me soaking the sheets.


    When he takes his huge, thick shaft in one hand, I tense from head to toe. My mouth waters. He came minutes <b>ago</b>, but he’s already rock hard. He looks chiseled from marble, his body covered in corded muscle and smooth, tanned skin. More beautiful than I ever imagined. And I did a lot of imagining.


    This is no dream. This is real, no matter how unbelievable it seems


    yand stay


    Slowly, he climbs onto the foot of the bed, between my spread legs. His half–lidded eyes zero in on my exposed pussy a there while he strokes himself.


    “Look how wet this pretty pussy is.” His words are like magic, malding <b>me </b>shiver even though there’s <b>a </b>furnace burning in my core. “I bet you’d feel like hot silk wrapped around my cock Squeezing, begging for my seed.”


    Why don’t you find out?I don’t know what’s happening to me or who I’m turning into. <b>I </b>almost said that out loud. This must be what he means by the walls around me. The way I hold myself back


    1 lift my <b>head</b><b>, </b>watching with my heart in my throat as he lines his bulbous purple head up with my flooded cleft takes is the slightest pressure against what is already swollen and throbbing to make me lift my hips as much as ttán.


    “That’s it,” he croons, brushing the head of his cock through my gollen folds. “Give in to what you want. Don’t stop yourself”


    “It feels… so good…” My head rolls from side to side, and the sweetest sensations ripple through me. “More. More.”


    “Are you on birth control?” he asks when his head slides dangeroesly close to my entrance.


    I strain against the ropes holding me still.


    I’ve never been this needy, but nobody has taken me to such a pleasurable ce, where it feels like my life hangs in the bnce of whateveres next.


    “Yes, the pill,” I grunt, struggling to get him inside. There is nothing standing between us. Why is he hesitating?


    “There’s too much risk,” he mutters<b>, </b>seemingly to himself, his brow furrowed like he’s struggling “I’d have to settle for this.”


    121


    “Oh, my god!” Mycry echoes through the room when he presses his head against my needy hole but goes no further. Nerve endings sizzle and dance, the tension strong enough to drive me out of my skull “More! Please! Please, I need you to hack me


    “Just the tip,” he mullers over my cries, teasing me before moving back to the folds around my clit


    It’s not the same, but it’s just <b>as </b>good–maybe better, since the friction be creates,bined with his grunts of pleasure, <b>sends </b>me racing toward the edge of the cliff. My body doesn’t care about fight or wrong. All it wants is more


    Jerking his hips, he drives himself up and down the length of my sapping pussy. “I can’t even describe how beautiful you look tied to the bed at myplete merry.” He’s breathing hard, losing himself the way I am. “Give it to me. Give me that orgasm Caterina Come for nie.”


    I’m going to. I’m so <b>close</b>, my muscles contract, my body tensing until 1 seize up–then shatter, screaming wordlessly in the wake of my release after so much tension. Waves of bliss wash over me while I writhe helplessly and croak the only word I can think of “Gianni! Gianni!”


    Arush of warmth startles me out of my <b>haze</b>. I open my eyes and look down the length of my torso to find himing again, this time on my stomach. He’s coating it in his sticky fluid


    I don’t understand the <b>swell </b>of pride the sight brings me. How right it feels for him to mark me with his release. Like he owns


    <b>ΠΙΕ </b>


    He does


    He swipes a hand through his cum, and 1 watch with amazement as he rubs it in like lotion all across my pussy. Marking me further. Making sure there’s no cleaning him off me.


    Our eyes meet, and he offers <b>a </b>ghost of a grin.


    “Mine. All mine.


    Inod, caught up in the moment. Fascinated <b>by </b>him. Wanting him all over again.


    “Such a good girl. You trusted me. Turns out I might make an obedient girl out of you after all” His smile warms me to the tips of my toes


    I wish I could let his voice soothe me into rxation, but now that the crazy rush of yearning <b>has </b>passed, there’s nothing but cold, hard reality in its wake, and I’m reminded of my betrayal. Tatiana would kill me if she found out. This would destroy our friendship


    “Are you sure this is right?” thate myself for asking, but I have to can’t pretend we’re the only people in the world.


    His lips gather in a thin line of what has to be disappointment. Ibrace myself for his anger–I should’ve waited until he untied me–but all he says is, “Stop doubting yourself. Are you an <b>adult</b>, Caterina?”


    He keeps rubbing, almost massaging his jizz into my skin. “Do you want this?”


    I don’t have to think about it. “Yes.”


    He nods slowly before meeting my gaze, unblinking “Then it doesn’t matter whether this is right or wrong. All that matters is what we want.


    I mull it over while he unbuckles my restraints. All that matters is us. Is that true? I can’t believe how much I want it to be


    “How do you feel?” He takes my chafed wrist in both hands and rubs it tenderly, his thumb tracing the pink line the leather left behind “<b>Does </b>this hurt?”


    “Not really<b>, </b>no. 1 smile.


    <b>“</b>Fucking perfect “He presses his lips to my wrist before leaning down and, to my surprise, brushing his mouth against mine. His kiss is gentle and sweet, but enough to set my soul on fire. He saks his hands into my hair and cradles my head, his tongue sweeping the seam of my lips, tantalizing but stopping short of plenging inside.


    “Let me hold


    you, ,“he whispers, peppering tiny kisses over my mouth. “Please


    Our eyes meet, and we share a smile before he pulls back the duver, <b>and </b>I scurry underneath it. He follows, stretching out on his back and holding his arms out to me.


    Nothing in the world could stop me from settling against his firm chest, resting against him, <b>and </b>closing my eyes as his arms encase me. Anns as strong as I knew they would be. For the first ten days, it’s easy for me to rx. As much as I want to stay awake and savor every minute of this, the sleep I’ve missed out on since the breakup catches up to me all at once and pulls me


    under.


    Thest thing I hear is Gianni whispering my name. “Caterina My sweet Caterina.”


    I’m smiling when I fall asleep.


    I wake up alone, but not abandoned. As I sit up and survey my surroundings with a sinking heart, I find <b>a </b>tray of food on the nightstand coffee, muffins<b>, </b>and fruit. How did he manage to bring this in without waking me? I must have needed more rest than I realized.


    On the tray, there’s something else that catches my eye: a neatly folded gray T–shirt on Gianni’s pillow. As I search the floor for my old shirt, I realize it’s gone. He’s made sure all traces of Luciano are erased.


    I can’t help but grin, stifling a smile as it it’s wrong to feel this happy. Pulling the soft shirt over my head, I inhale deeply. It ? smells like him–spicy, woodsy<b>, </b>with a hint of musk. I press the fabric to my nose and breathe in his scent.


    I sight of the basics.


    I can’t remember thest time I felt this happy. I was so busyancing myself my life was fine that I lost s There’s a lot of lost time to make up for, and I think Gan might be the key to that


    Right or wrong, it doesn’t matter when we’re together.


    I finish the food quickly and slip back to Tatiana’s side of the house, making sure no one sees me. I text Gianni:


    <b>Me</b>: Thank you for the shirt


    <b>And </b>then, whispering to myself as I hit send: And I got the message


    He doesn’t want anyone in my life but him.